Showing posts with label Svetlana Kuznetsova. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Svetlana Kuznetsova. Show all posts
October 22, 2015
Final Statements
The field may be set for this year's WTA Finals, but that doesn't mean the large majority of players who didn't make the cut aren't still trying to end their season with a bang. And whether they're hoping to recapture former glory or soar to new heights, this week a couple ladies could show us they're worth watching too.
There was only one player in Luxembourg who had an outside shot at qualifying for Singapore, but Timea Bacsinszky, whose meteoric rise this year brought her two titles, a top-ten ranking and a first Grand Slam semifinal, retired in the first set of her opener. But the beneficiary of that withdrawal has certainly capitalized -- twenty-seven year old Laura Siegemund peaked at a barely double-digit ranking just last month and only made the main draw here thanks to Lucie Hradecka pulling out. And after she got the win over the top seed, the German scored a solid upset over Kirsten Flipkens to reach the quarters. She's actually the on-paper favorite versus her next opponent, world #165 Stefanie Voegele, and with the other seeds in her half of the draw already eliminated, she stands a pretty good shot at reaching the final. Of course there's a bigger challenge in the bottom section of the bracket -- former #1 Jelena Jankovic is coming off her fifteenth career title in Hong Kong and her second trophy since the U.S. Open. She's kept her win streak going this week too and, as the highest ranked player left, she might just be able to gather up the momentum she needs to return to the elite in the new season.
The field was a little more stacked in Moscow where the original entry list boasted six players contending for the final four spots in Singapore -- but it's been those a little below the radar who're causing the biggest stir. Defending champion Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova had fallen out of the top forty at times this year, but started regaining ground in the second half, defeating Belinda Bencic on her way to the Washington final and taking out U.S. Open champ Flavia Pennetta in Beijing. Last week she ran off with the title in Linz, dropping just one set, and then got right back to work in her homeland -- unseeded in Russia, she took out French Open finalist Lucie Safarova and rising star Margarita Gasparyan. In the semis she'll face Daria Kasatkina, last year's Juniors champ in Paris, but might just have what it takes to keep her run going. But perhaps the bigger story here is that of veteran Svetlana Kuznetsova who, after a fairly lackluster season, stands to win her first title of the year this week. She hasn't faced a seed yet, and certainly will be challenged by a talented Lesia Tsurenko for a spot in the championship match. But if she can use her experience to her advantage, there's no reason she can't prove that she's still more than just a contender.
May 23, 2015
2015 French Open: Ten to Watch
Well things sure got interesting this clay court season, didn't they?
With the 2015 French Open just around the corner, we've seen some stunning runs from a couple unexpected sources, a few real comebacks from one-time superstars, and of course, a stumble or two along the way. And even though the heaviest favorites always find a way to bring their best on the Slam stages, we've seen even them struggle a bit in recent weeks.
And that could opens the door for plenty others -- whether they're underdogs who've been able to shine on their own the last few events, or once high-profile players looking to redeem themselves for recent missteps, I wouldn't be surprised to see a couple unfamiliar faces hanging around the later parts of this tournament.
And a few might just be worth keeping an extra close eye on this time around.
The Women
Angelique Kerber
The German has been staging something of a comeback the last few months. Despite some decent results in 2014 -- her Wimbledon showdown against Maria Sharapova was one of the best matches of the year -- she also notched some surprising losses throughout the season -- to Flavia Pennetta in Australia, to then-#47 Madison Keys in the Eastbourne final, to Genie Bouchard at both the French Open and Wimbledon. In 2015 she was upset at every tournament she played through March and fell out of the top ten by the time the clay court season really kicked in. But she seemed to get her groove back on the dirt -- a low seed in Charleston, she took out defending champion Andrea Petkovic in the semis and then avenged her loss to Keys in the final, picking up her first title in over a year. Then, unseeded in Stuttgart, she knocked out three top-ten players, including Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki, to clinch her biggest crown in years. She lost a little early in both Madrid and Rome, but seemed to get back on course this past week in Nürnberg. Though she withdrew from the semis, she might just have bought herself recovery time before hitting the bigger courts.
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Svetlana Kuznetsova has already tasted success on Tour -- the 2009 champion at Roland Garros has been as high as #2 in the world, but a series of injuries and hiccups has put her on a bit of a roller coaster over the years. Since falling dangerously close to a triple digit ranking early in 2013, she ended a four year long title-less streak last year in Washington, but has also lost in the first round of four of the last five Majors she's played. But the scrappy veteran always seems to fight her way back. Unseeded in Madrid at the start of the month, she faced a tough draw of one top-thirty player after another, and upset each one in turn, starting with Ekaterina Makarova in her opener and then shocking Maria Sharapova in the semis -- her first win over her compatriot since 2008. She ultimately lost to Petra Kvitova in the final, but must have given herself a nice little confidence boost during her run. Sure it's been a long time since she's been at the very top of her game, but she seems to do her best when she's most overlooked -- and with her only Slam wins in over a year coming on these courts there's no reason she won't be able to do some damage again.
Carina Witthoeft
Of course, it's sometimes more fun to watch new talent emerge at the Slams, and that might just happen here. This would be just the fourth appearance at a Major for the young German, but since jumping from the triple digit rankings at the start of the year to #61 in the world now, she could make a real run at this one. She's already shown she isn't fazed on the big stages -- Witthoeft rode an easy win over Carla Suarez Navarro in her Melbourne opener to the third round, and a few months later made it to the Kuala Lumpur quarters with a win over former top-twenty player Klara Koukalova. She also picked up her ninth and tenth ITF titles this year, making good on her top seed on the Cagnes-sur-Mer clay to start the month. She made a nice run to the quarterfinals this week in Nürnberg, ultimately losing to relative veteran Lara Arruabarrena, but should be able to recover by the time she heads to France. She opens against a rough Katerina Siniakova and would likely face 2012 finalist Sara Errani right after that -- but she's had worse draws in the past and still powered through. This time, I wouldn't count her out either.
Daria Gavrilova
Like Witthoeft, the twenty-one year old Russian really has been coming into her own this year -- a top-ranked Juniors player not so long ago, she's been putting up a nice fight against some of the sport's best. The Girls' champ in New York in 2010, this year she's already taken Angelique Kerber to three long sets in Sydney, picked up a couple ITF titles after the Australian Open and then stunned Maria Sharapova in the Miami second round. She made some progress on the clay too -- unseeded even in qualifying rounds in Rome, she made it to the main draw where she beat both red-hot Timea Bacsinszky and one-time French Open champion Ana Ivanovic during a Cinderella run to the semis. She wasn't able to repeat her upset over Sharapova this time, though, but did pick up enough points to move to #45 in the WTA rankings heading to Paris. Her first big test at the French is likely second round opponent Sabine Lisicki, but I wouldn't be surprised if she far outplayed her opponents for a few matches even after that.
Kristina Mladenovic
The Frenchwoman has become something of a giant-killer in recent months -- since one of her most notable successes on these courts just last year, she's gone on to beat the likes of Sabine Lisicki, Lucie Safarova, and most recently Garbiñe Muguruza, on her way to the semis in Marrakech a few weeks back. That last one was one of the few times she's been able to back up one solid win with another though, which probably explains why her ranking is still languishing outside the top fifty -- but she has seemed a little more consistent of late, taking a set of Ekaterina Makarova in Rome and reaching the final in Strasbourg this week, so she may be about to turn things around. The former French Open Juniors champion -- she beat Gavrilova in the 2009 final -- also has some impressive doubles results under her belt, including two mixed Major titles and a women's final at Wimbledon in 2014. That kind of match play could give her the experience she needs to finally find her game on the singles circuit too. She'll face off against 2014 breakout Genie Bouchard in her opening round -- kind of a tough blow -- but last year's semifinalist has been struggling in recent months and if Mladenovic can power through that she might really be able to make a push into the top tiers of the sport.
Ernests Gulbis
It's not just about players looking to make their first real mark at a Major, though -- and those who've done well in Paris in the past could come under pressure to prove that one deep run was not a fluke. High on that list is the twenty-six year old Latvian, who rose to a career high ranking after his performance here last year -- Gulbis made the semis with stunning wins over Tomas Berdych and Roger Federer, only the second time he'd even made it past the first week of a Major. He struggled with injury at the end of the season, though, and had to decline an alternate's spot at the year-end championships. And when he got back on court in 2015 he had even more trouble gaining traction -- he's lost pretty much every opening round he's played this year. He seemed like he might be turning things around -- out to defend a title this past week in Nice, he opened with a three-set victory over former world #13 Alexandr Dolgopolov, just his second match win of the year -- but after a third round loss to young Dominic Thiem on Thursday, he might have lost that momentum. His weak performance over the last several months has dropped his ranking back down to #25 in the world -- certainly not something to be ashamed of, but if he doesn't get his act together in Paris, he's in danger of seeing an even more precipitous drop.
Fabio Fognini
The feisty Italian hasn't yet made it that far at a Major, but the 2011 quarterfinalist in Paris has had some of his best results on these courts -- in fact five years ago he stunned then-#15 Gael Monfils in a four-hour slugfest that practically lasted until the sun went down. But after picking up a couple titles at smaller clay events ahead of the 2014 French Open, he's had a little trouble keeping his momentum. This season alone he's lost five opening round matches and seen his ranking nearly double to #29 in the world. Strangely, though, despite a slew of losses to what should have been easy opponents he has found a way to succeed against a most unlikely foe -- he's beaten King of Clay Rafael Nadal both in Rio and Barcelona, his only two top-ten wins of the year. And while he might not quite be a contender for the title he might just be able to cause some trouble for the favorites.
Guillermo Garcia Lopez
Veteran Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, on the other hand, seems to be squarely back on the upswing. The thirty-one year old made his best Slam showing here last year, reaching the fourth round after stunning Stan Wawrinka in his opener. Since then he's climbed back into the top thirty and picked up a couple titles to boot -- on the Bucharest clay last month, he notched upsets over Lukas Rosol and Gael Monfils, before outlasting young Jiri Vesely in the final. He's also defeated top-twenty players like Marin Cilic and Kevin Anderson on the surface this season, and has almost reclaimed his highest career ranking. He's disappointed me in the past -- five years ago I picked him as a dark horse semifinalist at Roland Garros, and he lost in the second round -- but it feels like he has gotten a little more consistent in recent months and might just surprise me, this time for the better.
Pablo Andujar
Garcia Lopez's fellow Spaniard is a little more under the radar. Andujar has spent much of the last several years with a middle-of-the-road ranking, never climbing high enough to score a seed at a Major, but always pulling off just enough wins to stay relevant. And if he's ever going to make a statement at a Slam, this could be his best shot -- he's picked up a trio of titles on the surface and this year scored wins over Felicano Lopez and David Ferrer on his way to the Barcelona final. And this past week in Geneva he put up a nice fight against Portugal's Joao Sousa before losing in the quarters. But despite his strength on clay, Andujar has only made it as far as the second round in Paris, and the last two years he lost his opener. Still, maybe low expectations are exactly what he needs to get something done -- he has a couple relatively easy early rounds, with the first seeds he's slated to face Phillipp Kohlschreiber and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, neither of whom have had stellar results recently. The barely unseeded Spaniard could give any one of them a run for the money.
