Roland Garros Fast Forward: Federer, Serena, Venus, Headline Day 1
Today features the first edition of a daily Roland Garros preview series that offers a few notes on the next day’s most interesting matches. After each day ends, moreover, a recap of similar length will guide you through the key headlines.
ATP:
Pablo Carreno-Busta vs. Roger Federer: This qualifier reeled off a long winning streak at lower-level events over the last year and reached the Portugal semifinals, also as a qualifier, with victories over Julien Benneteau and Fabio Fognini. Carreno-Busta also upset defending champion Pablo Andujar in Casablanca, shortly before the latter stormed to the Madrid semifinals, and won a set from Stanislas Wawrinka in Portugal. Paris is not Portugal or Casablanca, though, nor is it even Bordeaux, where Carreno-Busta lost in the first round of a challenger.
Gilles Simon vs. Lleyton Hewitt: This tournament might mark Hewitt’s final appearance at Roland Garros. If it does, a match on a show court against a fellow grinder, likely with a strong crowd, seems a fitting way to go. Simon has flown under the radar for most of the year, stringing together some victories at small events and upsetting two top-ten opponents. He reached the second week at the Australian Open despite largely unimpressive form, so he should muddle through here too.
Andreas Seppi vs. Leonardo Mayer: The Italian must defend fourth-round points at Roland Garros, where he won two sets from Novak Djokovic last year. Seppi’s 14-14 record this year does not bode well, and he has survived his first match at only one of six clay tournaments. Fortunately for him, Mayer lost his only clay match this year.
Marcel Granollers vs. Feliciano Lopez: A quarterfinalist in Rome, Granollers owes Andy Murray twice over in recent weeks. First, the world No. 2 retired from their match there, allowing the Spaniard to gobble extra ranking points. Then, Murray’s withdrawal nudged Granollers into a seeded position at Roland Garros. He should take advantage of it against the fading serve-volley specialist Feliciano Lopez, although matches between two Spaniards often get trickier than expected.
WTA:
Serena Williams vs. Anna Tatishvili: Everyone remembers what happened to Serena in the first round here last year. Nobody remembers it more clearly than Serena does. Expect her to put this match away early, exorcising Razzano’s ghosts.
Urszula Radwanska vs. Venus Williams: Both of these women must cope with being the second-best women’s tennis player in their respective families. Hampered by a back injury, Venus has played just one match on red clay this year, losing routinely to Laura Robson. Urszula is not quite Robson at this stage, but she recorded clay wins over Dominika Cibulkova and Ana Ivanovic this year. Venus should pull through in the end after some edgy moments.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs. Andrea Hlavackova: When Pavlyuchenkova gets through her first match, she has reached the semifinals at four of five tournaments this year, winning two. The problem is that she has lost her first match no fewer than seven times against opponents of varying quality. (Azarenka and Ivanovic are understandable, Lesya Tsurenko and Johanna Larsson less so.) Since reaching the second week of the US Open, Hlavackova has won one main-draw singles match, over the hapless Melanie Oudin. Surely Pavlyuchenkova won’t double that total?
Kiki Bertens vs. Sorana Cirstea: Their big weapons and questionable movement would seem better designed for fast-court tennis. But both of them have found their greatest success on clay, Cirstea reaching the Roland Garros quarterfinals four years ago and Bertens winning her only WTA title so far at Fes last year. This match looks among the most evenly contested of the day with plenty of heavy groundstrokes to go around.
Mallory Burdette vs. Donna Vekic: One of the top American collegiate prospects, Burdette left Stanford last fall to turn pro and has reaped some solid results. Her victims so far include Lucie Hradecka, Ksenia Pervak, and Sabine Lisicki as well as fellow American rising star Madison Keys. Burdette will train her vicious backhand on Croatian rising star Donna Vekic, who reached her first WTA final last year as a qualifier. Vekic has not accomplished much above the challenger level since then, losing her only clay match this year to Chanelle Scheepers in Madrid.
Ayumi Morita vs. Yulia Putintseva: Is Paris ready for Putintseva? The volatile French crowd pounced on fellow pocket rocket Michelle Larcher de Brito, but the distant venue of Court 7 should take some of the scrutiny off the strong-lunged youngster. Putintseva took Serena to a first-set tiebreak in Madrid but will have her work cut out with Morita’s double-fisted strokes. Unlike Coco Vandeweghe, the Japanese star will win points with more than her serve.
What to Watch in the WTA This Week: Previews of Charleston and Monterrey
In a quiet week for the ATP outside Davis Cup, the WTA features a Premier tournament on the unique green clay and the only Mexican hard-court tournament on the calendar. An old event and a new event, Charleston and Monterrey feature fields surprisingly strong in view of the two marquee tournaments that filled last month.
