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Showing posts with label Sabine Lisicki. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sabine Lisicki. Show all posts

March 19, 2020

#SociallyDistanced

As the world looks to stop the spread of the coronavirus, we've all had to adapt to a new normal. Whether it's working from home, skipping a night out with friends, or watching our hands shrivel up into prunes from how often we're washing them, our daily lives are way different from what they were just a few weeks ago. And tennis players, now officially all on hiatus until at least June 7, are no exception.

But luckily for us, #SocialDistancing hasn't kept them off social media. Whether they're entertaining or informing us -- Andy Roddick has been a surprising source recently -- they've certainly been communicating to all of us during these troubling times. So today I decided to share some of their takeaways over the last few days.

Find ways to occupy your time






Stick to your routine






Keep active












Help if you can




And most importantly...stay safe!






Hang in there, guys!
Posted by Kavitha at 12:51 PM 0 comments
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August 13, 2015

The Comebacks

Is it just me, or have we seen a couple of recently-forgotten stars find a way to shine again on the courts of Canada?

Sure, some hometown heroes are still struggling in their native land -- both Genie Bouchard and Milos Raonic lost their Rogers Cup openers -- but a couple other players who've been underperforming of late seem to have gotten their games back together this week. And that could bode well for their future.

Sabine Lisicki hadn't fallen so far off the radar, but the former Wimbledon runner-up has been a little quiet of late. The German powerhouse has scored wins over the likes of Caroline Wozniacki, Maria Sharapova, even Serena Williams, but despite a couple solid runs during the early spring hardcourt season, had dropped to #24 in the world coming into Toronto. That wasn't high enough to earn a seed this week, but so far she's proven to be a dangerous spoiler -- she lost just three games to Venus Williams in her first round and yesterday took out last year's comeback kid, Barbora Strycova in a tight two sets. She'll face off against young Belinda Bencic today -- the Swiss breakout is coming off an upset of Wozniacki herself -- but with a win in the pair's only previous meeting, Lisicki is more than capable of keeping her streak going.

Perhaps Roberta Vinci will be able to do the same. The one-time world #11 has notched more than a few surprising losses over the past few seasons, this year going 0-3 on the grass, what's traditionally been her strongest surface. She did manage a final run in Nürnberg, but has also lost to players like Tatjana Maria and Veronica Cepede Royg, both ranked in triple digits. She came to Toronto still outside the top fifty herself, but opened with a double bagel of compatriot Karin Knapp, the woman who beat her for that title in Germany, and on Wednesday scored a huge win over recent giant-killer Mirjana Lucic-Baroni. Next up for the Italian veteran is Daria Garvrilova, a former Junior champion who's already beaten Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sharapova this year. The unseeded Russian is also coming off a huge win over surprise Roland Garros finalist Lucie Safarova, so she certainly can't be discounted -- but a win in their match today could give Vinci the confidence that seems to have been missing from her game for quite some time.

There have been a couple resurrections at the men's tournament in Montreal too. Former U.S. Open semifinalist Mikhail Youzhny has put together a middling 6-18 record this year, losing eight straight matches since late May, and hasn't gotten out of a Major second round in almost two years. Now ranked at #107 the Russian qualifier could have been well out of contention at the Rogers Cup, but he took out 2014 standout Viktor Troicki in his opener and yesterday pulled off his first win over ninth seed Gilles Simon since 2011. His road only gets tougher from here, of course -- the thirty-three year old will meet Rafael Nadal for a spot in the quarterfinals and while the also-struggling has shown a few kinks in his armor of late, he dismantled Youzhny in what had the potential to be a very tough first round in Melbourne. Still the ten-time Tour titleist is playing better than he has in quite some time and might just be able to take advantage of any opportunity he's given.

But perhaps the biggest surprise of the week has come from former French Open semifinalist Ernests Gulbis, who's had more than a little trouble coming back from a shoulder injury that hampered the back half of his season in 2014. A disappointing 5-13 this year, he only made it to the second round in Paris and has fallen from a #10 ranking last September to a whopping #87 now. But the Latvian might be proving it's never too late to shake off the cobwebs -- also a qualifier in Montreal, he started his campaign by avenging a U.S. Open loss to red-hot Dominic Thiem and then picked up another win over Lukas Rosol. Slated next to face Donald Young, launching his own comeback after taking out Tomas Berdych on Wednesday, Gulbis could sneak even further through his draw. And while there's no shortage of threats left in the bracket, this could be the perfect time for him to cement his return.