Victor Estrella Burgos
The thirty-four year old veteran made history in February when he became the oldest first-time titleist on Tour -- and after his victory on clay in Quito, he picked up a Challengers' crown in Mexico. He didn't let up once the season kicked into full gear in -- he beat U.S. Open champ Marin Cilic in Barcelona and took out both Viktor Troicki and on-the-rebound Janko Tipsarevic, before falling in three to 2014 breakout star Roberto Bautista Agut in Munich. He dropped a tight match to young Dominic Thiem in Nice this week, but that could give him some much-needed time to recover before heading to Paris. This will be just his second appearance at the French Open of his long career -- he lost last year's opener to Jerzy Janowicz -- and a shade off his highest career ranking now, he could just be biding his time before pouncing.
Whatever the case, it sure seems like the favorites will have their work cut out for them at Roland Garros, and no one's road to the titles will be easy.
With the 2015 French Open just around the corner, we've seen some stunning runs from a couple unexpected sources, a few real comebacks from one-time superstars, and of course, a stumble or two along the way. And even though the heaviest favorites always find a way to bring their best on the Slam stages, we've seen even them struggle a bit in recent weeks.
And that could opens the door for plenty others -- whether they're underdogs who've been able to shine on their own the last few events, or once high-profile players looking to redeem themselves for recent missteps, I wouldn't be surprised to see a couple unfamiliar faces hanging around the later parts of this tournament.
And a few might just be worth keeping an extra close eye on this time around.
Angelique Kerber
The German has been staging something of a comeback the last few months. Despite some decent results in 2014 -- her Wimbledon showdown against Maria Sharapova was one of the best matches of the year -- she also notched some surprising losses throughout the season -- to Flavia Pennetta in Australia, to then-#47 Madison Keys in the Eastbourne final, to Genie Bouchard at both the French Open and Wimbledon. In 2015 she was upset at every tournament she played through March and fell out of the top ten by the time the clay court season really kicked in. But she seemed to get her groove back on the dirt -- a low seed in Charleston, she took out defending champion Andrea Petkovic in the semis and then avenged her loss to Keys in the final, picking up her first title in over a year. Then, unseeded in Stuttgart, she knocked out three top-ten players, including Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki, to clinch her biggest crown in years. She lost a little early in both Madrid and Rome, but seemed to get back on course this past week in Nürnberg. Though she withdrew from the semis, she might just have bought herself recovery time before hitting the bigger courts.
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Svetlana Kuznetsova has already tasted success on Tour -- the 2009 champion at Roland Garros has been as high as #2 in the world, but a series of injuries and hiccups has put her on a bit of a roller coaster over the years. Since falling dangerously close to a triple digit ranking early in 2013, she ended a four year long title-less streak last year in Washington, but has also lost in the first round of four of the last five Majors she's played. But the scrappy veteran always seems to fight her way back. Unseeded in Madrid at the start of the month, she faced a tough draw of one top-thirty player after another, and upset each one in turn, starting with Ekaterina Makarova in her opener and then shocking Maria Sharapova in the semis -- her first win over her compatriot since 2008. She ultimately lost to Petra Kvitova in the final, but must have given herself a nice little confidence boost during her run. Sure it's been a long time since she's been at the very top of her game, but she seems to do her best when she's most overlooked -- and with her only Slam wins in over a year coming on these courts there's no reason she won't be able to do some damage again.
Carina Witthoeft
Of course, it's sometimes more fun to watch new talent emerge at the Slams, and that might just happen here. This would be just the fourth appearance at a Major for the young German, but since jumping from the triple digit rankings at the start of the year to #61 in the world now, she could make a real run at this one. She's already shown she isn't fazed on the big stages -- Witthoeft rode an easy win over Carla Suarez Navarro in her Melbourne opener to the third round, and a few months later made it to the Kuala Lumpur quarters with a win over former top-twenty player Klara Koukalova. She also picked up her ninth and tenth ITF titles this year, making good on her top seed on the Cagnes-sur-Mer clay to start the month. She made a nice run to the quarterfinals this week in Nürnberg, ultimately losing to relative veteran Lara Arruabarrena, but should be able to recover by the time she heads to France. She opens against a rough Katerina Siniakova and would likely face 2012 finalist Sara Errani right after that -- but she's had worse draws in the past and still powered through. This time, I wouldn't count her out either.
Daria Gavrilova
Like Witthoeft, the twenty-one year old Russian really has been coming into her own this year -- a top-ranked Juniors player not so long ago, she's been putting up a nice fight against some of the sport's best. The Girls' champ in New York in 2010, this year she's already taken Angelique Kerber to three long sets in Sydney, picked up a couple ITF titles after the Australian Open and then stunned Maria Sharapova in the Miami second round. She made some progress on the clay too -- unseeded even in qualifying rounds in Rome, she made it to the main draw where she beat both red-hot Timea Bacsinszky and one-time French Open champion Ana Ivanovic during a Cinderella run to the semis. She wasn't able to repeat her upset over Sharapova this time, though, but did pick up enough points to move to #45 in the WTA rankings heading to Paris. Her first big test at the French is likely second round opponent Sabine Lisicki, but I wouldn't be surprised if she far outplayed her opponents for a few matches even after that.
Kristina Mladenovic
The Frenchwoman has become something of a giant-killer in recent months -- since one of her most notable successes on these courts just last year, she's gone on to beat the likes of Sabine Lisicki, Lucie Safarova, and most recently Garbiñe Muguruza, on her way to the semis in Marrakech a few weeks back. That last one was one of the few times she's been able to back up one solid win with another though, which probably explains why her ranking is still languishing outside the top fifty -- but she has seemed a little more consistent of late, taking a set of Ekaterina Makarova in Rome and reaching the final in Strasbourg this week, so she may be about to turn things around. The former French Open Juniors champion -- she beat Gavrilova in the 2009 final -- also has some impressive doubles results under her belt, including two mixed Major titles and a women's final at Wimbledon in 2014. That kind of match play could give her the experience she needs to finally find her game on the singles circuit too. She'll face off against 2014 breakout Genie Bouchard in her opening round -- kind of a tough blow -- but last year's semifinalist has been struggling in recent months and if Mladenovic can power through that she might really be able to make a push into the top tiers of the sport.
Ernests Gulbis
It's not just about players looking to make their first real mark at a Major, though -- and those who've done well in Paris in the past could come under pressure to prove that one deep run was not a fluke. High on that list is the twenty-six year old Latvian, who rose to a career high ranking after his performance here last year -- Gulbis made the semis with stunning wins over Tomas Berdych and Roger Federer, only the second time he'd even made it past the first week of a Major. He struggled with injury at the end of the season, though, and had to decline an alternate's spot at the year-end championships. And when he got back on court in 2015 he had even more trouble gaining traction -- he's lost pretty much every opening round he's played this year. He seemed like he might be turning things around -- out to defend a title this past week in Nice, he opened with a three-set victory over former world #13 Alexandr Dolgopolov, just his second match win of the year -- but after a third round loss to young Dominic Thiem on Thursday, he might have lost that momentum. His weak performance over the last several months has dropped his ranking back down to #25 in the world -- certainly not something to be ashamed of, but if he doesn't get his act together in Paris, he's in danger of seeing an even more precipitous drop.
Fabio Fognini
The feisty Italian hasn't yet made it that far at a Major, but the 2011 quarterfinalist in Paris has had some of his best results on these courts -- in fact five years ago he stunned then-#15 Gael Monfils in a four-hour slugfest that practically lasted until the sun went down. But after picking up a couple titles at smaller clay events ahead of the 2014 French Open, he's had a little trouble keeping his momentum. This season alone he's lost five opening round matches and seen his ranking nearly double to #29 in the world. Strangely, though, despite a slew of losses to what should have been easy opponents he has found a way to succeed against a most unlikely foe -- he's beaten King of Clay Rafael Nadal both in Rio and Barcelona, his only two top-ten wins of the year. And while he might not quite be a contender for the title he might just be able to cause some trouble for the favorites.
Guillermo Garcia Lopez
Veteran Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, on the other hand, seems to be squarely back on the upswing. The thirty-one year old made his best Slam showing here last year, reaching the fourth round after stunning Stan Wawrinka in his opener. Since then he's climbed back into the top thirty and picked up a couple titles to boot -- on the Bucharest clay last month, he notched upsets over Lukas Rosol and Gael Monfils, before outlasting young Jiri Vesely in the final. He's also defeated top-twenty players like Marin Cilic and Kevin Anderson on the surface this season, and has almost reclaimed his highest career ranking. He's disappointed me in the past -- five years ago I picked him as a dark horse semifinalist at Roland Garros, and he lost in the second round -- but it feels like he has gotten a little more consistent in recent months and might just surprise me, this time for the better.
Pablo Andujar
Garcia Lopez's fellow Spaniard is a little more under the radar. Andujar has spent much of the last several years with a middle-of-the-road ranking, never climbing high enough to score a seed at a Major, but always pulling off just enough wins to stay relevant. And if he's ever going to make a statement at a Slam, this could be his best shot -- he's picked up a trio of titles on the surface and this year scored wins over Felicano Lopez and David Ferrer on his way to the Barcelona final. And this past week in Geneva he put up a nice fight against Portugal's Joao Sousa before losing in the quarters. But despite his strength on clay, Andujar has only made it as far as the second round in Paris, and the last two years he lost his opener. Still, maybe low expectations are exactly what he needs to get something done -- he has a couple relatively easy early rounds, with the first seeds he's slated to face Phillipp Kohlschreiber and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, neither of whom have had stellar results recently. The barely unseeded Spaniard could give any one of them a run for the money.
Victor Estrella Burgos
The thirty-four year old veteran made history in February when he became the oldest first-time titleist on Tour -- and after his victory on clay in Quito, he picked up a Challengers' crown in Mexico. He didn't let up once the season kicked into full gear in -- he beat U.S. Open champ Marin Cilic in Barcelona and took out both Viktor Troicki and on-the-rebound Janko Tipsarevic, before falling in three to 2014 breakout star Roberto Bautista Agut in Munich. He dropped a tight match to young Dominic Thiem in Nice this week, but that could give him some much-needed time to recover before heading to Paris. This will be just his second appearance at the French Open of his long career -- he lost last year's opener to Jerzy Janowicz -- and a shade off his highest career ranking now, he could just be biding his time before pouncing.
Whatever the case, it sure seems like the favorites will have their work cut out for them at Roland Garros, and no one's road to the titles will be easy.
May 10, 2015
Beating the Best
Winning a tennis tournament is always a great feat, but a title might mean slightly more when you have to face the toughest challenges yourself. All the heavy hitters were out in force, no one cleared the road for you, and you still managed to defy the odds and bring home the trophy.
And not only did this week's champions in Madrid manage to add a little more bling to their mantels, but they had to get through the very best the sport has to offer to do it.