Charleston:
Top half: A moment of silence, please, for Mandy Minella and Camila Giorgi. These two women, who have struggled in recent moments, battle for the honor of sharing a court with world No. 1 Serena Williams. Fresh from her Miami triumph, the defending champion in Charleston might face her first meaningful test in 2009 Charleston champion Sabine Lisicki. The German has struggled to gain traction outside the grass season, though, as her unreliable groundstrokes undo the contributions of her explosive serve. A rematch of last year’s Charleston final could await against Lucie Safarova in the quarterfinals, although Sorana Cirstea will aim to build upon her fourth-round appearance in Miami, where she upset world No. 6 Angelique Kerber.
The fourth-seeded Sloane Stephens has struggled to profit from the favorable draws that she has received with a ranking inflated by her Australian Open semifinal appearance. Although she won a set from Agnieszka Radwanska in Miami, she has not won more than one match at any tournament since that Melbourne breakthrough. In her vicinity stand two compatriots at opposite ends of their careers, the veteran Bethanie Mattek-Sands and the teenage star Madison Keys. The formidable serves of either or both women could threaten Stephens more than Tamira Paszek, a grass-court specialist mired in yet another slump. Three more Americans will vie to become her quarterfinal opponent, including the first-round winner of a contest between Varvara Lepchenko and Christina McHale. Both Lepchenko and McHale could use a strong result to boost their confidence, but the real name to note here is Venus Williams. A finalist in Charleston four years ago, Venus needs to conserve her energy with comfortable wins in the early rounds.
Semifinal: Serena vs. Venus
Bottom half: Another former Charleston champion, Sam Stosur, aims to kick off her clay campaign in style as she recovers from an Indian Wells injury. Her closest challengers range from the aging but still elegant Daniela Hantuchova to Laura Robson, the latter of whom urgently needs some positive energy. Robson has lost demoralizing three-setters early in each of her last three tournaments, two after winning the first set, in a test of her volatile temper. Another woman with mercurial tendencies, Jelena Jankovic hopes to prove that her unexpected surge to the Miami semifinals marked more than a mirage. Jankovic excelled on clay when at her peak but has landed in a challenging section near March sensation Garbine Muguruza and the heavy-hitting German Mona Barthel. A surface faster than its red counterpart, green clay has rewarded such power hitters before.
Arguably the weakest quarter of the draw offers Caroline Wozniacki an opportunity to recapture her former mastery of this surface. A former champion both here and at the defunct companion event in Amelia Island / Ponte Vedra Beach, the second seed probably eyes her last chance to leave an impact until the US Open Series. Much happier for the clay season’s arrival is Carla Suarez Navarro, well inside the top 25 now and likely hoping to rise even higher on her favorite surface. Near her lie both the fiery young star Yulia Putintseva and the dormant Julia Goerges, who has recorded several upsets on clay with her elongated but penetrating groundstrokes. Wozniacki may feel grateful to avoid Goerges, her nemesis more than once, but she could face an even more talented German in her second match. Still rebuilding her confidence following a series of debilitating injuries, Andrea Petkovic hopes to justify her wildcard in this soft section and string together some victories.
Semifinal: Jankovic vs. Wozniacki
Final: Serena vs. Wozniacki
Monterrey:
Top half: The only top-ten player in the field, Angelique Kerber did not waste the opportunity to collect a few more points on her favored hard courts before the clay season arrives. Gifted uneventful early matches, she could face top-ranked Japanese woman Ayumi Morita in the quarterfinals. This double-fister recently reached the semifinals at Kuala Lumpur and delivered a competitive effort against Serena in Miami, not long after she had upset top-seeded Ivanovic in Pattaya City. While she has split her four previous meetings with Kerber, the German won the last two comfortably and has not lost to Morita since 2007.
Several potential future stars occupy the second quarter, such as USC women’s star Maria Sanchez. Struggling to emerge from qualifying draws at most of the tournaments that she has played, Sanchez did register a key main-draw victory at Indian Wells. Halted by Agnieszka Radwanska there, she faces the Pole’s less renowned sister, Urszula, in a match after which the winner might meet Donna Vekic. Still early in the evolutionary process, this teenager won main-draw matches at the Australian Open and Miami, the latter over fellow rising star Yulia Putintseva. The question remains whether any of these women can threaten third-seeded Maria Kirilenko, who exited Miami early after reaching an Indian Wells semifinal. Among the best results of her career, that accomplishment built upon a Pattaya City title and second-week appearance at the Australian Open. Curiously, Kirilenko never has faced Kerber.