Whether these guys can continue their runs not only in Canada, but throughout the rest of the year of course remains to be seen. But it sure is nice to see each of them putting together a couple wins in a row this week. And if momentum stays with them, who knows what they'll be able to do when the stakes get even higher in a few weeks' time.
Posted by Kavitha at 9:06 AM 0 comments
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June 18, 2015

On Firmer Ground

It's no big surprise that the clay court season can wreak havoc among tennis's top palyers, but this year's French Open took a toll even on those who had been going strong on the dirt this year. So maybe the change of surface was especially welcome to the ladies taking the court in Birmingham this week -- as early results show a couple making big strides to erase the memories from Paris.

Angelique Kerber was one of my dark horse picks at Roland Garros, but after a couple easy rounds, she was knocked out by twentieth seed Garbiรฑe Muguruza in her third match. But the one-time Wimbledon semifinalist seems to have her game back at the Aegon Classic, ousting another All England Cinderella Tsvetana Pironkova in her opener and then dealing a straight set defeat to former world #1 Jelena Jankovic earlier today. If she can get through unseeded Katerina Siniakova in the next round, she'll likely get a rematch with 2013's finalist in London, Sabine Lisicki. Her fellow German has struggled a bit more in 2015, making what could be called significant runs only in Miami and Indian Wells. Now ranked just #19 in the world, she could be poised to regain ground in Birmingham -- she's taken out Den Bosch runner-up Belinda Bencic, firing off an astounding twenty-seven aces, and grass specialist Magdalena Rybarikova. While her next opponent, veteran Daniela Hantuchova, can be tricky, you have to give Lisicki the odds to make at least the semifinals.

There's just as much at stake on the top half of the draw. Simona Halep isn't exactly having a bad season -- she's picked up titles in Shenzhen, Dubai and, most impressively, Indian Wells, and even reached the semis in Stuttgart and Rome. But the world #3 is still looking to redeem herself after a tough second round exit in Paris -- a far cry from her final run from 2014. She's been on point again in Birmingham, but faces her biggest test next against Kristina Mladenovic, one of those players you have to keep an eye on. And even if she passes that test, she could be in for an even tougher one down the road. Karolina Pliskova won the Juniors championship at the all England Club in 2010 and at a #12 ranking, is at her career high. A runner-up in Sydney and Dubai, she picked up a title in Prague, but was stunned in her French Open second round by then-#100 Andreea Mitu. After dropping her first set to Johanna Konta, she's had little trouble this week, and though she's the on-paper underdog against third seed Carla Suarez Navarro in Friday's quarterfinal she might be the favorite on grass. And that could give her a lot of confidence for the possible rematch against Halep in a couple days.

Of course only one woman can walk away the ultimate champion in Birmingham this weekend. But their performances so far have put them back on course to show everyone else just what they're capable of. And with a little more than a week before the start of the year's next Major, there's no better time to do it.
Posted by Kavitha at 6:37 PM 0 comments
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March 31, 2015

The Slump-Buster

The couple months leading up to Miami haven't been great for everyone. Perennial stars have fallen before they should and recent risers have struggled to find their footing as breakthrough players have come into their own. But over the last couple days we've seen some players find their games again, and it could be just what they need to turn their seasons back around.

After several months of struggling, John Isner had started to claw his way back in Indian Wells, scoring a solid win over Kevin Anderson in his third match. But with a marathon loss to world #111 James Ward in Davis Cup and upsets at the hands of Gilles Muller and Sam Querrey already this year, he's still well off his career high ranking in the top ten and only carried a #22 seed to the Miami Open. But last night he held tough against Grigor Dimitrov -- after taking the first set in a tiebreak, already his fourteenth of the year, he did what he so rarely does and broke his opponent twice to take the match in straight sets. It was his biggest win in almost two years, when he made a stellar run to the Cincinnati final, and could give him a little boost for his next test -- he'll face off against world #6 Milos Raonic tonight. Somewhat surprisingly the big serving American actually has won both of their previous matches, also both at Masters events. But a win this time might be slightly more meaningful.