There were lots of upsets in the women's draw, maybe unsurprisingly, with former French Open Juniors champion Simona Halep losing her opener to Alizé Cornet and a still-struggling Genie Bouchard building a 6-0 lead over Barbora Strycova before falling in three sets. But the biggest shockers were saved for the final two rounds -- two-time Major winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, now barely in the top thirty, faced one big threat after another, dispatching in turn Ekaterina Makarova, Garbiñe Muguruza, Sam Stosur and Lucie Safarova before stunning defending Roland Garros champ Maria Sharapova in the semis. They were her first top-ten wins of the season and got her to her first final since Washington last year.
There she met a woman who'd been equally stunning this week -- Petra Kvitova, though still ranked #4 in the world, hasn't played a lot this year, taking March off to recover from a hectic 2014 schedule. But she hit the ground running in Madrid -- after dropping her first set to qualifier Olga Govortsova, she rebounded quickly for the win and cruised the rest of the week. In the semis the young Czech stunned Serena Williams in straight sets, handing the top-ranked player her first official loss of the season and scoring her first ever win over the nineteen-time Slam champion. Playing in the final again for the first time since 2011, Kvitova was on-point -- she lost only three games to Kuznetsova, needing just over an hour to earn her second title of the year. And as much as the trophy must mean -- it's probably the road she took to get there that means even more.
The same can be said on the men's side, where the undisputed King of Clay was out to defend his crown. Rafael Nadal may have come to Madrid ranked fourth in the world, a lower spot than what he's been used to, and he may have been hoping to turn around what's been a relatively disappointing season so far. But that doesn't make him any less of a force on this surface. And with a couple weak-for-him showings in Monte Carlo and Barcelona, it felt like his run in Madrid carried a little extra meaning. And he looked more than motivated at the outset -- easily handling a potential test from Grigor Dimitrov and then taking out Tomas Berdych in the semis, he seemed ready to add clay court title #47 to his trophy chest, which would get him that much closer to Guillermo Vilas's record forty-nine.
But Andy Murray had other plans -- fresh off, astonishingly, his first clay court title last week, the second seed was focused on keeping his streak going. He won a tight rematch against Munich runner-up Philipp Kohlschreiber in his opener, but didn't drop a set again, losing serve just one time in his next three matches, against such formidable opponents as Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori. He faced a much tougher task against Rafa, of course -- the decorated Spaniard had only lost a handful of clay court finals in his career. But the Scot wasn't preturbed, and on Sunday he kept his cool under pressure, breaking his opponent three times and delivering him a straight set loss in less than ninety minutes. To back up his maiden Munich crown with a Masters-level win over such a formidable foe, might just put Murray on a path we didn't expect from him so long ago.
This weekend's champions may have higher-profile trophies on their shelves, but by vanquishing the very best in the field to score victories in Madrid, they may have accomplished something even more important. And that could just further shake things up when even bigger titles are on the line in just a few weeks' time.
And not only did this week's champions in Madrid manage to add a little more bling to their mantels, but they had to get through the very best the sport has to offer to do it.
There were lots of upsets in the women's draw, maybe unsurprisingly, with former French Open Juniors champion Simona Halep losing her opener to Alizé Cornet and a still-struggling Genie Bouchard building a 6-0 lead over Barbora Strycova before falling in three sets. But the biggest shockers were saved for the final two rounds -- two-time Major winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, now barely in the top thirty, faced one big threat after another, dispatching in turn Ekaterina Makarova, Garbiñe Muguruza, Sam Stosur and Lucie Safarova before stunning defending Roland Garros champ Maria Sharapova in the semis. They were her first top-ten wins of the season and got her to her first final since Washington last year.
There she met a woman who'd been equally stunning this week -- Petra Kvitova, though still ranked #4 in the world, hasn't played a lot this year, taking March off to recover from a hectic 2014 schedule. But she hit the ground running in Madrid -- after dropping her first set to qualifier Olga Govortsova, she rebounded quickly for the win and cruised the rest of the week. In the semis the young Czech stunned Serena Williams in straight sets, handing the top-ranked player her first official loss of the season and scoring her first ever win over the nineteen-time Slam champion. Playing in the final again for the first time since 2011, Kvitova was on-point -- she lost only three games to Kuznetsova, needing just over an hour to earn her second title of the year. And as much as the trophy must mean -- it's probably the road she took to get there that means even more.
The same can be said on the men's side, where the undisputed King of Clay was out to defend his crown. Rafael Nadal may have come to Madrid ranked fourth in the world, a lower spot than what he's been used to, and he may have been hoping to turn around what's been a relatively disappointing season so far. But that doesn't make him any less of a force on this surface. And with a couple weak-for-him showings in Monte Carlo and Barcelona, it felt like his run in Madrid carried a little extra meaning. And he looked more than motivated at the outset -- easily handling a potential test from Grigor Dimitrov and then taking out Tomas Berdych in the semis, he seemed ready to add clay court title #47 to his trophy chest, which would get him that much closer to Guillermo Vilas's record forty-nine.
But Andy Murray had other plans -- fresh off, astonishingly, his first clay court title last week, the second seed was focused on keeping his streak going. He won a tight rematch against Munich runner-up Philipp Kohlschreiber in his opener, but didn't drop a set again, losing serve just one time in his next three matches, against such formidable opponents as Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori. He faced a much tougher task against Rafa, of course -- the decorated Spaniard had only lost a handful of clay court finals in his career. But the Scot wasn't preturbed, and on Sunday he kept his cool under pressure, breaking his opponent three times and delivering him a straight set loss in less than ninety minutes. To back up his maiden Munich crown with a Masters-level win over such a formidable foe, might just put Murray on a path we didn't expect from him so long ago.
This weekend's champions may have higher-profile trophies on their shelves, but by vanquishing the very best in the field to score victories in Madrid, they may have accomplished something even more important. And that could just further shake things up when even bigger titles are on the line in just a few weeks' time.
August 26, 2014
Momentum Lost
With a day or so of play in the books at the U.S. Open, we haven't seen a ton of big upsets yet, but that doesn't mean the action in New York has been completely devoid of surprises. Favorites like Simona Halep were pushed to three sets on Day One, upstarts like Nick Kyrgios notched huge wins over long-standing veterans, and former champions like Venus Williams were forced to brave the wilderness, swatting at bees as well as balls. But not everyone made it through early round play -- and a couple who'd been strong all summer suffered a bit of a set back just as they seemed to have been peaking.
Magdalena Rybarikova has had some of her best results on the American hardcourts, trouncing higher-ranked opponents in DC to win the title two years running, and stunning Simona Halep just last week on her way to the New Haven final. But while she was able to push former world #1 Caroline Wozniacki to a third set, she ultimately retired down a break in the decider. The on-paper underdog may not have been projected to go very far, but she certainly had the ability to shake up the draw a bit. Instead it's the 2009 runner-up who'll face qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich for a spot in the third round. And while Caro has certainly upped her game after a disappointing spring season, she must be relieved to have survived the challenge. And hopefully she'll be able to absorb the momentum that the Slovakian lost.
Garbiñe Muguruza has been a little more consistent this year -- since picking up her maiden trophy in Hobart, she reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, pulled off the upset of the tournament on her way to the Roland Garros quarters and made the Sweet Sixteen in both Stanford and New Haven. Her five top-twenty wins on the season have helped her rise to a career-high #26 ranking and earned her a second straight seeding at a Major. She opened against thirty-two year old Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, ranked outside the top hundred, a veteran who made the Wimbledon semis way back in 1999 and was able to capitalize on that experience Monday. In about an hour and a half Lucic had recorded the win, setting up a second round with fellow vet Shahar Peer, a woman she beat in their only previous match just last year. Actually the favorite this time, the Croat could parlay her first upset into her deepest run in New York yet.
Unfortunately for 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, hopes of recapturing past glory were stopped short. The two-time Major winner ended a four-year title drought in DC earlier this month, and pulled off wins over higher-ranked Genie Bouchard and Ekaterina Makarova this summer. She was one of my dark horse picks to at least the second week at this event, but she had the bad luck to run into a hungry Marina Erakovic earlier today. Sveta jumped to an early lead, but was pushed quickly to a third set by the world #82 -- the New Zealander climbed back from a break down in the decider too, ultimately forcing and winning a tiebreak. It was Erakovic's first win at the U.S. Open and sets up a meeting with another Russian, Elena Vesnina in the next round. And with a 2-2 record against last year's Eastbourne champion, she's got more than a good shot at scoring a few more.
It wasn't just the ladies who came under pressure in early rounds. I was sure Vasek Pospisil had broken his weak streak when made the finals in DC, winning battles against the likes of Tomas Berdych and Richard Gasquet. He couldn't defend points he'd earned last year in Montreal, but took Roger Federer to three sets in Cincinnati and seemed ready to make a break back into the top rankings. But Italy's Simone Bolelli had other plans. After a heart-breaking five-set loss in the Wimbledon third round, the world #85 was not about to go down without a fight -- he lost the first set and squandered the lead he built when he won the next two. But ultimately Bolelli finished swinging -- he converted the only break opportunity in the fifth, winning his only match at Flushing Meadows since 2007. He'll now take on sixteenth seed Tommy Robredo, a more difficult test to be sure, but a man he's beaten in their last two meetings. If he's recovered in time, there's no reason he can't keep that run going.
Yen-Hsun "Rendy" Lu, on the other hand, wasn't able to maintain his own momentum. After taking out Tomas Berdych in Cincinnati and making a solid run to the semis in Winston-Salem last week, the man from Taipei climbed to #34 in the world, his highest ranking in almost four years. It wasn't enough for a seed at the U.S. Open, but he nevertheless presented a threat to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, ranked just ahead of him, who'd gone on a five-match losing streak in July and August. But in the pair's first meeting since 2009, the Spaniard had the upper hand from the start -- he broke Lu six times during the match, won more than eighty percent of his first serves, and out-aced his opponent 10-3. In what should have been a much closer battle, GGL secured the win in three easy sets, sending Rendy home in the first round of a Major for the twenty-second time and setting up a second round with another summer stand-out, Sam Querrey. He should be the favorite here, too, but Querrey's won every one of their last three meetings, most recently just last week in North Carolina, and he's not going to let the twenty-eighth seed rest too long on his laurels.
Lukas Rosol was certainly not allowed much of a chance to rest on his. The twenty-nine year old, best known for his then-shocking defeat of Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon in 2012, was having a pretty good season this year too. He notched three top-thirty wins on his way to the Stuttgart final, and beat Tommy Robredo a week later in Hamburg. Last week at the Winston-Salem Open, helped largely by the retirement of Ryan Harrison and a withdrawal by John Isner, he worked his way to the championship match, claiming his second career title with a three-set victory over big-serving Jerzy Janowicz in the final. He lasted three sets today, too, but this time was on the wrong end of them -- against teenage qualifier Borna Coric, last year's Boys' champion in New York, he watched twenty aces sail past him, was broken five times and was sent packing after less than two hours on court. The #204-ranked Coric will now face thirty-four year old Victor Estrella Burgos -- literally twice his age -- who won his first match at a Major earlier today. The Croat will surely be the underdog, but the way the kids are playing these days, I wouldn't put anything past him.