Bottom half: Accepting a wildcard at the last moment, former world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic represents the tournament’s most compelling attraction for fans. Her early draw looks tranquil, although she sometimes has failed to take care of business in these situations. The hard-serving Hungarian Timea Babos will pose her most credible pre-quarterfinal challenge, but she has won only a handful of matches since the US Open. A more intriguing series of tests lie ahead for the sixth-seeded Yanina Wickmayer, who could meet Kimiko Date-Krumm in the second round. The Japanese veteran with the knack for creating uncanny angles nearly stunned Venus in Miami, revealing strong form ahead of a clash with Florianopolis champion Monica Niculescu. Either of those women could disrupt Wickmayer’s rhythm with their idiosyncratic play but would struggle to protect their serves from Ivanovic.
The woman whom Niculescu defeated in the Florianopolis final, Olga Puchkova, finds herself sandwiched between two talented but slumping seeds. Despite starting the year by reaching the Brisbane final, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has sunk back into her dismal slump since then with opening-round losses in five of six tournaments. At a tournament where she has won two of her three carer titles, she will need to draw confidence from those memories. The second-seeded Marion Bartoli has displayed form more encouraging but has not won more than two matches at any tournament this year as uncertainty has swirled around her coaching situation. In addition to Puchkova, young Americans Lauren Davis and Coco Vandeweghe lurk in her vicinity, while Pavlyuchenkova may encounter top-ranked junior Daria Gavrilova in the second round. This event provides an excellent opportunity to catch a glimpse of developing talents like Gavrilova.
Final: Kirilenko vs. Ivanovic
What to Watch in the WTA This Week: Previews of Acapulco, Florianopolis, and Kuala Lumpur
While eight of the top ten men are active in the week before Indian Wells, only two of the top ten women have chosen live matches over practice sessions. Two clay tournaments in the Western Hemisphere accompany an Asian hard-court tournament as the last chance to reverse or extend momentum before the March mini-majors.
Acapulco: One of those two top-ten women playing this week, Errani hopes to begin repeating last year’s success on red clay while extending her success from reaching the Dubai final. Little about her section suggests that she should not, although she stumbled unexpectedly on clay against Lepchenko in Fed Cup. Considering that mishap, she might find Arantxa Rus a worthy test in the quarterfinals. Rus once upset Clijsters at Roland Garros and owns a lefty forehand smothered with topspin that cause damage on this surface. She might struggle to survive an all-Dutch encounter in the opening round against Kiki Bertens, though, who broke through to win her first career title at a clay tournament in Morocoo last year.
Gone early in Bogota, where she held the second seed, Alize Cornet will hope for a more productive week in a draw where she holds the third seed. The Frenchwoman lacks weapons to overpower her opponents but will find few in this section who can overpower her. The most notable name here (probably more notable than Cornet) belongs to the returning Flavia Pennetta, who got through one three-setter in Bogota before fading in a second. Tiny Lourdes Dominguez Lino hopes that this first-round opponent still needs to shake off more rust.
An odd sight it is to see an American, a Croat, and a Swede all playing on clay during a week with a hard-court tournament, and yet all of them occupy the same section in Acapulco. Perhaps more notable than Glatch or Larsson is Ajla Tomljanovic, a heavy hitter from a nation of heavy hitters who once looked like a sure rising star before recent setbacks. Facing this Croatian wildcard in the first round, fourth seed Irina-Camelia Begu knows better how to play on clay, as 2011 finals in Marbella and Budapest showed. Begu won her first career title last fall in Tashkent, which places her a notch above the other seed in this quarter. Spending most of her career at the ITF level, Romina Oprandi recorded a strong result in Beijing last fall.
Handed a wildcard to accompany her sixth seed, Schiavone searches for relevance after a long stretch in which she has struggled to string together victories. The sporadically intriguing Sesil Karatantcheva should pose a test less stern than second seed Suarez Navarro, who shares Schiavone’s affinity for the surface. Humiliated twice in one week at Dubai, where she lost resoundingly in both the singles and the doubles draws, the small Spaniard owns one of the loveliest one-handed backhands in the WTA since Henin’s retirement. Schiavone owns another, which should make their quarterfinal pleasant viewing for tennis purists.
Final: Errani vs. Begu
Florianopolis: In the first year of a new tournament, the presence of a marquee player always helps to establish its legitimacy. The outdoor hard courts at this Brazilian resort will welcome seven-time major champion and former #1 Venus Williams as the top seed, and her draw looks accommodating in its early stages. While young Spaniard Garbine Muguruza showed potential at the Australian Open, the American’s sternest challenge may come from a much older woman. Extending Venus deep into a third set at Wimbledon in 2011, Kimiko Date-Krumm could unsettle her fellow veteran with her clever angles and crisp net play, although her serve should fall prey to her opponent’s returning power.