Veteran Juan Monaco has seen some of his biggest successes on these courts, breaking the top ten after a semifinal run in Miami three years ago. But the thirty-one year old Argentine has given up a little of his momentum and has lost in the first round of seven Majors since. He did make the final in Buenos Aires a few weeks ago, though, and has come back from a triple digit ranking to #46 in the world now. And over the last few days he's dispatched three seeds, starting with a struggling Ernests Gulbis and culminating with an easy win over Fernando Verdasco this afternoon -- he broke the Spaniard, fresh off his second straight win over Rafael Nadal, four times and kept him well under fifty-percent on his second serves. The win earns him a quarterfinal match-up against eighth seed Tomas Berdych, a man he hasn't beaten in any of his six previous tries, but he's pulled off bigger wins before and with some of the shots he's been making this week it doesn't look like he's in any rush to slow down.

On the women's side we're also seeing a couple ladies come back from the brink. Former Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki has always seemed destined for great things. But with yet another injury-marred season last year and losses this season to players like Kristina Mladenovic and then-#94 Alexandra Dulgheru, the powerful German had seen her ranking fall almost out of the top thirty. She made up some ground in Indian Wells, scoring wins over Sara Errani and defending champion Flavia Pennetta on her way to the semis. She might have been even more impressive this week, though, repeating a win over over Errani on Monday and taking out fifth seed Ana Ivanovic in straight sets. She's up against Serena Williams next, no easy task to be sure, but we all remember that stunning win over the world #1 at the All England Club two years ago. If she is back in form there's no reason to expect she won't put up a fight again this time.

Young Sloane Stephens has fallen a little farther since the days of her big win over her compatriot. After peaking at #11 in the world a little more than a year ago, she's had a rough time on Tour, losing eight first round matches last year and falling out of the top forty earlier this month. Like some of the others I've mentioned, she had a bit of a resurgence in Indian Wells, beating Angelique Kerber and Svetlana Kuznetsova before taking a set of Serena in the fourth round. And this week in Miami she hasn't dropped a set yet, scoring a nice win over seventeenth seed Madison Keys before taking out Belinda Bencic on Monday. Her road, like everyone else's, also gets tougher from here -- she'll meet third seed and BNP Paribas Open champ Simona Halep next, but the twenty-two year old certainly seems to have her groove back and could give the favorite a run for her money.

It seems like it's been a long couple months for all these players, but sometimes you only need one good run to boost your confidence and get back on track. And for these guys, hopefully that's exactly what Miami will be.
Posted by Kavitha at 6:49 PM 0 comments
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March 19, 2015

Making a Stand

There are plenty of favorites still alive and more than kicking in Indian Wells, but with many quarterfinal matches left to play you may notice a couple unexpected names in the mix. And these players haven't just sneaked through the draws this time -- they're pulling off the big upsets themselves.

Maybe we shouldn't be too surprised to see Feliciano Lopez standing -- the veteran Spaniard is coming off the best year of his career, having climbed to his highest ever ranking at the start of the month. He did struggle a bit during his early rounds in Melbourne, though, and was stunned by Victor Estrella Burgos in the Quito final. So maybe we didn't expect a big fight when he met an on-point Kei Nishikori -- who'd reached the final in Acapulco and won his third straight title in Memphis. But Feli scored his first win over the fifth seed in nearly two years on Wednesday to set up a quarterfinal clash against Andy Murray, a man who's beaten him in all nine of their previous meetings. Still he's scored more than a few wins over top ten players in the past year, so it's certainly not out of the question for him to keep his run going.

A little more impressive has been the performance of Bernard Tomic in the California desert. The one-time Wimbledon wunderkind had fallen way down the rankings in the years after, grabbing more headlines for his behavior off the court than on it and dropping briefly back into triple digits last year. He seems to have turned things back in his favor this season though -- he beat world #24 Philipp Kohlschreiber twice in a row in Australia and reached the semis in Delray. Just inside seeding territory at the BNP Paribas Open, he scored his first top-ten win since 2013, ending David Ferrer's eleven-match win streak in the third round. He's got a tough task ahead of him, of course, meeting top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic next. But he might be able to put up a bigger fight than you'd think this time around.