Of course, it wasn't all bad news for the summer's strongest players -- former champion Sam Stosur, fresh off a win over Genie Bouchard on her way to the New Haven semis, easily passed what could have been a difficult test from Lauren Davis, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga may have been on the losing end of one of the best shots of the Open so far, but ultimately got the win over Juan Monaco without breaking much of a sweat. Still, early exits for some of the most successful stars of the season might just open the doors for both their vanquishers and those looking for a turn around.
And whoever grabs the opportunity first could ride a new wave of momentum farther than they ever expected.
Garbiñe Muguruza has been a little more consistent this year -- since picking up her maiden trophy in Hobart, she reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, pulled off the upset of the tournament on her way to the Roland Garros quarters and made the Sweet Sixteen in both Stanford and New Haven. Her five top-twenty wins on the season have helped her rise to a career-high #26 ranking and earned her a second straight seeding at a Major. She opened against thirty-two year old Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, ranked outside the top hundred, a veteran who made the Wimbledon semis way back in 1999 and was able to capitalize on that experience Monday. In about an hour and a half Lucic had recorded the win, setting up a second round with fellow vet Shahar Peer, a woman she beat in their only previous match just last year. Actually the favorite this time, the Croat could parlay her first upset into her deepest run in New York yet.
Unfortunately for 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, hopes of recapturing past glory were stopped short. The two-time Major winner ended a four-year title drought in DC earlier this month, and pulled off wins over higher-ranked Genie Bouchard and Ekaterina Makarova this summer. She was one of my dark horse picks to at least the second week at this event, but she had the bad luck to run into a hungry Marina Erakovic earlier today. Sveta jumped to an early lead, but was pushed quickly to a third set by the world #82 -- the New Zealander climbed back from a break down in the decider too, ultimately forcing and winning a tiebreak. It was Erakovic's first win at the U.S. Open and sets up a meeting with another Russian, Elena Vesnina in the next round. And with a 2-2 record against last year's Eastbourne champion, she's got more than a good shot at scoring a few more.
It wasn't just the ladies who came under pressure in early rounds. I was sure Vasek Pospisil had broken his weak streak when made the finals in DC, winning battles against the likes of Tomas Berdych and Richard Gasquet. He couldn't defend points he'd earned last year in Montreal, but took Roger Federer to three sets in Cincinnati and seemed ready to make a break back into the top rankings. But Italy's Simone Bolelli had other plans. After a heart-breaking five-set loss in the Wimbledon third round, the world #85 was not about to go down without a fight -- he lost the first set and squandered the lead he built when he won the next two. But ultimately Bolelli finished swinging -- he converted the only break opportunity in the fifth, winning his only match at Flushing Meadows since 2007. He'll now take on sixteenth seed Tommy Robredo, a more difficult test to be sure, but a man he's beaten in their last two meetings. If he's recovered in time, there's no reason he can't keep that run going.
Yen-Hsun "Rendy" Lu, on the other hand, wasn't able to maintain his own momentum. After taking out Tomas Berdych in Cincinnati and making a solid run to the semis in Winston-Salem last week, the man from Taipei climbed to #34 in the world, his highest ranking in almost four years. It wasn't enough for a seed at the U.S. Open, but he nevertheless presented a threat to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, ranked just ahead of him, who'd gone on a five-match losing streak in July and August. But in the pair's first meeting since 2009, the Spaniard had the upper hand from the start -- he broke Lu six times during the match, won more than eighty percent of his first serves, and out-aced his opponent 10-3. In what should have been a much closer battle, GGL secured the win in three easy sets, sending Rendy home in the first round of a Major for the twenty-second time and setting up a second round with another summer stand-out, Sam Querrey. He should be the favorite here, too, but Querrey's won every one of their last three meetings, most recently just last week in North Carolina, and he's not going to let the twenty-eighth seed rest too long on his laurels.
Of course, it wasn't all bad news for the summer's strongest players -- former champion Sam Stosur, fresh off a win over Genie Bouchard on her way to the New Haven semis, easily passed what could have been a difficult test from Lauren Davis, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga may have been on the losing end of one of the best shots of the Open so far, but ultimately got the win over Juan Monaco without breaking much of a sweat. Still, early exits for some of the most successful stars of the season might just open the doors for both their vanquishers and those looking for a turn around.
And whoever grabs the opportunity first could ride a new wave of momentum farther than they ever expected.
August 4, 2014
Back in the Saddle
We saw a lot of players last week reassert themselves in the tennis world, and while many of them were encouragingly able to keep up their performances most of the week, when it came down to the wire it was the tried-and-true who came away the winners. But for some, it had been a long time since they tasted that kind of victory.
Milos Raonic had been putting together his most successful season to-date, but despite his first Grand Slam semi at Wimbledon and breaking into the top ten for the first time, he hadn't won a title all year. The big-serving Canadian came to the Citi Open in DC as the second seed, but faced some tough competition during his run. Despite fifty-four aces, the first five sets he played all went to tiebreaks, and it wasn't until the quarterfinals against Steve Johnson that he finally held onto a break lead. In Sunday's final versus compatriot Vasek Pospisil, who'd already come back from sets down in his previous two matches, he broke early in the match and never looked back -- after just over an hour he'd secured the win, the first 500-level title of his career. It was Raonic's first trophy since Bangkok last September, but after so many close calls this year, it might mean a little more.
Svetlana Kuznetsova has been away from the winner's circle a little longer -- the two-time Major winner claimed her last title almost four years ago and lost the only two championships she's played since then. She has remained relevant, though, reaching the quarterfinals at the last two French Opens and climbing back up the rankings from #85 in the world last January to #26 before making the trip to DC. The sixth seeded Russian was blessed with a fairly open draw, with red-hot Lucie Safarova losing her opener and two-time defending champion Magdalena Rybarikova falling quickly in her first round. But she didn't lose a set in her first three matches, beating compatriot Ekaterina Makarova in less than ninety minutes in their semi. Sunday she faced off against unseeded upstart Kurumi Nara, who'd won her first career trophy in Rio to start the year and was clearly going to put up a fight for title #2. After taking the first set, Sveta fell behind in the second to the young Japanese and was forced to a decider. And both ladies raised their games in that set, with the first and only break conversion coming at match point after more than two hours of play. The win not only ended Kuznetsova's long drought, but more importantly reminded us all of how relevant she still is as we draw closer to the last Grand Slam of the year.
Serena Williams also made a big statement this week. While the world #1 had already picked up three crowns this season, she'd been getting more attention lately for her early Slam exits and a weird Wimbledon meltdown. Though she'll still be the favorite to defend her U.S Open title later in the summer, plenty of pundits wondered whether she'd be mentally and physically fit enough to play against the top stars in the sport. She may have silenced those critics at the Bank of the West Classic, where she'd won the trophy on her last two outings. She kept that win streak going last week, coming back from a set down to Ana Ivanovic in the quarters and winning eight straight games to close out her semifinal against Andrea Petkovic. In yesterday's final she got down an early break to Angelique Kerber -- a woman who'd delivered her only loss in the in back half of 2012 -- but rebounded quickly, taking the first set in a tiebreak and allowing just two points on serve in the second. The win puts her squarely on top of the U.S. Open Series rankings, a place she's used to occupying, but more importantly proves she can't be counted out. And while there might be a few more openings for her opponents, she's not going anywhere any time soon.
With the summer hardcourt season now in full swing, it was the perfect time for this weekend's winners to get back on a winning track. Whether it'd been months or years since they last tasted victory, their recent results show us just how much in control of their games they are. And with just a few weeks left before action kicks off in New York, everyone else should stand up and take notice.
Svetlana Kuznetsova has been away from the winner's circle a little longer -- the two-time Major winner claimed her last title almost four years ago and lost the only two championships she's played since then. She has remained relevant, though, reaching the quarterfinals at the last two French Opens and climbing back up the rankings from #85 in the world last January to #26 before making the trip to DC. The sixth seeded Russian was blessed with a fairly open draw, with red-hot Lucie Safarova losing her opener and two-time defending champion Magdalena Rybarikova falling quickly in her first round. But she didn't lose a set in her first three matches, beating compatriot Ekaterina Makarova in less than ninety minutes in their semi. Sunday she faced off against unseeded upstart Kurumi Nara, who'd won her first career trophy in Rio to start the year and was clearly going to put up a fight for title #2. After taking the first set, Sveta fell behind in the second to the young Japanese and was forced to a decider. And both ladies raised their games in that set, with the first and only break conversion coming at match point after more than two hours of play. The win not only ended Kuznetsova's long drought, but more importantly reminded us all of how relevant she still is as we draw closer to the last Grand Slam of the year.
With the summer hardcourt season now in full swing, it was the perfect time for this weekend's winners to get back on a winning track. Whether it'd been months or years since they last tasted victory, their recent results show us just how much in control of their games they are. And with just a few weeks left before action kicks off in New York, everyone else should stand up and take notice.
August 1, 2014
Don't Call This a Comeback...
Is it just me, or does it seem like a lot of players have taken the opportunity this week to put their names back on the tennis map?
Whether tried and true veterans or once-hot young guns, more than a few players had slowed down in recent months and years, some making more headlines for their lack of results than for any match wins. But someone seems to have lit a fire under these guys, one which hopefully won't flicker out any time soon.
Juan Monaco seems to have brought the momentum that took him all the way to the Gstaad final last week with him to Austria. Now ranked back in the top hundred dropped his opening set in Kitzbühel in a bagel, but came back strong to take out seventh seed Jarkko Nieminen and, earlier today, notched another upset over world #48 Andreas Seppi. He'll meet upstart Dominic Thiem in the second part of his double-header later today, but I like his chances to get back to a championship match. But the real story at the bet-at-home Cup is really David Goffin, a surprise fourth-rounder at the French Open two years ago. Since then he's lost in seven Major first rounds and this year has only won three ATP-level matches. He is, however, doing well on the Challenger circuit, claiming three clay court titles since Wimbledon and carried a 15-0 streak to Kitzbühel, where he took out top seed Phillipp Kohlschreiber early in his run. Earlier today he came back after losing his opening set to Maximo Gonzalez -- he'd been serving for it at 5-4 -- and will, against all expectations, be playing in his first career final tomorrow.
Over on the American hardcourts a couple more players are showing why they were once thought to have so much potential. Vasek Pospisil hit a career high of #25 in the world at the start of the year, but went on an eight-match losing streak during the spring and early summer. He did a little better in doubles, though, teaming with Jack Sock for a stunning victory at the All England Club and backing it up with a quick-and-easy title run in Atlanta. This week in DC, he scored his third win versus a top-ten player, repeating his win over Tomas Berdych from almost a year ago. He'll still be the on-paper underdog in today's quarterfinal against Santiago Giraldo, but he's shown he can pull off bigger wins than that. Donald Young too is having a bit of a resurgence -- after his famously unsuccessful 2012 season, he saw his ranking plummet from #38 to sub-200. But even with a few nice wins this year, he still has a losing record in 2014. He has managed wins over Julien Benneteau and Denis Istomin this week, though, so he might just be back on track.