In the quarter below lies Kirsten Flipkens, who lost early as the top seed in Memphis after reaching the second week of the Australian Open. Also a potential semifinal opponent for Venus, Caroline Garcia possesses much more potential than her current ranking of #165 would suggest. Unlike most of the counterpunchers in Florianopolis, she will not flinch from trading baseline missiles with the top seed should she earn the opportunity. Another young star in the eighth-seeded Annika Beck might produce an intriguing quarterfinal with Garcia.
Counterpunchers dominate the third quarter, bookended by Medina Garrigues and Chanelle Scheepers. When the two met at the Hopman Cup this year, endless rallies and endless service games characterized a match filled with breaks. The heavy serve of Timea Babos might intercept Scheepers in the second round, while Medina Garrigues could encounter some early resistance from the quirky Niculescu or Shahar Peer. With her best years well behind her, the Israeli continues to show her familiar grittiness in attempting to reclaim her relevance.
Midway through 2012, the second-seeded Shvedova climbed back into singles prominence by reaching the second week at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Starting with her three-set loss to Serena at the latter major, she has suffered a series of demoralizing setbacks in early rounds since then, often in tightly contested matches that hinged on a handful of points. Shvedova once led the WTA’s rankings for overall pace of shot, though, and her power might overwhelm those around her. Aligned to meet her in the quarterfinals is Kristina Mladenovic, the surprise semifinalist at the Paris Indoors who delivered the first signature win of her career there over Kvitova.
Final: Williams vs. Mladenovic
Kuala Lumpur: With a direct-entry cutoff even lower than Florianopolis, this tournament features only eight players in the top 100. Headlining the list, however, is a former #1 who still occupies the fringes of the top 10. After she produced solid results in the Middle East, reaching a quarterfinal in Doha and a semifinal in Dubai, Wozniacki should feel confident in her ability to secure a first title of 2013. Few of the names in her quarter will strike chords with most fans, although some might remember lefty Misaki Doi as the woman who upset Petra Martic in Melbourne before eating a Sharapova double bagel. Aussie lefty Casey Dellacqua sometimes can challenge higher-ranked foes but has struggled with injury too often to maintain consistency.
Doi’s highest-ranked compatriot, the double-fister Ayumi Morita holds the fourth seed in Kuala Lumpur. Like Wozniacki, she could face an Aussie in the quarterfinals, and, like Wozniacki, she should not find the test too severe. Although she has won the Australian Open wildcard playoff twice, Olivia Rogowska has stagnated over the past few years since winning a set from then -#1 Safina at the US Open. Evergreen veteran Eleni Daniilidou rounds out this section with one of the WTA’s more powerful one-handed backhands—and not much else.
Surely pleased to recruit another player of international familiarity beyond Wozniacki, Kuala Lumpur welcomes Pavlyuchenkova as a third-seeded wildcard entrant. The Russian often has excelled at this time of year, reaching the Indian Wells semifinals before and winning consecutive titles at the Monterrey tournament that has shifted after Miami. This year, Pavlyuchenkova has shown a little of her promising 2011 form by reaching the final in Brisbane to start the season and much more of her dismal 2012 form by dropping three straight matches thereafter. She could end her four-match losing streak here in a section filled with qualifiers. But yet another Aussie in Ashleigh Barty hopes to continue what so far has become an encouraging season for WTA future stars.
When not conversing on Twitter with our colleague David Kane, 16-year-old phenom Donna Vekic has compiled some notable results. Seeded at a WTA tournament for the first time, she will look to build upon her final in Tashkent last year, a win over Hlavackova at the Australian Open, and a solid week in Fed Cup zonal play. Vekic does face a challenging first-round test in the powerful serve of American wildcard Bethanie Mattek-Sands, but no match in her section looks unwinnable. While second seed and potential quarterfinal opponent Hsieh Su-wei won her first two titles last year, the late-blossoming star from Chinese Taipei still does not intimidate despite her presence in the top 25.
Final: Wozniacki vs. Pavlyuchenkova
(Actually, can we just combine these last two draws and have Venus play a super-final against Caro?)
Fill Their Cups: Fed Cup World Group Quarterfinal Preview
One week after the 2013 Davis Cup began, Fed Cup starts with four ties hosted by European nations. We look ahead to what viewers can expect from the women’s national team competition. Having gone 7-1 in Davis Cup predictions, will our hot streak continue?
