Taiwanese tennis star Hsieh Su-wei and her last-minute partner win Indian Wells

台灣網球明星謝淑薇和她最後一分鐘的搭檔贏得印地安泉網

Taiwanes tennis star Hsieh Su-wei alongside her partner Barbora Strycova upset top seeds and Olympic gold medalists Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, 6-4, 6-4 to win the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells


TAIPEI (Taiwan News)—Taiwan tennis star Hsieh Su-wei alongside her partner Barbora Strycova upset top seeds and Olympic gold medalists Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, 6-4, 6-4 to win the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

The duo used “old-schooled tennis,” which included spins, slices, and forays to the net, to bewilder the big-hitting Russians, recovering from a break down in the second set to clinch victory in 83 minutes.

"You have to play just a little bit differently. Against the wind, we tried to use more lobs. We were maybe little better in these tricky points," Strycova said, according to a report on the WTA official website.

Hsieh and Strycova were a last-minute pairing after their original partners ended up playing Indian Wells together, and the pairs will switch back for the upcoming Miami Open, according to the report.

"There was some rule changes, and so we couldn't switch," Strycova explained, according to the WTA report. "So we say, Okay, we will play together, and they will play together. So this is how we end up."

Hsieh, a former No.1 in the women’s doubles, is an Indian Wells champion, first winning the title back in 2013 with Peng Shuai.

"Barbora just crushed all the volleys," Hsieh said, according to the report. "I just focused on putting my ball in on the baseline. I was feeling better after the first match. We are going better and better.”

Hsieh later shared her joy of winning on her Facebook page, saying, "It was so fun to play with Barbora!! Thank you for this amazing tournament."

According to the WTA report, Strycova said, "She's very calm and I'm very emotional, and it fits. She forces me to stay calm, think a little bit, and then take it easy. That works for me."

In an era when power has largely taken the sport by storm, Strycova called her and Hsieh's victory a win for "old-school tennis," the report said.

"You don't have to have so much power to win tournaments or matches. You can overcome the power with tricky points, to think how you plan the point every time, to cross, or play serve and volley,” Strycova said. "So it still works and it's nice. It's a little bit that maybe we play old-school tennis, but it's still working."

Hsieh has had an impressive start to 2018. She shocked No.3 seed Garbine Muguruza in the second round of the Australian Open and continued her winning streak until she was stopped by 2016 champion Angelique Kerber in the round of 16.



(photo from Hsieh's Facebook page Su-Wei Hsieh 夢遊寫真人謝淑薇)