The ladies in Washington haven't seen as many notable rebirths -- Kristina Mladenovic continued her stellar season by taking out top seed and Wimbledon semifinalist Lucie Safarova while consistently strong Ekaterina Makarova dominated two-time defending champion Magdalena Rybarikova in her opener. But she'll next meet 2012 finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who seems to have gotten her mojo back. Since claiming the title in Paris last February she's lost five matches to players ranked in triple digits, but hasn't dropped a set yet this week. And Svetlana Kuznetsova, who's been winning in fits and starts the last several years, had a surprisingly easy time against Kirsten Flipkens to make the quarters. She's the lowest seed still standing, but might just be able to re-harness the talent we know she has.
But perhaps the player we should be most focused on is Venus Williams who this week returns to Stanford for the first time since 2009. The former world #1 has understandably slowed down a bit since being diagnosed with Sjorgrëns disease three years ago, but she remains relevant, picking up title #45 in Dubai last February. And she's reached the final here seven times before, the first one way back in 1998, and though she's unseeded at the Bank of the West Classic she's clearly still a threat. Late last night she notched her first top ten victory of the year over Victoria Azarenka, herself struggling to come back from injury, and next faces Andrea Petkovic -- a woman she beat on her way to the 2012 Luxembourg title. She could easily set up a showdown against sister Serena for a spot in the championship match, and while she'll of course be the underdog there, I wouldn't expect anything other than fireworks.
All of these guys and girls have tasted big victories in the past, and though it may have been a while since they've been at the top of their game, they've all been around for years and know how to win when it counts. And this might be just the time to do that.
Whether tried and true veterans or once-hot young guns, more than a few players had slowed down in recent months and years, some making more headlines for their lack of results than for any match wins. But someone seems to have lit a fire under these guys, one which hopefully won't flicker out any time soon.
Over on the American hardcourts a couple more players are showing why they were once thought to have so much potential. Vasek Pospisil hit a career high of #25 in the world at the start of the year, but went on an eight-match losing streak during the spring and early summer. He did a little better in doubles, though, teaming with Jack Sock for a stunning victory at the All England Club and backing it up with a quick-and-easy title run in Atlanta. This week in DC, he scored his third win versus a top-ten player, repeating his win over Tomas Berdych from almost a year ago. He'll still be the on-paper underdog in today's quarterfinal against Santiago Giraldo, but he's shown he can pull off bigger wins than that. Donald Young too is having a bit of a resurgence -- after his famously unsuccessful 2012 season, he saw his ranking plummet from #38 to sub-200. But even with a few nice wins this year, he still has a losing record in 2014. He has managed wins over Julien Benneteau and Denis Istomin this week, though, so he might just be back on track.
The ladies in Washington haven't seen as many notable rebirths -- Kristina Mladenovic continued her stellar season by taking out top seed and Wimbledon semifinalist Lucie Safarova while consistently strong Ekaterina Makarova dominated two-time defending champion Magdalena Rybarikova in her opener. But she'll next meet 2012 finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who seems to have gotten her mojo back. Since claiming the title in Paris last February she's lost five matches to players ranked in triple digits, but hasn't dropped a set yet this week. And Svetlana Kuznetsova, who's been winning in fits and starts the last several years, had a surprisingly easy time against Kirsten Flipkens to make the quarters. She's the lowest seed still standing, but might just be able to re-harness the talent we know she has.
All of these guys and girls have tasted big victories in the past, and though it may have been a while since they've been at the top of their game, they've all been around for years and know how to win when it counts. And this might be just the time to do that.
May 2, 2014
Sixth Time's a Charm?
The ladies taking the court in Oeiras really shook things up from the start, this week, didn't they?
Third seeded Sam Stosur, one of the most accomplished players in the field, lost her opener to world #165 Timea Bacsinszky, a woman who's spent most of the last three years rehabbing on the ITF Tour, and Lucie Safarova, who so nearly beat eventual Stuttgart titleist Maria Sharapova in that first round, bowed out early in Portugal to Polona Hercog. Other favorites got a little further, but eventually Melbourne Cinderella Genie Bouchard and Roberta Vinci -- whose two match wins this week was her best performance all season -- were also sent packing.
All that leaves two somewhat unlikely players to contest tomorrow's championship match.
Former world #2 Svetlana Kuznetsova has won thirteen trophies in her long career and she'ss laid claim to two Grand Slams. But she's lost the only final she's played since 2010 and has fallen a bit down the rankings since. She did manage to climb back last year after injury, reaching later rounds in Tokyo and Moscow, and last week in Stuttgart survived red-hot Simona Halep in two tight sets. She maintained a low seed in Oerias, but upset Bouchard in the quarters and earlier today barreled through compatriot Elena Vesnina in just over an hour. She hasn't won a title in almost four years, though, so she may be a little rough in tomorrow's match. And that could be just the opening her opponent needs.
Carla Suarez Navarro has had some big wins during her career -- she stunned Venus Williams at the 2009 Australian Open and reached the quarters in New York with a win over Angelique Kerber last year -- but despite five previous final appearances, all on what should be her best surface, she's never won a title. But this time one thing is different -- the Spaniard is just off her career high ranking, and tomorrow will be the first time she faces someone ranked lower than her for the crown. She hasn't dropped a set yet, either, and won her opening two matches in under an hour each. Today's match against Irina-Camelia Begu was her first real test, and though she was pushed to a tiebreak to start, she rolled through the second set decisively to reach her third consecutive final in the former Estoril. It won't be easy of course - CSN's only gotten one win in her previous four meetings with the Russian, and one of Sveta's Majors did, after all, come on clay -- but she's arguably playing the better ball these days, and with all her earlier attempts coming up short, she might finally have the momentum and the motivation to get things done this time around.
It wouldn't be the longest streak of finals with no title, of course -- just last year, after all, Elena Vesnina ended a run of six trophy-less campaigns in Hobart -- but breaking it now, at such a prime juncture in her career, could put Suarez Navarro on a new path. With the French Open around the corner -- an event at which she's only won one match in her entire career -- she'll want to prove she has the goods. A victory tomorrow would only be the first step to bigger and better things, of course, but once she breaks the seal, there's no telling what she could be able to do.
Third seeded Sam Stosur, one of the most accomplished players in the field, lost her opener to world #165 Timea Bacsinszky, a woman who's spent most of the last three years rehabbing on the ITF Tour, and Lucie Safarova, who so nearly beat eventual Stuttgart titleist Maria Sharapova in that first round, bowed out early in Portugal to Polona Hercog. Other favorites got a little further, but eventually Melbourne Cinderella Genie Bouchard and Roberta Vinci -- whose two match wins this week was her best performance all season -- were also sent packing.
All that leaves two somewhat unlikely players to contest tomorrow's championship match.
It wouldn't be the longest streak of finals with no title, of course -- just last year, after all, Elena Vesnina ended a run of six trophy-less campaigns in Hobart -- but breaking it now, at such a prime juncture in her career, could put Suarez Navarro on a new path. With the French Open around the corner -- an event at which she's only won one match in her entire career -- she'll want to prove she has the goods. A victory tomorrow would only be the first step to bigger and better things, of course, but once she breaks the seal, there's no telling what she could be able to do.
January 20, 2013
Aussie Open, One Week In: Where We Stand
A week ago I made the very foolish decision to predict what Cinderellas would emerge at this year's Australian Open, and while some forecasts were way off the mark, a couple others have kept up their play even after the early rounds were through. And while some certainly have a better shot than others to stay alive, it might actually be some other fairy tales appear.
Frankly, none of my predictions for the top half of the ladies' draw made it through, but that doesn't mean only the strong have survived. Sure Serena Williams has been as dominant as she was in the back half of last year, and defending champion Victoria Azarenka has come through largely unscathed. But unseeded Svetlana Kuznetsova has played at the level we've come to expect from her, setting up a fourth round against former #1 Caroline Wozniacki. And young American Sloane Stephens, who dismissed my pick for the third quarter, has so far lived up to the expectations long set on her.
But the real surprises have come from players well off the radar. Doubles star Elena Vesnina seems to be breaking out on the singles circuit the last few weeks -- after losing the first six finals she played, the twenty-six year old Russian finally took a title in Hobart about a week ago. Already in Melbourne she's beaten rising American star Varvara Lepchenko and always tough Italian Roberta Vinci. This is the first time since her 2006 debut Down Under she's reached the fourth round here, and though she might very well be stopped short by Azarenka in the next round, she might be able to pounce if the top seed is at all off her game. And Bojana Jovanovski, who made her first Major round of sixteen with a win over seventeenth seed Lucie Safarova, set herself up for a clash with Stephens to make the quarters. The two young stars haven't met before, but the Serb's had some of her best results this time of year and might just be able to parlay that into some big results in the second week.
I did a little better with my picks in the bottom half of the bracket. Yes, Maria Sharapova has been relentless in her quest to reclaim the title she won in 2008 -- she's lost just five games in the first week -- and Aggie Radwanska has extended her 2013 win streak to thirteen matches, twenty-six sets. But last year's Cinderella, nineteenth seeded Ekaterina Makarova, has made her third straight dream run in Melbourne. The twenty-four year old stunned Marion Bartoli in the third round and then rolled over Angelique Kerber a match later. With a quarterfinal date against Sharapova, she'll have to raise her game of course, but she's beaten tougher top ten players in the past and there's no reason to believe she won't be able to do it again.
I got one pick right in the top half of the men's draw as well -- Nicolas Almagro was up a set and a few breaks when Janko Tipsarevic, coming off his second straight five-set match, was forced to retire. But though the other players remaining were all slated to advance this far, something tells me there's an upset coming. Two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic was unexpectedly pushed to the limit on Sunday night -- in a five-plus hour match against largely unheralded Stanislas Wawrinka, the world #1 barely survived a 12-10 deciding set which ended just before two in the morning. He'll next meet Tomas Berdych, a man who's given him trouble in the past, and if the Czech is well rested -- and with a fairly "routine" sub-three hour fourth round himself, he should be -- we could be in for a big shock in a few days.
As for the bottom half of the men's draw, I got one pick right there as well -- Richard Gasquet hasn't had to pull off any major upsets to make his fifth straight Slam fourth round, but he'll have a tough time going farther with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as his next opponent. But unseeded Gael Monfils put up quite a fight in his first three rounds -- unseeded at a Slam for the first time in almost five years, he battled through fourteen sets, ultimately losing to countryman Gilles Simon, 8-6 in the fifth on Saturday. He might not have gotten too far in Melbourne, but something tells me it won't be long before he is a force here again.
The real story here might be world #36 Jeremy Chardy, who only made one Major fourth round in his career. The twenty-five year old Frenchman was tested early, dropping sets to both Adrian Menendez-Maceiras and often-erratic Marcel Granollers. But his coup came in Saturday's third round against 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro. After taking the first two sets from the sixth seed, the tide seemed to shift in favor of the tall Argentine. But after three hours of play, Chardy had forced only his eighth career fifth set, and with the only break of serve in that decider he came out the winner. He'll take on low-seed Andreas Seppi for a spot in the quarters -- the two have never met before, and are both treading in uncharted territory. If Chardy keeps his cool he might be about to make real history in the second half of this event.