Czech Republic vs. Australia: The first of the ties features the only two members of the top ten playing a Fed Cup World Group tie this weekend. But they also are the two most abjectly slumping women in that elite group, having slumped to equally deflating second-round exits at the Australian Open after imploding at tournaments earlier in January. The defending champions hold a key trump card if the match reaches a decisive fifth rubber, where their experienced doubles duo of Lucie Hradecka and Andrea Hlavackova should stifle whatever pair the Australians can compile. An ideally balanced team with two top-20 singles threats and a top-5 doubles team, the Czechs thus need earn only a split in singles, while the Aussies must get a victory from Dellacqua, Gajdosova, or Barty. Even in that scenario, they would need Stosur to sweep her singles rubbers, not as plausible a feat as it sounds considering her habit of embarrassing herself with national pride on the line. The boisterous Czech crowd might lift Kvitova’s spirits, similar to last year’s final when she eked out a victory as Safarova donned the heroine’s garb. But she too has struggled early this year, leaving the stage set for a rollercoaster weekend.
Pick: Czech Republic
Italy vs. USA: To paraphrase the producers who initially turned down the musical Oklahoma: no Williams, no Stephens, no chance. Like that show, which became a smash hit on Broadway, this American Fed Cup team has exceeded expectations in recent years when understaffed. Singles #1 Varvara Lepchenko enjoyed her breakthrough season in 2012, edging within range of the top 20, and Jamie Hampton announced herself with a three-set tussle against eventual champion Azarenka at the Australian Open. Hampered by a back injury in Melbourne, Hampton likely will trump the inconsistent Melanie Oudin after she showed how much her groundstrokes and point construction skills had improved. That said, Oudin has compiled plenty of Fed Cup experience, and her feisty attitude that so often thrives in this setting. Doubles specialist Liezel Huber, although past her prime, should provide a plausible counterweight to the top-ranked doubles squad of Errani and Vinci. The bad news for an American team, however, is the clay surface and the fact that their opposition also has proved themselves greater than the sum of their parts. Both inside the top 20 in singles as well, Errani and Vinci look set to take over from Schiavone and Pennetta as women who rise to the occasion in Fed Cup. Home-court advantage (and the choice of surface that accompanies it) should prove decisive.
Pick: Italy
Russia vs. Japan: Surprised at home by Serbia in last year’s semifinals, the Russians had become accustomed to playing final after final in Fed Cup during their decade of dominance. Even without the nuclear weapon of Maria Sharapova, the ageless Shamil Tarpischev has assembled troops much superior in quality to the female samurai invading from Japan. All of the Russians rank higher than any of the visitors, while Maria Kirilenko, Ekaterina Makarova, and Elena Vesnina all reached the second week at the Australian Open (Makarova reaching the quarterfinals). And world #31 Pavlyuchenkova reached the final in Brisbane when the new season started, although her production has plummeted since then. At any rate, Tarpischev has many more options for both singles and doubles than does his counterpart Takeshi Murakami, who may lean heavily on the 42-year-old legend Kimiko Date-Krumm. Older fans may recall Date-Krumm’s victory over Steffi Graf in Fed Cup, which came in the friendly confines of Ariake Colosseum rather than Moscow’s sterile Olympic Stadium. Kimiko likely will need a contribution of Ayumi Morita, who just defeated her in Pattaya City last week and has claimed the position of Japanese #1. One could see Date-Krumm or Morita swiping a rubber from Kirilenko or Makarova, neither of whom overpowers opponents. But it’s hard to see them accomplishing more.
Pick: Russia
Serbia vs. Slovakia: This tie in Nis looked nice a few days ago, slated to feature two gorgeous women—and only slightly less gorgeous games—in Ana Ivanovic and Daniela Hantuchova. Adding a bit of zest was another former #1 Jelena Jankovic, who always has represented Serbia with pride and determination. When both of the Serbian stars withdrew from the weekend, then, the visitors suddenly shifted from slight underdogs to overwhelming favorites. Granted, the hosts still can rely on the services of Bojana Jovanovski, who fell just short of the quarterfinals at the Australian Open in a breakthrough fortnight. Beyond the 15th-ranked Cibulkova, Slovakia brings no woman in the top 50 to Nis. A more dangerous talent than her current position of #58 suggests, though, Hantuchova should fancy her chances on an indoor hard court against whomever Serbian captain Dejan Vranes nominates for singles between Vesna Dolonc and Alessandra Krunic. She has shone in Fed Cup while compiling a 27-12 singles record there, whereas even Jovanovski has played just seven singles rubbers. Hand a slight edge to Slovakia in the doubles rubber as well because of Hantuchova’s experience in that format, where she has partnered with Magdalena Rybarikova (also here) to defeat the Serbs before.
Pick: Slovakia
Come back on Monday for previews of the ATP and WTA tournaments next week, following the format of last week’s ATP preview.
