Million Dollar Simona

With the 2013 season nearing its end, the highest ranked eight WTA champions got to dispute one last big prize at the Tournament of Champions in Sofia. Held for the second consecutive year in the Bulgarian capital, the event welcomed red-hot Romanian Simona Halep, Australian Sam Stosur, Russians Maria Kirilenko, Elena Vesnina, and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Frenchwoman Alize Cornet, as well as guest stars, Ana Ivanovic and home-hope Tsvetlana Pironkova.

Simona Halep was not only the No.1 seed, she was also a strong pick for the title. I’ve talked about this a couple of times, but I was genuinely stunned to witness the huge progress she made in the last couple of months. Although tired, the Romanian was extremely motivated to end her stellar season on a high. A recent champion in Moscow just a few weeks ago, Simona maintained the winning momentum, cruising through three straight-sets victories to win group A and book her place in the semifinals. As expected, things got a bit more difficult at this stage. Once again, her on-court serenity came to the rescue, helping her overcome two-time titlist Ana Ivanovic 2-6,6-1,6-3 in an entertaining come-from-behind thriller. Cheered heavily by an army of Romanian fans, Halep showed she was hungrier than ever. Even though she was outhit in the opening set of the final by Sam Stosur, she kept her cool head, managing to put forth another sensational display to come out on top once again against the Aussie. The 2-6,6-2,6-2 victory left her savouring the biggest and sweetest success of her career.

For me, Simona’s incredible transformation represents one of the highlights of the season. It’s like she woke up one day a new player, a player who suddenly knew exactly what she needed to do on the court to beat her opponent. It’s like she suddenly had an answer to everything. Her run is magnificent. With six titles and a career high of No.11, the young Romanian is announcing herself as one of the leading star of 2014. With basically no points to defend until Rome, Simona is expected to crack the top 10 when the new season resumes in January. I doubt she can claim a Grand Slam just yet, but a favourable context can be all she needs to get a big result.

Compared to other teen prodigies who bloomed early on the tour, Simona has had her share of trials and tribulations, which have prevented her to make her mark until now. I believe the experience was beneficial though because she is now ready to properly digest everything that’s coming her way. It happened the same with Azarenka. Once she shook off the failed expectations and focused on playing her game, Vika was almost invincible. As Azarenka’s, Simona’s growth is organic. Her success did not come overnight, so she is now ready to manage it and build on it to further develop her career. I expect the million-dollar Romanian to feature in the limelight for a while, so she has plenty of reasons to look forward to 2014. Well done, Simona!

The elite eight to take part at the WTA Tournament of Champions were (left to right): Alize Cornet, Tsvetlana Pironkova (invite) Elena Vesnina, Maria Kirilenko, Ana Ivanovic (invite), Sam Stosur, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and Simona Halep.

Throughout the week, Simona was heavily cheered from the crowd by an army of Romanian supporters. 

For the second straight event, Simona Halep overcame Sam Stosur to win a WTA title. Despite the slow start, the Romanian came back firing to record a 2-6,6-2,6-2 triumph to collect the Tournament of Champions crown.

photos: GETTY IMAGES

The 2013 New York Fashion Scoop

New York, a fashion capital of the world, has always seen displayed some of the most exciting tennis apparel. This year's US Open was no exception with most of the players dressing up to the occasion. Among the stand-outs, Venus Williams wore a gipsy-inspired floral dress that once again showed her creative power. Her sister, Serena, was imperial too, looking like the fashion diva that she is in a nicely pink/grey ensemble. In the men's squad, Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal stole the show. While the Swiss looked elegant, yet hip, the Spaniard remained faithful to his athletic, cool style.

In terms of colours, pink and grey dominated the scene, a cool combination, especially if we consider the shades used in Serena's attire. Stella McCartney however, did propose the orange garments I dislike so much. While Wozniacki's dress was once again hideous, Maria Kirilenko was the only one in that camp who showed great taste, selecting something decent-looking. 

Although an ambassador of a less powerful brand, young gun Sloane Stephens is living up to her reputation as the newest fashionista, looking sharp, young and fresh in her magenta UnderArmour dress.