So the favorites have been tested, Cinderella runs have commenced, and some players have created chances for themselves they've never had before. With the second week of play in Melbourne just about to get underway the stakes are getting higher and the pressure will be going up. But there are plenty of opportunities left for everyone still standing, and whoever pounces first might just be able to reap the biggest rewards.
Frankly, none of my predictions for the top half of the ladies' draw made it through, but that doesn't mean only the strong have survived. Sure Serena Williams has been as dominant as she was in the back half of last year, and defending champion Victoria Azarenka has come through largely unscathed. But unseeded Svetlana Kuznetsova has played at the level we've come to expect from her, setting up a fourth round against former #1 Caroline Wozniacki. And young American Sloane Stephens, who dismissed my pick for the third quarter, has so far lived up to the expectations long set on her.
I did a little better with my picks in the bottom half of the bracket. Yes, Maria Sharapova has been relentless in her quest to reclaim the title she won in 2008 -- she's lost just five games in the first week -- and Aggie Radwanska has extended her 2013 win streak to thirteen matches, twenty-six sets. But last year's Cinderella, nineteenth seeded Ekaterina Makarova, has made her third straight dream run in Melbourne. The twenty-four year old stunned Marion Bartoli in the third round and then rolled over Angelique Kerber a match later. With a quarterfinal date against Sharapova, she'll have to raise her game of course, but she's beaten tougher top ten players in the past and there's no reason to believe she won't be able to do it again.
As for the bottom half of the men's draw, I got one pick right there as well -- Richard Gasquet hasn't had to pull off any major upsets to make his fifth straight Slam fourth round, but he'll have a tough time going farther with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as his next opponent. But unseeded Gael Monfils put up quite a fight in his first three rounds -- unseeded at a Slam for the first time in almost five years, he battled through fourteen sets, ultimately losing to countryman Gilles Simon, 8-6 in the fifth on Saturday. He might not have gotten too far in Melbourne, but something tells me it won't be long before he is a force here again.
So the favorites have been tested, Cinderella runs have commenced, and some players have created chances for themselves they've never had before. With the second week of play in Melbourne just about to get underway the stakes are getting higher and the pressure will be going up. But there are plenty of opportunities left for everyone still standing, and whoever pounces first might just be able to reap the biggest rewards.
April 26, 2012
No Shelter From the Rain
With so many of the top players this week concentrated in a couple of higher-profile tournaments, a couple who've been struggling recently might have hoped to catch a few easy points at events where the draws were more sparse. But things are never as easy as they may first appear, and from the start results have proven that no one should rest easy.
Defending champs in Bucharest and Fes both lost their opening matches. Florian Mayer, who hasn't won a match since Miami, fell after a long struggle with Xavier Malisse in his opener, and Alberta Brianti, just clinging onto a spot in the top hundred, went three sets but still fell to Monterrey finalist Alexandra Cadantu in her first round. But they weren't the only ones leaving the draws earlier than expected.
Marcos Baghdatis has had fits and starts for the last several years, so it shouldn't be a big surprise that his performance is so unpredictable. Still with wins over Juan Martin Del Potro in Sydney and Feliciano Lopez in Indian Wells, he'd earned the fifth seed in Bucharest and should have had a fairly easy time of things early. Unfortunately for him he ran into Fabio Fognini earlier today -- a man who's pulled off a few big wins on the dirt. Just out of seeding territory, the Italian was undervalued on paper, but he wasn't deterred. In a match that saw eleven breaks of serve, Fognini was eventually the winner, earning his first quarterfinal of the year.
Victor Troicki has been even less impressive so far this year -- ranked in the top fifteen just twelve months ago, he's notched only one top-fifty win this season. Still he came to Romania a fourth seed, looking to turn his year around. But against Matthias Bachinger, who he'd already beaten this year in Doha, he came up against a roadblock. He was able to force a third set after losing the first, but the German took control in the tiebreak and after two-and-a-half hours on court dismissed the slumping Serb. Troicki will need to rebuild quickly if he's going to get back on track.
The scalps have been just as big in Fes. One-time U.S. Open semifinalist Yanina Wickmayer, whose ranking peaked at #12 exactly two years ago, has had a couple good runs this year, but hasn't been able to defend a lot of points. Now ranked out of the top thirty, she should nevertheless have been the favorite against Patricia Mayr-Achleitner in her first round. But unable to hold serve and barely making a dent in her return games, the Belgian fell in straight sets.
Second-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, fresh off a disappointing loss to Jelena Jankovic last weekend in Fed Cup, has also seen her star fall this year. The former world #3 dropped out of the top twenty after a third-round loss in Doha and hasn't won more than two matches at any event since January. She looked to be in good shape against up-and-comer Irina-Camelia Begu in Morocco, winning the first set 6-1. But after losing the second, she suffered a thigh injury that forced her to retire. Hopefully she'll be back in shape if she's going to try for another French Open crown next month.
The latest casualty in Fes came this morning. Petra Cetkovska hasn't exactly been struggling, ranked just off her career high at #30, but now that she's spending less time on the ITF circuit, she hasn't had many deep tournament runs, making just one third round in Doha. She looked strong early this week, not dropping a set in her first two matches, but against lucky loser Mathilde Johansson, who'd already bumped off a similarly flailing Shahar Peer a round earlier, she couldn't find her game. She got fewer than half her first serves in and won a dismal thirty-one percent on her second attempts. With a ton of Wimbledon points coming off in the next few months, she'll need to remember how to play against the big girls.
Seeded players are certainly getting no passes at this week's events, and that's certainly left a lot of holes in the brackets. For the favorites remaining, they should be warned out of getting too complacent. But perhaps more importantly, the spoilsports out there should be encouraged to take advantage. After all, no one is unbeatable in this sport, and whoever pounces first could reap quite the reward.
Defending champs in Bucharest and Fes both lost their opening matches. Florian Mayer, who hasn't won a match since Miami, fell after a long struggle with Xavier Malisse in his opener, and Alberta Brianti, just clinging onto a spot in the top hundred, went three sets but still fell to Monterrey finalist Alexandra Cadantu in her first round. But they weren't the only ones leaving the draws earlier than expected.
Victor Troicki has been even less impressive so far this year -- ranked in the top fifteen just twelve months ago, he's notched only one top-fifty win this season. Still he came to Romania a fourth seed, looking to turn his year around. But against Matthias Bachinger, who he'd already beaten this year in Doha, he came up against a roadblock. He was able to force a third set after losing the first, but the German took control in the tiebreak and after two-and-a-half hours on court dismissed the slumping Serb. Troicki will need to rebuild quickly if he's going to get back on track.
Second-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, fresh off a disappointing loss to Jelena Jankovic last weekend in Fed Cup, has also seen her star fall this year. The former world #3 dropped out of the top twenty after a third-round loss in Doha and hasn't won more than two matches at any event since January. She looked to be in good shape against up-and-comer Irina-Camelia Begu in Morocco, winning the first set 6-1. But after losing the second, she suffered a thigh injury that forced her to retire. Hopefully she'll be back in shape if she's going to try for another French Open crown next month.
Seeded players are certainly getting no passes at this week's events, and that's certainly left a lot of holes in the brackets. For the favorites remaining, they should be warned out of getting too complacent. But perhaps more importantly, the spoilsports out there should be encouraged to take advantage. After all, no one is unbeatable in this sport, and whoever pounces first could reap quite the reward.
February 5, 2012
Fed Cup Round Up
Sure, most of the U.S. will have its eyes glued to the Super Bowl tonight -- go Giants! -- but there was plenty of other action on fields of a much smaller size this weekend. And the ladies who contested the first set of 2012 Fed Cup rubbers put up an effort that just might rival what the big boys are doing in Indianapolis -- and while some favorites thrived, a couple underdogs came out shining.
The defending champion Czech team had what looks like the easiest weekend of the bunch, despite a quarterfinal match-up with a tough German team. But Iveta Benesova, who's already beaten Sam Stosur and Shaui Peng this year, seems to be suddenly coming to her own on the singles circuit -- she opened the tie with a solid comeback against world #14 Sabine Lisicki. Then 2011 WTA player of the year Petra Kvitova gave the Czechs the lead after surviving a seventy-two minute, 10-8 third set against Julia Goerges. Angelique Kerber gave the Germans their only point of the tie, beating Lucie Hradecka in straight sets, but it was the Czechs who easily clinched their spot in the semis again.
The Russians, in a rematch of the 2008 final, also had an easy start against Spain as they looked to improve on their runner-up showing from last year. Maria Sharapova easily handled Silvia Soler-Espinoza in their first rubber and Svetlana Kuznetsova added to the lead by taking out one-time Melbourne quarterfinalist Carla Suarez Navarro in just over an hour. But the Spaniard rebounded nicely to upset Nadia Petrova in the first reverse singles match on Sunday, and in was left to Kuznetsova to secure the win. The veteran Russian was pushed to three sets by Soler-Espinoza, but was able to convert her only break opportunity in the decider, winning the match and rendering the doubles rubber moot. That marks the sixth straight year the Russians made the Fed Cup semis.
The other two quarterfinals came right down to the wire -- some surprising performances, both bad and good, made things a little tougher than you'd expect. The Italians, Fed Cup champions in 2009 and 2010, should have had a much easier time of things, though. But one-time French Open champion Francesca Schiavone was dismantled by world #121 Lesia Tsurenko in the second rubber, keeping the seeds even with the upstart Ukraine going into Day Two. Schiavone battled back after losing the first set tiebreak to Kateryna Bondarenko on Sunday though -- a good thing, too, since surprise Melbourne quarterfinalist Sara Errani retired a set and a break down to Tsurenko later in the day. But with Flavia Pennetta and Roberta Vinci -- both currently ranked better in doubles than singles -- headlining the final rubber, the Italians finally clinched the win after a surprisingly long decider. They'll face the Czechs in April, and will certainly need to be more consistent if they're going to make another run to the final.
But perhaps the biggest shock came from unseeded, unheralded Serbia, facing 2001 champions Belgium on their home court. Sure, the Belgians were without their biggest star in Kim Clijsters, but with some recent spotty performances by Jelena Jankovic and no follow-through from up-and-comer Bojana Jovanovski, their prospects looked grim. JJ survived a tough two sets against veteran Kirsten Flipkens on Saturday, but pulled out of reverse singles with a thigh injury. Yanina Wickmayer evened the score for the Belgians and ran over eighteen-year-old Aleksandra Krunic in the third rubber, giving her team the lead. But BoJo came through to force a deciding rubber and teamed with the same youngster in doubles to stun Wickmayer and Alison Van Uytvanck in a three-set, two and a half hour battle. The win gave Serbia their first ticket to a Fed Cup semi and the right to face the much more experienced Russians in the spring. They might be the underdogs there too, but a few big plays could give them another big win.
Whether the long shots will continue their run toward the Fed Cup trophy, or the favorites will ultimately triumph, is still unknown. But if they keep up their level of play, it sure looks like anything can happen through the rest of the year. And with halftime about to end, now's the perfect time for them to show us what they've got.