WTA Strasbourg day 2 roundup and photos
By Romana Cvitkovic
Tennis Grandstand photographer Rick Gleijm is in Strasbourg, France covering the WTA Internationaux de Strasbourg tournament live all week. Main draw action continued today and saw several more seeds fall including Maria Kirilenko, Mona Barthel and Marina Erakovic, while number two seed Francesca Schiavone eased through.
2010 Roland Garros champion Francesca Schiavone may not have had her best serving day, but she converted enough break points to give her a solid win over Romanian Alexandra Cadantu, 6-1, 6-2, and was the only seed to survive the day. Number three seed Maria Kirilenko retired with an ankle injury giving American Sloane Stephens a pass to the next round after splitting the first two sets, 6-3, 5-7. Number five seed and newest WTA Tour breakout player, Germany’s Mona Barthel went down to Russian qualifier Alexandra Panova 3-6, 6-7(7). Barthel double faulted ten times, struggled to hold her second serve and faced 18 break points, while only converting on three. Shahar Peer refueled in the second set against Canada’s Aleksandra Wozniak, handing her a bagel to seal the win, 7-5, 6-0. Japan’s Ayumi Morita sent the day’s last seed, number six Marina Erakovic, home in commanding form, 6-1, 6-3.
Other notable wins include Mirjana Lucic’s handling of Anne Keothavong. After easily winning the first set, Keothavong served for the match at 5-3, before Lucic fought back to win the next four games and force a third set which she won with a final score of 2-6, 7-5, 6-4. Johanna Larsson of Sweden sent American qualifier Lauren Davis home in three hotly contested sets that lasted just under three hours, 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(5). Timea Babos, a former junior doubles champion at Wimbledon, Roland Garros and the U.S. Open, moved onto the next round when Anastasija Sevastova retired just three games into the match. 2009 Strasbourg runner up, Lucie Hradecka moved on as did French wildcards Alize Cornet and Virginie Razzano.
Check back each day to catch all new action direct from the courts by our photographer Rick Gleijm! Scroll down for the full gallery below.
Australian Open 2011: A Promising Bunch
If you’re like me, which you’re probably not, you’ve been watching at least 5 or 6 hours of tennis a day this week and religiously checking scores when you can’t be near a TV. However, if you’re reading this, you’ve probably watched at least some of the Australian Open this week. While there haven’t been any particularly surprising upsets, there have been a lot of stunning performances by young players both known and unknown. Commentators have been complaining for years that there are no promising young players, but the numbers tell a different story. They may not all be winning majors yet, but give them time. Since all tennis players are relatively young, I’m going to limit my observations to players born after January 1, 1990.
Caroline Wozniacki (Born 11 July 1990)
Probably the brightest star on the list, Caroline Wozniacki usurped Serena Williams’ spot as No. 1 in the world at the end of last year. The fresh faced 20 year old has handled the pressures and criticism of being No. 1 with a lot of grace. Some fans and media have been extremely critical of Caroline as she has yet to win a Grand Slam and because they believe she would never have become No. 1 if Serena Williams remained in good health. While that is probably true, Wozniacki didn’t drop the bottle that cut Serena’s foot. Tennis players get hurt, it’s part of the game and sometimes it gives new players a chance to shine. In 2009, Caroline made the final of the US Open and last year she lost to Vera Zvonareva in the semifinals. Her resume’s not so bad when you consider that she’s only played 15 Grand Slams, not to mention that she won 6 titles last year (the same amount of tournaments Serena played.) At 20, I don’t think Caroline is a flash in the pan player and I do believe that she will win a Grand Slam in the future, possibly even in the next week.
Anastasija Sevastova (Born 13 April 1990)
Anastasija Sevastova is a young player from Latvia, which not traditionally a country to provide a lot of top players, well pretty much just Ernests Gulbis. She provided us with one of the early upsets at this year’s Australian Open. Ranked 45th in the world, she took out the 21st seed, Yanina Wickmayer, who was in white hot form, coming in runner up in the Australian Open warm up tournament in Aukland and beat up and comer Jarka Groth in the first round. Sevastova actually won her first WTA title last year in Estoril, beating Arantxa Parra Santonja. She will be playing Caroline Wozniacki in the 4th round for a chance at her first Grand Slam quarterfinal. Either way, there will be a 20 year old in the quarters.
Simona Halep (Born 27 September 1991)
We don’t see as many successful teenagers in tennis as we used to. I attribute this to a physically stronger women’s field and actually think it makes women’s tennis more interesting. This makes it all the more impressive when a teenager actually does manage to hang in there with veteran players. Simona won the junior French Open in 2008 and has since competed in only 3 adult Grand Slam events, already making the 3rd round of this year’s Australian Open. She’ll face Agnieszka Radwanska in the 3rd round.