The women's draw, not shockingly, has seen a few more upsets throughout, but the bottom half of the bracket boasts a foursome of ladies who many had started too -- or completely -- written off. Former Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki had only managed one win all year long and saw her ranking fall from a high of #12 in the world a few years back to a less-than-stellar #30 now. But so far in Indian Wells, she's already taken out doubles specialist Roberta Vinci, Rio champ Sara Errani, and most recently a red-hot Caroline Garcia. For a spot in the semis, she'll meet defending champion Flavia Pennetta, who pulled of an impressive upset of Maria Sharapova on Tuesday night. She too needed the confidence boost -- her only notable win this year came over an also-struggling Angelique Kerber in Dubai, and with so much on the line at this event, she's under more pressure than most. Lisicki and Pennetta have never faced off before, but with both so hungry for the win, this could be a good one.

But we may see even more fireworks in the other quarter being contested today. Jelena Jankovic, who won the title here in 2010, was a disappointing 2-4 so fart this year and had dropped pretty soundly out of the top ten. She's been tested throughout her early matches, going three sets in each round so far, but pulled off a solid win over a now-higher ranked Madison Keys on Monday and followed up by avenging her first round U.S. Open loss to Belinda Bencic a day later. Even more impressive, though, has been the run of her next opponent, qualifier Lesia Tsurenko, ranked just #85 in the world. The Ukranian has taken sets off Angelique Kerber and Timea Bacsinszky this year, but hasn't done much of note during her career -- her biggest win to date may have come over then-#23 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova at the 2013 Australian Open. But she began her BNP Open campaign with a huge win over Antwerp champ Andrea Petkovic, held strong against an always tricky Alizรฉ Cornet, and on Tuesday stunned sixth seed Eugenie Bouchard. This is by far her best result at a Tour-level event, and while she'll surely be the underdog in today's match, she's pulled off bigger and more impressive upsets before.

It's always great to see players persevering through some tough challenges -- and over the last few days in Indian Wells we've really gotten to see some surprising stars shine. Hopefully they'll be able to keep it up -- after all, the statements they make at an event this big could serve them well for many more months to come.
Posted by Kavitha at 1:49 PM 0 comments
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November 9, 2014

Czech Mate: Fed Cup Final Round-Up

There was plenty of room for drama at this weekend's Fed Cup final, with two recent powerhouse teams going head-to-head for the trophy. But, even with a solid slate of top-twenty players and recent titleists on the German team, the Czechs barreled through their opponents, picking up their third championship in four years, and asserting themselves as a real force in tennis.

Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova opened the final tie against Sofia champion Andrea Petkovic on Saturday, but even with her higher ranking, this promised to be a close match. Petko had climbed back to her highest ranking in three years, picked up a trio of trophies on the season, and, with a 4-3 career record against the Czech, certainly knew how to get the better of her. But Kvitova came out swinging, keeping the German on the baseline while she rushed the net -- she broke serve five times and fired off twenty-five winners during the match, pushing her team to an early lead. Germany had a good shot at evening the score, though, as they pitted their top player Angelique Kerber, an alternate for the year-end final in Singapore, against Lucie Safarova, whose biggest accomplishment to date was a semifinal showing at the All England Club. But the world #16 was able to surprise again -- she took advantage of some weak serving by the four-time runner-up this season to notch her third top-ten win of the year.

With the Czechs taking a dominant 2-0 lead into Day Two, it was up to Kerber again to keep her team -- playing in their first Fed Cup final since 1992 -- alive, and she very nearly did it. Her first set against Kvitova lasted well over an hour and eventually went to a tiebreak, and though she did ultimately succumb, Kerber roared back in the second to give the Germans their first set win of the tie. It was too little, too late, though, as Kvitova stayed tougher in the dramatic decider, but with just four points separating the two women, this rubber really could have gone either way. The Germans did finally get on the board, with Sabine Lisicki and Julia Goerges teaming up to score a surprising win over long-time doubles champs Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka, but the 3-1 score was just enough to give the Czechs the win and rise back to the winners' circle they occupied just two years ago.


With so many of the tennis headlines this year dominated by the likes of Serena Williams, Simona Halep and Maria Sharapova, it's easy to have lost sight of the lower-profile Czechs. But with three of the five Fed Cup titles this decade going to the same country, it's hard to ignore their consistency and strength of their team. And I wouldn't be surprised if they make an even bigger name for themselves in the months to come.
Posted by Kavitha at 6:09 PM 0 comments
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August 14, 2014

A Few Familiar Faces

This year, really, has been about the next generation of tennis greats. With players like Genie Bouchard, Simona Halep and Nick Kyrgios making such big strides, it's been easy to lose track of some long trudging champions.

But this week in Cincinnati, we've seen the vets come back into the spotlight after some seemingly long absences. And they might just have what it takes to keep on going.