The defending champion Czech team had what looks like the easiest weekend of the bunch, despite a quarterfinal match-up with a tough German team. But Iveta Benesova, who's already beaten Sam Stosur and Shaui Peng this year, seems to be suddenly coming to her own on the singles circuit -- she opened the tie with a solid comeback against world #14 Sabine Lisicki. Then 2011 WTA player of the year Petra Kvitova gave the Czechs the lead after surviving a seventy-two minute, 10-8 third set against Julia Goerges. Angelique Kerber gave the Germans their only point of the tie, beating Lucie Hradecka in straight sets, but it was the Czechs who easily clinched their spot in the semis again. 
The Russians, in a rematch of the 2008 final, also had an easy start against Spain as they looked to improve on their runner-up showing from last year. Maria Sharapova easily handled Silvia Soler-Espinoza in their first rubber and Svetlana Kuznetsova added to the lead by taking out one-time Melbourne quarterfinalist Carla Suarez Navarro in just over an hour. But the Spaniard rebounded nicely to upset Nadia Petrova in the first reverse singles match on Sunday, and in was left to Kuznetsova to secure the win. The veteran Russian was pushed to three sets by Soler-Espinoza, but was able to convert her only break opportunity in the decider, winning the match and rendering the doubles rubber moot. That marks the sixth straight year the Russians made the Fed Cup semis. 
The other two quarterfinals came right down to the wire -- some surprising performances, both bad and good, made things a little tougher than you'd expect. The Italians, Fed Cup champions in 2009 and 2010, should have had a much easier time of things, though. But one-time French Open champion Francesca Schiavone was dismantled by world #121 Lesia Tsurenko in the second rubber, keeping the seeds even with the upstart Ukraine going into Day Two. Schiavone battled back after losing the first set tiebreak to Kateryna Bondarenko on Sunday though -- a good thing, too, since surprise Melbourne quarterfinalist Sara Errani retired a set and a break down to Tsurenko later in the day. But with Flavia Pennetta and Roberta Vinci -- both currently ranked better in doubles than singles -- headlining the final rubber, the Italians finally clinched the win after a surprisingly long decider. They'll face the Czechs in April, and will certainly need to be more consistent if they're going to make another run to the final.
But perhaps the biggest shock came from unseeded, unheralded Serbia, facing 2001 champions Belgium on their home court. Sure, the Belgians were without their biggest star in Kim Clijsters, but with some recent spotty performances by Jelena Jankovic and no follow-through from up-and-comer Bojana Jovanovski, their prospects looked grim. JJ survived a tough two sets against veteran Kirsten Flipkens on Saturday, but pulled out of reverse singles with a thigh injury. Yanina Wickmayer evened the score for the Belgians and ran over eighteen-year-old Aleksandra Krunic in the third rubber, giving her team the lead. But BoJo came through to force a deciding rubber and teamed with the same youngster in doubles to stun Wickmayer and Alison Van Uytvanck in a three-set, two and a half hour battle. The win gave Serbia their first ticket to a Fed Cup semi and the right to face the much more experienced Russians in the spring. They might be the underdogs there too, but a few big plays could give them another big win.Whether the long shots will continue their run toward the Fed Cup trophy, or the favorites will ultimately triumph, is still unknown. But if they keep up their level of play, it sure looks like anything can happen through the rest of the year. And with halftime about to end, now's the perfect time for them to show us what they've got.
November 4, 2011
Fed Cup Final: A Turning Point?
This weekend plays host to what could be a very interesting Fed Cup championship -- both squads, with plenty of power and lots of talent, have a real shot at winning the trophy, and though the tide may have shifted ever so slightly, it's too early to count anyone out.
It would seem history favors one side -- Russia won four Fed Cup titles in the last decade, while the Czechs haven't hoisted the trophy since becoming an independent country. The Russians made it here with a one-sided drubbing of the defending champion Italians back in April, and the Czechs advanced by the skin of their teeth over Belgium, securing the win only with a gutsy doubles victory.
But the team is playing without some of its brightest stars -- still-hobbled Maria Sharapova was left off the roster, while world #7 Vera Zvonareva was forced to pull out due to a shoulder injury sustained at the Kremlin Cup. Strangely the next highest-ranked player on their list, #15 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, was relegated to the doubles rubber, leaving Maria Kirilenko -- incidentally a runner-up in doubles at the Australian Open this year -- and veteran Svetlana Kuznetsova to hold up the fort in the early rounds.
In the meantime, the easy-to-overlook Czechs have momentum on their side in a big way. Wimbledon and Istanbul champ Petra Kvitova has dominated the Tour recently, winning her last two tournaments and climbing to #2 in the world. And the doubles pairing of Lucie Hradecka (#15 in the discipline) and Kveta Peschke (#2) will be hard to beat -- if the match goes to a deciding rubber, the advantage should be with the first-time finalists.
But, as always, it won't be quite as easy as that.
Kvitova can have periods of spotty play -- she lost in three straight first rounds after her title in Paris and only won two matches during the summer hardcourt season. She's also lost her only two matches against Kirilenko, admittedly back in 2009, and never faced Kuznetsova. MaKiri, on the other hand, is having a nice fall -- she twice beat her U.S. Open vanquisher Sam Stosur and made at least the quarters of the three events she's played out. And Zvonareva's replacement, Elena Vesnina, has three doubles titles this year herself -- and a runner's-up trophy from Roland Garros. Of course, Lucie Safarova could become a secret weapon on the Czech side, while the roller coaster of Kuznetsova could do the opposite for the Russians.
It would mean a lot for the Czechs to take the title. The growing and developing squad would get a real boost if they can pull off the upset of the long-dominant Russia. But it clearly won't be an easy task -- the Russians will be hungry to return to the winners' podium and could bring the firepower to do it. One thing's certain though -- whoever comes out on top will have earned it.
It would seem history favors one side -- Russia won four Fed Cup titles in the last decade, while the Czechs haven't hoisted the trophy since becoming an independent country. The Russians made it here with a one-sided drubbing of the defending champion Italians back in April, and the Czechs advanced by the skin of their teeth over Belgium, securing the win only with a gutsy doubles victory. But the team is playing without some of its brightest stars -- still-hobbled Maria Sharapova was left off the roster, while world #7 Vera Zvonareva was forced to pull out due to a shoulder injury sustained at the Kremlin Cup. Strangely the next highest-ranked player on their list, #15 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, was relegated to the doubles rubber, leaving Maria Kirilenko -- incidentally a runner-up in doubles at the Australian Open this year -- and veteran Svetlana Kuznetsova to hold up the fort in the early rounds.
In the meantime, the easy-to-overlook Czechs have momentum on their side in a big way. Wimbledon and Istanbul champ Petra Kvitova has dominated the Tour recently, winning her last two tournaments and climbing to #2 in the world. And the doubles pairing of Lucie Hradecka (#15 in the discipline) and Kveta Peschke (#2) will be hard to beat -- if the match goes to a deciding rubber, the advantage should be with the first-time finalists.But, as always, it won't be quite as easy as that.
Kvitova can have periods of spotty play -- she lost in three straight first rounds after her title in Paris and only won two matches during the summer hardcourt season. She's also lost her only two matches against Kirilenko, admittedly back in 2009, and never faced Kuznetsova. MaKiri, on the other hand, is having a nice fall -- she twice beat her U.S. Open vanquisher Sam Stosur and made at least the quarters of the three events she's played out. And Zvonareva's replacement, Elena Vesnina, has three doubles titles this year herself -- and a runner's-up trophy from Roland Garros. Of course, Lucie Safarova could become a secret weapon on the Czech side, while the roller coaster of Kuznetsova could do the opposite for the Russians.
It would mean a lot for the Czechs to take the title. The growing and developing squad would get a real boost if they can pull off the upset of the long-dominant Russia. But it clearly won't be an easy task -- the Russians will be hungry to return to the winners' podium and could bring the firepower to do it. One thing's certain though -- whoever comes out on top will have earned it.
March 13, 2011
Losing Sleep
The night most Americans have to Spring Forward and turn their clocks up by an hour is always my least favorite night of the year. But some of tennis's top stars might be losing sleep for reasons that have nothing to do with the time change.
Surprisingly with two full rounds, and a bit more, completed for the ladies, there have been relatively few meltdowns. The top six seeds have all stayed in contention without losing a set, and though Australian Open finalist Na Li lost her opener in three, it was to a solid Shuai Peng who's pulled off quite a few upsets in the last few months.
But the one woman who might be left shaking her head today is Svetlana Kuznetsova. Clearly one of the most aggressive players on Tour, we know what she's capable of when playing at her best -- she took out Sam Stosur in Sydney and earned a stunning win over Justine Henin in Melbourne. But we also know just how spotty she can be: after blowing through three higher-ranked players in Dubai she withered before Caroline Wozniacki in the finals and dropped her very next match to Shahar Peer in Doha.
Facing young wildcard Christina McHale in her opener in Indian Wells, you might not think the Russian would have much trouble. But the two-time finalist here has lost in the second round the last two years and was about to suffer the same fate in 2011. Having earned the first break of the match, she quickly gave it back and was pushed to a tiebreak, where McHale took advantage. They traded serves throughout the second set and Kuznetsova ran out ahead in that breaker, but after nearly two and a half hours, it was the eighteen-year-old from New Jersey who scored her first outright win over a top twenty player.
So what's next for Kuznetsova? She'll certainly have to regroup before heading down to Miami -- she won the title in 2006 and made the semis two of the last three times she's played there, so there's a lot at stake for her. She'll have to find the power that's kept her at the top of this game for so long and bring it with the consistency needed to produce back-to-back wins. If she doesn't, it could be a long plane ride home before the clay court season.
On the men's side there have been plenty of stunning losses. David Ferrer swallowed a loss at the hands of big-serving Ivo Karlovic, but with titles in Auckland and Acapulco already this year, I'm not too worried about him. Marcos Baghdatis also suffered defeat, though while continuing to recover from injury, to developing talent Somdev Devvarma, while last year's surprise champion Ivan Ljubicic dropped a tough three setter to Juan Martin Del Potro, who is by no means a slouch.
But it's probably Andy Murray who should be most bothered by his performance in the desert. A finalist here just two years ago, the world #5 hadn't won a match since his disappointing showing in the Melbourne finals -- not much different from his follow-up performance last year.
Still, no one expected him to struggle against world #143 Donald Young. Once touted as the next big thing in American tennis, the twenty-one year old from Chicago has only played a handful of Tour matches over the past year. But he was in control against Murray, only the fourth top ten player he's faced. Though neither served particularly well, Young stayed strong in a first set tiebreak and rebounded after losing a break lead in the second. With Murray serving to stay in the match, Donald stayed aggressive, drew himself a lead and converted his match point, earning by far the biggest win in his nascent career.
It's clearly not a result that the Scot will look fondly upon. For a guy hailed as the next great threat to break the Roger/Rafa stranglehold on the Grand Slams, it doesn't look good to accumulate one loss after another. He'll have to find a way to get back on a winning streak in Miami -- after his opening round loss there last year it's imperative he turn around his luck soon.
