The first
Grand Slam tournament of the year, the Australian Open is the headline-hitting
event early into 2019. Ahead of the Australian Open, a string of other tournaments
were held in the region, in such cities as Brisbane, Sydney and Auckland. In the women’s singles, Romanian tennis players
were unable to go past the quarterfinals, not even in one of the aforementioned
events. In the women’s doubles, Monica Niculescu was the best-placed Romanian
tennis player. In Hobart, the Romanian-Chinese pair made of Monica and Zhaoxuan
Yang this past Friday did not succeed to go past the semifinals. Nonetheless,
it was the best performance of the past days, so Radio Romania International
has designated Monica Niculescu the Athlete of the week.
In Hobart, where prize money amounted to 250,000 dollars, Monica
Niculescu and Zhaxouan Yang were the third-seed pair. In the first round,
Niculescu and Zhaxouan Yang defeated the all-Chinese pair made of Xinyu Jiang
and Shuai Yhang , 6-4, 6-2. In the quarterfinals, the two defeated Raluca Olaru
and Galina Voskoboeba of Kazakhstan, 6-1, 6-4. However, in the semifinal,
top-seed pair, made of Hao-Ching Chan and Latisha Chan of Taiwan, defeated
Niculescu and Yang, 6-3, 6-4. Niculescu and Yang received 1,718 dollars and 110
WTA points according to the doubles’ rankings. We recall that in Hobart, Monica
Niculescu emerged as women’s’ doubles champion, in 2012 and 2014.
Monica Niculescu ‘s start at this year’s Australian Open was no so
auspicious, as in the women’s singles Monica was eliminated in the very first
round by American opponent Amanda Anisimova in straight sets, 7-6, 6-4.
Monica
Niculescu was born in Slatina, on September 25, 1987. She has been living in Bucharest
ever since she was 4. Monica took up tennis at the age of 5 and has been a
professional tennis player since 2002. Monica Niculescu’s career best so far in
the women’s singles is the 28th place in February 2012. In the women’s
doubles, Niculescu climbed as high as the 11th place in April 2018.
At the moment, Niculescu is ranked 99th according to women’s singles
standings, and 41st, according to women’s doubles standings.