Sloane Stephens was long heralded as the Next Big Thing in American women's tennis, and she seemed destined to live up to that reputation when she stunned Serena Williams at the Australian Open last year. But she fell a few rounds short of the semis this time around and had only managed one top-twenty win all season, beating Ana Ivanovic in Indian Wells, while she lost to a handful of players ranked outside the top hundred. This week at the Western & Southern Open, though, she seems to have gotten her stride back -- she kicked off her campaign with a straight-set win over French Cinderella Andrea Petkovic and then took out Wimbledon standout Barbora Zahlavova Strycova. She next faces a rematch with Jelena Jankovic, the woman who beat her in Montreal just days ago, but she went three long sets in that battle and could turn the tables in her favor now that she's playing on her own homecourt.

Sabine Lisicki has also struggled since her career high last July. Consistently a threat at Wimbledon, she final reached the championship match in 2013, but didn't win more than one match at an event until Madrid this season. Even when she was breaking service records in Stanford, she was still losing matches she should have won. She also may be back on track in Cincinnati, though, taking out both Roberta Vinci and her co-#1 doubles partner Sara Errani to start the week. And like Sloane again, she'll meet her Rogers Cup vanquisher in tonight's late match -- she was the only player to take a set off Aga Radwanska last week in Montreal, and might now have the fire to go one better this time.

While these unseeded ladies have outlasted expectations already in Cincinnati, David Ferrer is looking to give himself a bit of a boost. Last year's runner-up in Paris has remained consistent this year, reaching the quarters in Australia and at Roland Garros and remaining squarely in the top ten of the ATP. But he's also suffered some surprising losses -- to Teymuraz Gabashvili in his Barcelona opener and to Andrey Kuznetsov in the second round at Wimbledon. And even when he's won, he's had a tough time doing it -- yesterday against Phillipp Kohlschreiber in Cincy, he needed three tiebreaks and nearly three hours to advance. Up next for the sixth seed is Mikhail Youzhny -- a man who's been struggling himself this year, but encouragingly followed up a win over Toronto champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga by beating Andreas Seppi on Wednesday. Ferrer has a less-than-spectacular 3-5 record against the Russian, but if he can rally for the win there's no telling what it would do for his morale.

Gael Monfils can't really ever be accused of having too little confidence, but he's struggled to come back from injury over the last several months, and success has come in fits and starts. He did claim a title early in the year and took Andy Murray to five sets in the Roland Garros quarters, but he also was dealt a early exit at the hands of Jiri Vesely at Wimbledon. Last week in Toronto he pushed Novak Djokovic to the limit, ultimately losing in the almost-three hour match, but it might have lit a fire under him for the Western & Southern -- he went three sets in his opener, but rebounded quickly to upset 2014 breakout Roberto Bautista-Agut. It's only going to get tougher from here, of course -- he'll take on Roger Federer this evening -- but Monfils actually won the pair's last meeting at the Shanghai Masters and might have the momentum to pull off another big upset.

Of course it's great when new talent crops up in the tennis world, but there's something reassuring about seeing these guys and gals hitting back so strong against the tide. They might not be the favorites in the field, but they've all scored some huge wins in the past and could certainly find the strength to do it again. And if they keep it up, things could get really interesting in the weeks to come.
Posted by Kavitha at 1:40 PM 0 comments
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June 30, 2014

Fits and Starts

At the end of today we were supposed to have all our Wimbledon quarterfinalists decided.

But with six matches suspended or outright cancelled just before Middle Sunday, and another bout of bad weather stopping action a few more times today, much of Monday was spent playing catch up with only a handful of fourth round matches completed. And the players who survived the interruptions may have set themselves up for even more success down the road.

Andy Murray's win today might be the least surprising of the bunch -- the defending champion might have been flying under the radar since his loss at Queen's Club, but he's looking good so far at the All England Club and hadn't dropped a set yet in his first three matches. He was 1-1 against today's big-serving opponent Kevin Anderson in past meetings, and it had been almost three years since their last contest which the South African won in straights. But Murray built a quick double break lead in the second set after taking the first when play was stopped to close the roof on Centre Court, and Anderson had a chance to draw back even when play resumed. But ultimately the Scot kept the cooler head after the delay, maintaining the early lead and then taking a third set tiebreak for the win. He'll next face potential spoiler Grigor Dimitrov, who came out ahead in his own rain-delayed match, so the task only gets tougher from here. But it sure looks like he's gonna keep fighting for this title, and it might mean his opponents are the ones who'll have to raise their games even higher.