Now I'm not saying hope is lost for any of these players -- they've all been around the top tiers of the sport for years, but their recent performances sure remind all their potential opponents that they're not invincible, and they might need to spend some time and effort figuring out what's missing from their game.
Just maybe not tonight -- tonight they should catch up on their sleep.
Surprisingly with two full rounds, and a bit more, completed for the ladies, there have been relatively few meltdowns. The top six seeds have all stayed in contention without losing a set, and though Australian Open finalist Na Li lost her opener in three, it was to a solid Shuai Peng who's pulled off quite a few upsets in the last few months.
But the one woman who might be left shaking her head today is Svetlana Kuznetsova. Clearly one of the most aggressive players on Tour, we know what she's capable of when playing at her best -- she took out Sam Stosur in Sydney and earned a stunning win over Justine Henin in Melbourne. But we also know just how spotty she can be: after blowing through three higher-ranked players in Dubai she withered before Caroline Wozniacki in the finals and dropped her very next match to Shahar Peer in Doha.Facing young wildcard Christina McHale in her opener in Indian Wells, you might not think the Russian would have much trouble. But the two-time finalist here has lost in the second round the last two years and was about to suffer the same fate in 2011. Having earned the first break of the match, she quickly gave it back and was pushed to a tiebreak, where McHale took advantage. They traded serves throughout the second set and Kuznetsova ran out ahead in that breaker, but after nearly two and a half hours, it was the eighteen-year-old from New Jersey who scored her first outright win over a top twenty player.
So what's next for Kuznetsova? She'll certainly have to regroup before heading down to Miami -- she won the title in 2006 and made the semis two of the last three times she's played there, so there's a lot at stake for her. She'll have to find the power that's kept her at the top of this game for so long and bring it with the consistency needed to produce back-to-back wins. If she doesn't, it could be a long plane ride home before the clay court season.
On the men's side there have been plenty of stunning losses. David Ferrer swallowed a loss at the hands of big-serving Ivo Karlovic, but with titles in Auckland and Acapulco already this year, I'm not too worried about him. Marcos Baghdatis also suffered defeat, though while continuing to recover from injury, to developing talent Somdev Devvarma, while last year's surprise champion Ivan Ljubicic dropped a tough three setter to Juan Martin Del Potro, who is by no means a slouch.
But it's probably Andy Murray who should be most bothered by his performance in the desert. A finalist here just two years ago, the world #5 hadn't won a match since his disappointing showing in the Melbourne finals -- not much different from his follow-up performance last year. Still, no one expected him to struggle against world #143 Donald Young. Once touted as the next big thing in American tennis, the twenty-one year old from Chicago has only played a handful of Tour matches over the past year. But he was in control against Murray, only the fourth top ten player he's faced. Though neither served particularly well, Young stayed strong in a first set tiebreak and rebounded after losing a break lead in the second. With Murray serving to stay in the match, Donald stayed aggressive, drew himself a lead and converted his match point, earning by far the biggest win in his nascent career.
It's clearly not a result that the Scot will look fondly upon. For a guy hailed as the next great threat to break the Roger/Rafa stranglehold on the Grand Slams, it doesn't look good to accumulate one loss after another. He'll have to find a way to get back on a winning streak in Miami -- after his opening round loss there last year it's imperative he turn around his luck soon.
Now I'm not saying hope is lost for any of these players -- they've all been around the top tiers of the sport for years, but their recent performances sure remind all their potential opponents that they're not invincible, and they might need to spend some time and effort figuring out what's missing from their game.
Just maybe not tonight -- tonight they should catch up on their sleep.
February 20, 2011
In Defense of Caroline Wozniacki
Unless you've been living under a tennis rock the last week, you must have heard by now that come Monday Caroline Wozniacki will regain her #1 ranking. If you have been living under a tennis rock you might have missed the fact that she ever lost it. And the twenty year old will continue to be confronted with the same question that has been dogging her for months -- should you be ranked at the top of your sport if you have never won a Grand Slam title?
We've seen this phenomenon a few times recently, and maybe that's why the critics are so vocal. Players like Jelena Jankovic and Dinara Safina failed to deliver after they climbed the league tables, with the Russian falling out of the top hundred earlier this year. But go back a few more years, and you have an example that (ironically) supports the case for Caroline -- Kim Clijsters rose to #1 a full two years before her first U.S. Open title.
Still it's a tough position to be in. Wozniacki largely racked up the points that earned her position last summer when she claimed titles at Copenhagen, Montreal and New Haven on her way to New York, the first Major at which she was seeded #1 thanks of course to the withdrawal of an injured Serena Williams. Detractors complained she was only winning smaller tournaments, not standing up to the toughest players on the biggest stages, and when she finally climbed into the top spot a few weeks and two additional trophies later, those critics became even louder.
What they've failed to notice is how Caroline's game was improving steadily over the course of these tournaments. On her home soil in August the best player she had to beat was world #41 Julia Goerges. But even though she didn't repeat her run to the U.S. Open final, she did score an easy win over former champion Maria Sharapova on the way to the semis. She faced tough tests for the titles at premier evens in Tokyo -- Victoria Azarenka, Elena Dementieva -- and Beijing -- Ana Ivanovic, Vera Zvonareva -- too. She finally took a set from Kim Clijsters in the year-end championships in the Doha finals and had a solid run to the semis in Melbourne, now having made at least the fourth round of every Slam in almost two years -- not bad for a girl still unable to legally drink in the U.S. You can't deny that she gets more balls back than most of the women on Tour, and now as she develops her serve, her net game and her forehand, she's become more aggressive against the toughest players.
This week in Dubai, Wozniacki was able to put her new skills on display and added another feather to her cap. Though she was saved from an early round against Paris champ Petra Kvitova -- incidentally the woman who beat Clijsters in that final days after she regained the #1 ranking -- she did face challenges from talented Shahar Peer, who was out-powered start to finish in the quarters, and Jelena Jankovic, who led 5-2 in the first set of the semis before Caro hit her stride.
Against a resurgent Svetlana Kuznetsova in the finals, I thought the Dane could face trouble. Wozniacki led the pair's head-to-head by the slimmest of margins, but the two-time Major champion who has never been ranked #1 in the world had been playing, as is often her style, well above her ranking. Kuznetsova was just seeded at the Championships but got revenge over Francesca Schiavone for that heartbreaking loss in the Australian Open fourth round and was solid against both Aggie Radwanska and Flavia Pennetta to make the finals.
But despite the potential challenge from the more experienced player -- Sveta's thirteen career championships was only one more than Caro's but she'd been in eleven more finals -- Wozniacki was unstoppable. She struck first in the match, getting a break in just the second game and didn't allow Kuznetsova to hold until midway through the second set. She took advantage of an inordinate number of errors from her opponent, and capitalized on weak serving to run off with an early lead. The last two games of the match probably featured the best quality tennis, but despite a late surge from the Russian, who denied Caroline a chance to serve for the title, after just over an hour, it was Wozniacki who held the trophy.
Though she retook the #1 position a few days back, following it up with a premier title in Dubai -- something Clijsters could not accomplish last week -- should go a ways in mollifying Wozniacki's critics. She's showing off her consistency and upping her game at the bigger events. At just twenty years of age, she has plenty of time to bring home the Major, and with a game suitable to most surfaces she has a couple choices of which one it will be.
I don't know if Caroline will get the big win this year -- I'll be happy if she just continues to advance in the draws for now -- but it will come sometime soon, I feel. And then hopefully she'll finally get the respect she deserves.
We've seen this phenomenon a few times recently, and maybe that's why the critics are so vocal. Players like Jelena Jankovic and Dinara Safina failed to deliver after they climbed the league tables, with the Russian falling out of the top hundred earlier this year. But go back a few more years, and you have an example that (ironically) supports the case for Caroline -- Kim Clijsters rose to #1 a full two years before her first U.S. Open title.
Still it's a tough position to be in. Wozniacki largely racked up the points that earned her position last summer when she claimed titles at Copenhagen, Montreal and New Haven on her way to New York, the first Major at which she was seeded #1 thanks of course to the withdrawal of an injured Serena Williams. Detractors complained she was only winning smaller tournaments, not standing up to the toughest players on the biggest stages, and when she finally climbed into the top spot a few weeks and two additional trophies later, those critics became even louder. What they've failed to notice is how Caroline's game was improving steadily over the course of these tournaments. On her home soil in August the best player she had to beat was world #41 Julia Goerges. But even though she didn't repeat her run to the U.S. Open final, she did score an easy win over former champion Maria Sharapova on the way to the semis. She faced tough tests for the titles at premier evens in Tokyo -- Victoria Azarenka, Elena Dementieva -- and Beijing -- Ana Ivanovic, Vera Zvonareva -- too. She finally took a set from Kim Clijsters in the year-end championships in the Doha finals and had a solid run to the semis in Melbourne, now having made at least the fourth round of every Slam in almost two years -- not bad for a girl still unable to legally drink in the U.S. You can't deny that she gets more balls back than most of the women on Tour, and now as she develops her serve, her net game and her forehand, she's become more aggressive against the toughest players.
This week in Dubai, Wozniacki was able to put her new skills on display and added another feather to her cap. Though she was saved from an early round against Paris champ Petra Kvitova -- incidentally the woman who beat Clijsters in that final days after she regained the #1 ranking -- she did face challenges from talented Shahar Peer, who was out-powered start to finish in the quarters, and Jelena Jankovic, who led 5-2 in the first set of the semis before Caro hit her stride.
Against a resurgent Svetlana Kuznetsova in the finals, I thought the Dane could face trouble. Wozniacki led the pair's head-to-head by the slimmest of margins, but the two-time Major champion who has never been ranked #1 in the world had been playing, as is often her style, well above her ranking. Kuznetsova was just seeded at the Championships but got revenge over Francesca Schiavone for that heartbreaking loss in the Australian Open fourth round and was solid against both Aggie Radwanska and Flavia Pennetta to make the finals.
But despite the potential challenge from the more experienced player -- Sveta's thirteen career championships was only one more than Caro's but she'd been in eleven more finals -- Wozniacki was unstoppable. She struck first in the match, getting a break in just the second game and didn't allow Kuznetsova to hold until midway through the second set. She took advantage of an inordinate number of errors from her opponent, and capitalized on weak serving to run off with an early lead. The last two games of the match probably featured the best quality tennis, but despite a late surge from the Russian, who denied Caroline a chance to serve for the title, after just over an hour, it was Wozniacki who held the trophy.Though she retook the #1 position a few days back, following it up with a premier title in Dubai -- something Clijsters could not accomplish last week -- should go a ways in mollifying Wozniacki's critics. She's showing off her consistency and upping her game at the bigger events. At just twenty years of age, she has plenty of time to bring home the Major, and with a game suitable to most surfaces she has a couple choices of which one it will be.
I don't know if Caroline will get the big win this year -- I'll be happy if she just continues to advance in the draws for now -- but it will come sometime soon, I feel. And then hopefully she'll finally get the respect she deserves.
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