WTT Washington Kastles

Kastles Update

July 5, 2013 - World TeamTennis (WTT)
Washington Kastles News Release


Hingis to Replace Venus in Kastles Lineup July 8-9

Williams Forced to Withdraw From Season with Back Injury

Reigning Mylan World TeamTennis Female MVP Martina Hingis will represent the Washington Kastles in their quest for history July 8-9, replacing Venus Williams, who has withdrawn with a back injury.

With victories at home over the New York Sportimes this Monday, July 8, and the Boston Lobsters this Tuesday, July 9, the Kastles would extend their unbeaten run to 34 matches, surpassing the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers with the longest winning streak in major U.S. pro sports history.

Acquired by the Kastles during the Mylan WTT Draft in March, the 32-year-old Hingis will also play for Washington July 15-24 after becoming one of the youngest players ever inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame on July 13.

Williams has not competed since falling in the first round of singles at the French Open on May 26. She subsequently withdrew from doubles at the French Open and singles at Wimbledon, before confirming to team officials today that she is not physically ready to represent the Kastles.

Williams was originally scheduled to play for Washington at home July 8-9, and on the road against the Texas Wild on July 10. She will be present at Kastles Stadium at The Wharf on Monday for a pre-match championship ring ceremony and to cheer on her teammates from the bench.

"I have been working hard to get back into action on the court but my lower back injury has not recovered to where it needs to be for me to play Mylan World TeamTennis this summer," said Williams. "I love playing team tennis so I am really disappointed that I will not be able to compete with my Washington Kastles teammates this month, or to play in front of the fans in Washington, D.C., and Irving, Texas. I will be watching the Kastles and pulling for them to keep the win streak going and bring home another Mylan WTT championship."

While Williams recovers, Hingis arrives in the nation's capital this Monday night for the Kastles' season opener against her former team, the Sportimes.

Hingis played for New York in 2011 and 2012, posting a 20-4 two-year record in women's singles with 12 wins over players currently ranked in the World Top 200. Among her triumphs was a 5-3 victory over Serena Williams of the Kastles on July 20, 2011.

After leading the Kastles against the Lobsters on July 9, Hingis will prepare for her Hall of Fame induction, and then return to the Washington lineup on July 15 for the remainder of the season. She will play at Kastles Stadium in six of Washington's seven home matches overall.

"I love the city," said Hingis. "The fans are amazing. Every time you play there, it's a packed stadium and it's loud. I'm really looking forward to it because up until now, it's always been against me."

The Kastles' roster for the 14-match regular season July 8-24 now stands as follows:

Martina Hingis: July 8-9, July 15-24

Anderson: July 8-11

Leander Paes: July 8-24

Bobby Reynolds: July 8-24

Anastasia Rodionova: July 8-24

An additional female player will be named later for Kastles matches on July 10, July 11 and July 13.

Seats to all of the Kastles' home matches are available at Ticketmaster.com.

Leander Paes Reaches Wimbledon Doubles Semifinals

Next up for Kastles Captain is 2013 Mylan World TeamTennis Season

Kastles captain Leander Paes and his ATP doubles partner Radek Stepanek suffered a bitter case of déjà vu to end their Wimbledon run.

For the second straight season at the All England Club, they were eliminated in five sets by the 12th-seeded team of Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo.

The Croatian and Brazilian players advanced to their first Grand Slam final as a team with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 victory in Thursday's semifinals. In 2012, Dodig and Melo defeated Paes and Stepanek 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-7(2), 8-6 in the third round of Wimbledon.

The No. 4 seeds Paes and Stepanek had played only four matches together this season entering the tournament, and nearly defaulted out of the draw before it even started. Their first-round match began just one day after Stepanek retired from a singles match with a left hamstring injury.