Sabine Lisicki certainly knows how to play her best tennis at Wimbledon. Last year's runner-up had only advanced past the second round at one event all year and saw her ranking fall to #19 in the world, but has already been able to turn things around at the All England Club. She'd lost her only previous match against former #1 Ana Ivanovic, in Stuttgart just a few months ago, but took the first set before play was called for darkness on Saturday. She seemed to lose a little momentum when they resumed, getting down a break in the second and losing the second set after another rain delay today. But ultimately Lisicki stayed stronger, closing out the decider in under a half hour to make her fifth straight fourth round in London. And her prospects actually look better from here -- she's never lost her first match in the second week of this Major, and with a date against unseeded Yaroslava Shvedova next, I don't expect that stat to change this time around.

Feliciano Lopez might have relished the delay in his matches a little more than these guys. Fresh off a final in London and a second title in Eastbourne, the break between his second round on Friday and his third round today must have been appreciated. And another pause after splitting tiebreaks with John Isner this morning seemed to give him even more energy -- after about two and a half hours of play, the veteran Spaniard converted the only break point of the match, upsetting the on-paper favorite and setting up a meeting with Stan Wawrinka in the fourth round. Lopez has traded wins with the Aussie champion, but he is by far the better player on this surface, and like with his head-to-head against Tomas Berdych, it's his turn for the win. Victory would give him a ticket to his first quarterfinal in three years, and the way he's playing I wouldn't be surprised to see him go even further.

Of course for every player that capitalizes on his or her opportunity, there is one that can't. And unfortunately for Alize Cornet, at this year's Championships, that player was her. The former world #11 -- she's five years removed from that achievement -- was coming off the win of her career on Saturday, her second straight win top-ranked Serena Williams in her third round. She was still the on-paper underdog against 2014 standout Genie Bouchard, but with the adrenaline pumping and a first Major quarterfinal in her sights, she seemed primed to pull off another upset. But after play was halted with the pair on serve early in the first set, Bouchard came out the stronger. She took the first set in a tiebreak and then rebounded from a break down in the second, rattling off four straight games to reach her third Slam elite eight in as many tries this year. But as disappointing as the loss must be for the Frenchman, you can't discount the accomplishments of the young upstart. One big tournament after another she's proving she belongs with the elite players and that she can stay there for the long haul, and though she'll likely face now-favorite Maria Sharapova for a spot in yet another semi, I'm expecting she won't be intimidated by this opportunity either.

None of today's winners will have a lot of time to savor their victories -- many of them get right back to work tomorrow as the tournament tries to get back on schedule. But as the skies clear at the All England Club, prospects for any of these players look just as bright. And now that they're revved up, there's no reason they can't keep going.
Posted by Kavitha at 10:03 PM 0 comments
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March 20, 2014

A Slightly Different Story

It's easy to assume that the Sony Open, the second American hardcourt Masters event in March which, like Indian Wells before it, lasts nearly a Slam-like fortnight and attracts the best players in the sport, should play out along the same lines. But with more humid weather and arguably quicker courts at night, this is a vastly different tournament. Huge stars like Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova have never been able to lift the trophy, and only seven men and two women have won both in the same year.

That doesn't necessarily bode well for last weekend's champions in the Califonia desert, but it could mean those who were disappointed in the first half of the month have a shot at redeeming themselves this time. And there are plenty in the field who'll be looking to improve.

Those two Major champions certainly lead that list. Both titleists in Indian Wells last year, Rafa's loss in his third round to Cinderella Alexandr Dolgopolov was surpassed in shock value only by MaSha's earlier exit at the hands of qualifier Camila Giorgi. They've each reached the final in Miami in the past, many times, in fact, so they know how to win here -- the problem has been, of course, closing it out. Sharapova begins her campaign with the late-night match today against rising star Kurumi Nara, while Nadal will take on either Lleyton Hewitt or Robin Haase in his opener -- both matches the favorites should win. But we've seen surprises in the past of course, so if either is going to redeem themselves, they'll need to bring it from the start.