Ayumi Morita (Born 11 March 1990)
Ayumi is ranked 64th in the world and has also already surpassed her previous Grand Slam performances at this year’s Australian Open. She is also appearing in the 3rd round, against Shuai Peng, who took out Jelena Jankovic in round 2. Morita previously made it to the 2nd round of Wimbledon in 2010. She is currently the second highest ranked Japanese player.
Petra Kvitova (Born 8 March 1990)
Petra is certainly one of the most promising young players on tour right now and you’ve got to love the fact that she’s still in braces. She had her best Grand Slam showing last year at Wimbledon, where she reached the semifinals, defeating Sorana Cirstea, Zheng Jie, Victoria Azarenka, Caroline Wozniacki, and Kaia Kanepi before falling to Serena Williams. She backed up this performance by making it to the 3rd round of the US Open and is now into the 3rd round of the Australian Open, where she will face Aussie Sam Stosur.
Bernard Tomic (Born 21 October 1992)
Coming into the Australian Open, Tennis Australia got a lot of flak for giving Tomic the last wildcard into the main draw. It appears that Bernard skipped out on the wildcard playoff tournament, feigning illness, because he was so confident that they would provide him a wildcard whether he played or not. It’s never good to be this cocky, and personally I would have skipped him over, but he is most likely the future of Australian tennis. However, his overconfidence seems to have helped him tremendously thus far in Melbourne, considering he’s beaten Jeremy Chardy and Feliciano Lopez. He will face the biggest test in tennis when he takes on Rafael Nadal in the 3rd round. Win or lose, he has proven himself worthy of the wildcard, even if I am still a bit sore that they skipped over Nicolas Mahut.
Milos Raonic (Born 27 December 1990)
This 6’5” Canadian is probably the most promising player to come out of Canada in years. He’s already the first Canadian since Daniel Nestor in 2001 to reach a Grand Slam 3rd round. Milos has beaten Bjorn Phau and Michael Llodra to reach his career best Slam performance, where he will play Mikhail Youzhny. His serve is absolutely massive and he did an excellent job of closing out the match against a seeded player in Michael Llodra. At just 20 years old, he’s bound to get stronger and fitter. I believe he has the potential to be a Top 20 player or possibly even better if he continues to improve his game.
Richard Berankis (Born 21 June 1990)
Berankis hails from Lithuania, also not a country to produce many famous tennis players. There’s been a lot of buzz about Berankis on the challenger and future level and he’s finally been able to break through a bit at a Grand Slam. This is only his third Grand Slam appearance, and his first Australian Open. He’s done a brilliant job, beating Marinko Matosevic, a promising young player from Australia, and absolutely demolishing David Nalbandian before he retired from the match. He will face David Ferrer in the 3rd round, but has already given a career best performance.
Mondays With Bob Greene: I am like a machine, fit for every match
STARS
Ayumi Morita beat Ksenia Lykina 6-1 6-3 to win the 2008 Dunlop World Challenge women’s event in Toyota City, Japan
Martin Vassallo Arguello won the Lima Challenger 2008, beating Sergio Roitman 6-2 4-6 6-4 in Lima, Peru
Go Soeda beat Hyung-Taik Lee 6-2 7-6 (7) to win the Dunlop World Challenge men’s singles in Toyota City, Japan
Grega Zemlja beat Martin Alund 6-2 6-1 to win the Abierto Internacional Varonil Ciudad de Cancun in Cancun, Mexico
SAYING
“This was our worst defeat. We had a sinister weekend.” – David Nalbandian, who earned Argentina’s lone point in Spain’s 3-1 Davis Cup victory.
“I think he’s my natural successor. He’s very close to this group of players who are integrated into the nucleus of the team and he’s demonstrated his qualities as a coach by leading Feliciano (Lopez), who has shown notable progression in the last while.” – Emilio Sanchez, on Albert Costa’s prospects for becoming Spain’s Davis Cup captain.
“I am like a machine, fit for every match, and I give my best for all my matches. I have a consistent style of play, which is my major strength and keeps me going. I am fine with the current ATP schedule and love playing tennis, which keeps me going.” – Nikolay Davydenko.
“It goes back to what my dad said: I peaked at 12 years old.” – Jimmy Arias, who in 1980 at the age of 16 became the youngest player to make the main draw of the US Open.
“She will have an opportunity but she will have to earn it.” – Craig Tiley, Australian Open tournament director on Jelena Dokic playing in a wild card playoff for a direct entry into the first Grand Slam tournament of 2009.