Imperial Sisters

Venus Williams - EleVen

Venus and Serena Williams

Venus Williams proved she is probably the most creative tennis garments creator by showcasing a gipsy inspired floral dress. The cut is great, the fabric seems expensive and the transparency at the top and the hem adds a touch of class. I also liked the separates she wore in doubles, the floral top and the pink skirt, respectively the pink top and the floral skirt. It's all about the details and Venus knows that. Her clothes are unique, sophisticated, hip, and most important, they tell a story. I am a huge fan of her EleVen line.
I am not sure what happened to the hair though, the fuchsia hairdo being too crazy for me to understand.

Serena Williams - NIKE 'Day Look'

Serena Williams - NIKE 'Night Look'

Serena Williams - NIKE

Serena knows how to dress on a big occasion. The American is usually wearing home-wear attire at regular tournaments, however when she steps out on the court at a Slam, she is always looking stunning. At this year's Flushing Meadows, Serena wore an asymmetric dress with a nice cleavage and an interesting back. Pink and grey is one of my favourite combinations, and Serena made a stellar job picking something that looks sharp and expensive. I specifically liked the pink version, the day look, mostly because of the nice shades of pink what were combined.
I do not get the blazer though. It is totally disconnected from the rest of the outfit.

Victoria Azarenka - NIKE

Vika's outfit was very similar to Serena's, although the Belorussian went a bit hipper, more athletic, opting for separates. The garment is not extremely special, it is quite boring actually, but the colours are nice and Azarenka has the attitude to get away with it. 

The Masters of Style

Roger Federer - NIKE 'RF' Group - Day Look

Roger Federer - NIKE 'RF' Group - Night Look

Federer's game is suffering, but his fashion credentials are not. Although I prefer the lighter version of this attire, I stand by my claim that the Swiss is probably the best dressed man on the ATP tour. The night look is elegant, stylish, yet hip.

Rafael Nadal - NIKE 'Rafa Nadal' Line - Day Look

Rafael Nadal - NIKE 'Rafa Nadal' Line - Night Look

Rafael Nadal is the hottest man on the tour right now, and the Spaniard dressed the part at Flushing Meadows. His two looks are extremely now, extremely cool, they are fresh, young and hip. Rafa is the ultimate athlete and he surely looked like one in these clothes.

Red Hot Adidas

Ana Ivanovic - AdiZero

Angelique Kerber - AdiZero

Flavia Pennetta - AdiZero

No surprises from AdiZero, as this is the third version of this dress after the white one showed at Wimbledon, and the blue one we've seen during the North American hard-court season. However, there is something so American in it, something that makes it extremely suitable for New York. It's probably the colour combination, the red and the blue screaming out loud the American flag.

Andy Murray - Adidas

Defending champion, Andy Murray, does not usually produces big fashion statements, and more often than not his fashion taste can be severely questioned. However, this look represents a slight improvement. The colours are nice, and although I am not a huge fan of the black&red combo, it seems to be working here.

Mix and match

Sabine Lisicki - NIKE

Na Li - NIKE

Eugenie Bouchard - NIKE 'Maria Sharapova' Group

With Maria Sharapova out with a shoulder injury, Canadian teen, Eugenie Bouchard, was her brand's sole ambassador in New York. I do like the print, and the orange detailing, plus Genie looks so much better than Sharapova that this is actually looking great on her.

Camila Giorgi - Denise Cronwall

Bethanie Mattek-Sands

Sloane Stephens - UnderArmour

Although she is displaying the same relatively plain dress since Wimbledon, Sloane Stephens is living up to her status as the tour's youngest fashionista by always selecting the right accessories to make her outfits come to life. Love the mix of fuchsia and orange, especially in the pleaded head-band.

Stella McCrazy

Laura Robson - Adidas by Stella McCartney

Maria Kirilenko - Adidas by Stella McCartney

Caroline Wozniacki - Adidas by Stella McCartney

Although she is considered the main ambassador of the Stella McCartney line, Wozniacki often ends up wearing the most hideous piece of the collection. Just take this dress. It's a hot mess. The colour blocking is off, the layering is badly done, plus the cut is crazy. It looks like the Dane is wearing her underpants on top of an apron. And she has two dresses underneath. I am really surprised a designer like Stella could actually send this out there. 

Laura Robson and Maria Kirilenko looked better, the Russian showing once again great taste and fashion smartness to pick the best garments from a disappointing collection.

photos: GETTY IMAGES