There are other ladies, though, also out to prove themselves over the next two weeks. Ana Ivanovic, Sam Stosur and Angelique Kerber have all fallen from the heights of their careers and are looking to erase memories from earlier than anticipated exits last week. They each won their openers in Miami already today, so may be on good ground to do so. Meanwhile Sara Errani, who failed to defend quarterfinal points in Indian Wells when she lost in the third round this year, and has at much at stake at the Sony Open -- she's facing off against Patricia Mayr-Achleitner right now and will want to make quick work of that challenge. But the real one to watch in the women's bracket is Sabine Lisicki, one of the biggest talent's in the sport who's nevertheless only won three first round matches this year. She's so far split sets with veteran Nadia Petrova, a woman she beat here three years ago, but she'll need to up her game if she wants to finally realize her full potential.

The men's seeds will begin their opening round matches tomorrow, but the pressure will be on them too. Jerzy Janowicz was the breakout star of 2013, somehow reaching the Wimbledon semis as the twenty-fourth seed. He lost his BNP opener to Alejandro Falla, though, and has yet to beat a top ten player at all this year. And Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has been rather quiet this year despite a run to the Marseille final. He's made the quarters here three times before and might have the kind of section that allows him to do that yet again. Tomas Berdych, on the other hand, who had his breakthrough here four years ago, suffered one of the biggest early upsets at Indian Wells. He opens against another Melbourne Cinderella, though, so he'll be tested again right from the start.

But while all these guys are looking to turn around their luck, last weekend's winners can't be counted out just yet. Flavia Pennetta continued her run today with a straight set win over Olga Govortsova and Novak Djokovic, the last man to complete the Indian Wells-Miami sweep, will begin his quest for another title against Jeremy Chardy tomorrow. They way they're both playing, either could prove the transition isn't as tough as so many believe. And with the momentum they're carrying so far, it certainly will be tough to derail them.

Whether Miami becomes an opportunity for redemption or another tough slog for all these athletes of course remains to be seen. But it sure looks like a lot of the top players are well on their way to writing a plot twist to their seasons. And if they can keep it up, we might be in for a surprise ending no one saw coming.
Posted by Kavitha at 4:47 PM 0 comments
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July 7, 2013

It's a New World

I woke up this morning feeling like something had changed in the world. And I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who felt that way.

This weekend we crowned two brand new Wimbledon singles champions, both of whom had come THISCLOSE to tasting glory at the All England Club before, but only this year were able to take home the trophies. And after a fortnight that might be best remembered for slippery stumbles and shocking upsets, it was their victories that marked the end of a couple long droughts -- and possibly the beginning of a new era.

Marion Bartoli was the unlikely runner-up here in 2007 -- ranked just nineteenth in the world at the time, she had only just made her first Major fourth round a month earlier at Roland Garros. She found her groove though on the grass that season, reaching the semis in both Birmingham and Eastbourne before beating then-world #3 Jelena Jankovic and top-ranked Justine Henin to make the final here. She was technically the favorite against Venus Williams then, but the on-paper underdog, three times a winner at Wimbledon already, had the upper hand that Saturday, and Bartoli had to settle for second best. The Frenchwoman hung around the top players after that, though -- a staple in or around the top ten through the years since, she took home big titles in Stanford and Osaka, ended Serena Williams' comeback run at Wimbledon in 2011, and brought Victoria Azarenka's miracle beginning last year to a close in Miami.

She was a little slow to start this season, though -- she split with her father as coach, struggled a bit with injury and illness, and came back to the All England club way under the radar. But the withdrawal of Victoria Azarenka and the loss of Maria Sharapova cleared her half of the bracket early in the tournament. In fact, Bartoli didn't face a seeded player until the semifinals where she dismissed Cinderella woman Kirsten Flipkens in straight sets. Her opponent in the final, meanwhile, had been doing most of the heavy lifting this week -- Sabine Lisicki, struggling herself all year, had taken out five-time champion Serena Williams in the fourth round and then survived a threat from last year's runner-up Aga Radwanska in the semis. Though she was playing her first Slam final, the German has had some of her biggest successes on these courts, and might have been hoping to deliver Marion another upset in the championship match.

But that would not be the case this time, though, as the emotion and exhaustion of a week's worth of victories finally got to her. Bartoli had the advantage from the start in Saturday's final -- she allowed Lisicki just ten points on serve in the first set and broke her in every service game. The scoreline was a little closer in the second, but the usually big-serving Sabine struggled to hold in one game after another, and was nearly reduced to tears when she couldn't get a jump on her opponent's game. After just over eighty minutes it was the Frenchwoman claiming the crown and ending a six-year stint as a bridesmaid at the sport's grandest ceremony.