But as Paes is prone to doing, he used his unparalleled instincts to cover the bulk of the court and overcome Stepanek's condition, which improved with each passing win. The Indian/Czech duo won its first four matches surprisingly easily, highlighted by a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 win over No. 11 seeds Julien Benneteau and Nenad Zimonjic in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.

Paes fell shot of winning his fifth Wimbledon title after capturing the men's doubles championship in 1999 and the mixed doubles title in 1999, 2003 and 2010.

If there's any silver lining for the Indian, it's that he has three full days of rest before the Kastles' season opener on Monday night.

That's three more than he had in 2012, when he played in the Wimbledon mixed doubles final on July 7 and in Orange County, Calif., for the Kastles on July 8.

Tickets to see Paes seek his fourth Mylan World TeamTennis championship in five years as a Kastle are available at Ticketmaster.com.

Less than 100 seats remain to the season opener on Monday night, and home matches on Tuesday and Thursday are close to selling out. Don't delay; get yours today at Ticketmaster.com!

Leander Paes will play in DC beginning Monday night.

TV Reporters Gregory, Baier, Karl at Charity Classic

16 Players Named Including Congressmen, Kastles Stars and More!

The 2013 Washington Kastles Charity Classic July 18 is heating up!

For the second straight summer, politicians, media elite, Washington Kastles players and other DC celebrities will come together at Kastles Stadium for a memorable team tennis match to see who will dominate on the court, proving along the way that we can all come together for a good cause!

Meet the Press moderator David Gregory joins FOX News host Bret Baier and ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl on the tennis court to match serves (instead of words and wits) against some of our favorite DC politicos, including Congressional Tennis Caucus Co-Chairs, Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Congressman Tim Bishop (D-NY); Congressman Jim Costa (D-CA), former Senator John Breaux (D-LA) and Ambassador Dino Djalal (Indonesia).

Returning for the second straight season is D.C. United coach Ben Olsen, who led Team Stars to a narrow 41-39 win over Team Stripes in the 2012 Washington Kastles Charity Classic.

Olsen's coaching colleague, Murphy Jensen, is also participating, as are four players from the three-time Mylan WTT champion Kastles: former World No. 1 Martina Hingis, 13-time Grand Slam champion Leander Paes, 2012 WTT Male MVP Bobby Reynolds and last season's leading mixed doubles player, Anastasia Rodionova.

Stay tuned for more player announcements in the lead-up to July 18. You won't want to wait until match day to secure your seats. General admission tickets are just $10 and 100% of proceeds go to charity! Guarantee your place at Kastles Stadium by purchasing your tickets now at Ticketmaster.com.

For information on group sales or VIP packages, please contact Simone at 202-654-7042 or simone@washingtonkastles.com. Spread the word with #KastlesClassic on Facebook and Twitter and come root on these star-studded teams!

Because...POLITICS ISN'T THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN.

2013 Washington Kastles Charity Classic Details

Date: Thursday, July 18

Time: 7 pm

Location: Kastles Stadium at The Wharf

Pre-Match VIP Reception*: 5:15-7:00 p.m.

* Tickets for reception available through VIP package purchase.

2013 Washington Kastles Charity Classic Players (as of July 5, 2013)

Bret Baier - Fox News Reporter

Tim Bishop - U.S. Congressman (NY)

John Breaux - Former Senator (LA)

Shelley Moore Capito - U.S. Congresswoman (WV)

Jim Costa - U.S. Congressman (CA)

Dino Djalal - Ambassador (Indonesia)

Donna Edwards - U.S. Congresswoman (MD)

David Gregory - Meet the Press Moderator

Martina Hingis - Washington Kastles

Jonathan Karl - ABC News Reporter

Mike McIntyre - U.S. Congressman (NC)

Ben Olsen - D.C. United Head Coach

Leander Paes - Washington Kastles

Bobby Reynolds - Washington Kastles

Anastasia Rodionova - Washington Kastles

Mel Watt - U.S. Congressman (NC)



World TeamTennis Stories from July 5, 2013


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