Rolando 2016

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 US Open finalist Roberta Vinci sent defending
champion Petra Kvitova to the sidelines in a third-round upset on a
rainy Wednesday at the Wuhan Open, beating the Czech 7-6 (7-3), 6-2.
Romanian top seed Simona Halep was also toppled as she lost to
streaking British qualifier Johanna Konta, going down 6-3, 3-6, 7-5.
The Briton has reached her third quarter-final of a breakthrough
season.
The 66th-ranked Konta has been on a tear over the summer, with her
victory denying Halep a 40th win this season. Konta scored her first
win against a top five players as she put out the number two in two
and a quarter hours with five breaks of serve.
Konta has now won 17 matches in a row between WTA and lower-level
tournaments.
The showcase matches were played on under the covered roof of the
event's new 15,000-seat stadium while contests on outside courts were
interrupted.
Vinci was competing for the first time since beating Serena Williams
in a New York semi-final shock and then losing to fellow Italian
Flavia Pennetta in the final.
Third seed Kvitova, winner of the inaugural edition of the tournament
in this city of nearly 10 million, has been playing for the past few
months with a case of glandular fever, which she says is slowly
improving.
Vinci, seeded 15th, came back after Kvitova raced off to a 4-0 lead
in 15 minutes. The Italian managed to turn the tide and eventually
seize the momentum to earn her straight-sets success.
"Against Petra it's always tough to play - she's an incredible
player, she won last year here - but I played a really good match,"
said Vinci.
"She played so well the first few games so I tried not to think about
this and focus."
Vinci will next face another Czech in eighth seed Karolina Pliskova,
who put out Elina Svitolina, the number 12, in a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 win.
Spanish fifth seed Garbene Muguruza beat number nine Ana Ivanovic
4-6, 6-1, 6-0 to take a big step towards qualifying for the
eight-player WTA year-end event in Singapore in late October.
Wimbledon finalist Muguruza currently stands 11th in the points chase
but is climbing the ranks with each victory.
"I have no idea. I don't know how's it going.," said the number
eight. "If I go, it's going to be great. If not, it's also going to
be good.
"But I'm not going to be that obsessed with Singapore. I'm doing
well. Definitely I'm trying to go, but I just want to stay calm."
After losing the first set, Muguruza barely gave Ivanovic a look-in
as she completed her domination of the final two sets.
"In the first set I think Ana was playing good - I was playing good
also," Muguruza said.
"But I don't know, in the important moments I didn't find my best
level. In the second and the third I found my way, and my tennis
level was great. So I'm very happy with my improvement through in the
match."
She will take on Anna Schmiedlova, a winner over Kristina Mladenovic
6-4, 6-2. American Venus Williams, who won a 700th career victory in
the previous round, continued her run of form by defeating Spain's
seventh seed Carla Suarez Navarro 6-3, 6-4.