Andy Murray came to Wimbledon this year intent on providing water for a drought of a different kind -- one that had lasted most of a century. Though a Gold medal last summer and a U.S. Open crown a few weeks later proved he had the stuff of a Grand Slam champion, his homeland's Major remained without a British king since Fred Perry last claimed the honor in 1936. He'd made a valiant effort in last year's final, and it seemed this year -- with a warm-up title at Queen's Club and every man who'd ever beaten him here out by the second round -- he was bound to go one better. He had a tough time, though -- surprise quarterfinalist Fernando Verdasco ran off with an equally surprising two-set lead in their Round of Sixteen, while super Cinderella Jerzy Janowicz looked primed to repeat his Paris victory in the semis -- but he never faced a top twenty during the week, and was the clear favorite in terms of both experience and fan support.

World #1 and 2011 champ Novak Djokovic didn't have an easy time of it either, though. He didn't drop a set in his first five matches, but faced powerhouses later in the draw, meeting uber-veteran Tommy Haas and 2010 finalist Tomas Berdych before being forced to go the distance against back-in-form Bronze medalist Juan Martin Del Potro in the semis. Still he'd rebounded from long matches to win Majors before, so there was clearly no counting him out.

But like with the ladies, this time was also different. The top two seeds stayed on serve early before Murray claimed the opening set, and Nole ran to a 5-2 lead in the second. But buoyed by the crowd and ready to rally, the Scot won eight of the next nine games to take the second and grab a break in the third. Like in their U.S. Open final, though, momentum seemed to shift back to the Serb -- but only for a short while. Though he saved three championship points in the tenth game and even earned a couple chances to break back, Murray ultimately closed out the three-plus hour match, cementing his place in the history books and finally giving the Brits something to cheer about. It was Nole's first straight-set loss at a Major since 2010, but more importantly Murray's first successful attempt to prove he's no one-hit wonder. He's currently the only man holding two Grand Slam trophies, and the win makes quite an emphatic statement as he begins to journey to defend his New York crown.


Both winners start this week, for the first time in their careers, as Wimbledon champions, a distinction that carries more than a little clout in the tennis world. By ending their streak of disappointments -- whether at the Majors, and this one in particular, or for their countries -- they've set themselves on a new course for their seasons, and maybe for their careers.

What they do with this opportunity, of course, remains to be seen -- but from here it sure looks like the possibilities are endless.
Posted by Kavitha at 3:07 PM 0 comments
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July 1, 2013

The Rebel Slam

For a tournament with so many rules of conduct, no one seems to want to follow protocol this year at Wimbledon.

The one thing I -- maybe anyone -- thought was certain this year at the All England Club, was that Serena Williams would walk home with the title for a sixth time. She was, ultimately, riding a thirty-one match win streak coming to the event and had already claimed six titles on the year. She looked healthy, fit and in dominating form during her first three matches, and with so many of the most experienced players in the field falling by the wayside, it seemed inevitable she'd coast to another Major title.

But that would not be the case for the world #1 -- Sabine Lisicki, one of the most promising young talents out there, has struggled with injury most of the year and had fallen out of the top thirty for most of the year. But she came out swinging Monday -- down breaks a couple times in the third set of her fourth round, she held tough to close, saving break chances at 0-40 and again when trying to serve it out, and scored her fourth win over a reigning French Open champion at Wimbledon. While only one of the German's three titles has come on grass, she's now compiled a 17-4 record at this Major, versus just 17-15 at all the others, easily making this the most prolific part of her season year after year.


The win was certainly one of the biggest of Sabine's career, but it might have also cemented her place as the new favorite to win this title -- and it seems only appropriate that the one who ousts the Queen should be the one to assume the throne. It's not a sure thing by any means, though -- two players in the field have Slam titles to their names, and two more have made a final here. There may never be a better opportunity for any of them to claim Wimbledon glory.

But fact of the matter is that, in a draw that's been thrown so wide open, even the deepest of underdogs could make a break for it in the days that remain. And, while the favorites may disagree, maybe that's not such a bad thing.

After all, isn't it kind of nice to see the proper players at Wimbledon get their tennis whites nice and dirty?
Posted by Kavitha at 2:33 PM 0 comments
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