SUFFERIN’ SUCCOTASH
His business manager says Jimmy Connors is “extremely disappointed and embarrassed” about an incident that led to the tennis legend being charged with a misdemeanor. Karen Scott says a man tried to pick a fight with Connors and his son before a basketball game between the University of California Santa Barbara and the University of North Carolina. Police asked Connors to leave, but the eight-time Grand Slam tournament champion was arrested after he said he wanted to wait for his son to finish watching the game. Connors was charged with disrupting campus activities and refusing to leave a university facility.
STEPS DOWN
The day after leading Spain to its third Davis Cup championship, Emilio Sanchez Vicario retired as captain of the victorious team. “I will not be there for the tie against Serbia,” said Sanchez, referring to Spain’s first-round tie in 2009. “I started something three years ago and the cycle is now complete with this reward for all the players, and I hope that whoever replaces me can share all the magical moments I have experienced.” The next Spanish captain is rumored to be Albert Costa, the 2002 Roland Garros champion.
SAME IN ARGENTINA
Alberto Mancini apparently is through as coach of Argentina’s Davis Cup squad. He announced his resignation just hours after Spain clinched its third Davis Cup title, defeating Argentina 3-1 in the best-of-five-matches tie. The fifth match was not played. According to reports, Mancini had planned to resign after the final regardless of the outcome.
SCORING MORE
As an incentive to play better, Chinese tennis players will be able to keep more of their winnings. China’s players will keep 70 percent of the money they win, twice the amount they have been able to put into the bank. But the country’s top players, including Li Na and Wimbledon semifinalist Zheng Jie, are eligible to keep even more if they do well at Grand Slams and other big tournaments. In China, the sports associations have paid for coaches, travel and other expenses for the players. In making the announcement, Sun Jinfang, head of the Chinese Tennis Association (CTA), didn’t say if the players would now have to pay for some of their own expenses.
SQUARING OFF
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer could resume their rivalry in their opening 2009 tournament. The world’s top two players are scheduled to play the Qatar Open in Doha, Qatar, which begins January 5. According to Nasser al-Kholiafi, Qatar tennis federation president, the star-filled field will also include Andy Murray and Andy Roddick. The Qatar Open is one of three tournaments that will begin the 2009 ATP season, the others being the Brisbane International in Australia and the Chennai Open in India.
STOPPED
Kimiko Date-Krumm’s latest tournament ended quickly in the singles. Once ranked number five in the world, Date-Krumm lost her second-round match in the 2008 Dunlop World Challenge Tennis Tournament in Toyota, Japan, to Russian wild-card Ksenia Lykina 5-7 7-5 6-3. She did much better in the doubles, teaming with China’s Han Xinyun to reach the final, where they lost to Finland’s Emma Laine and Britain’s Melanie South 6-1 7-5.
SLUITER RETURNS
Dutch tennis player Raemon Sluiter is returning to the ATP tour after a 10-month retirement. He reached his highest world ranking of number 46 in 2003. The right-hander from Rotterdam turned pro in 1996 and earned a little more than USD $1.6 million in his career. Sluiter began his Davis Cup career in 2001 by upsetting Juan Carlos Ferrero as the Netherlands beat Spain and Germany to reach the World Group semifinals before losing to France. He also has a Davis Cup victory over Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen.
SET TO EXPLODE
A live bomb from World War II was discovered when a court at a British tennis club underwent renovation. The bomb was thought to be a piece of old farm machinery and handed to Steve McLean, chairman of the Greenlaw Tennis Club in Berwickshire, who put it in a bin. Six weeks later, he realized it was a bomb and called police. Army bomb disposal experts took the bomb away so it could be detonated safely.
STUMBLE
The first event in a closed tour for Asian players was canceled because of the lack of top players. The Asian Tennis Federation said it was planning a closed Asian Tennis Tour to help Asian players make more money. The first two events were to be held in India in December, a men’s tournament in Pune, followed by a women’s event in Indore. But some of the eight countries who had pledged their participation in the tour ended up nominated their third- or fourth-string players for the tournaments.
SENDS WARNING
John McEnroe hasn’t been quiet about his chances at the BlackRock Masters Tennis championships at London’s Royal Albert Hall. The lefthander, who at the age of 49 is by far the oldest in the eight-man draw, sent a video message to his rivals warning them not to underestimate him. McEnroe’s recent victory in Luxembourg has convinced the American that he can still compete. McEnroe is in a group with American Pete Sampras, Frenchman Cedric Pioline and Britain’s Jeremy Bates. The other group consists of Sweden’s Stefan Edberg, Australian Pat Cash, Britain’s Greg Rusedski and France’s Guy Forget. Jamie Murray, Wimbledon mixed doubles champion in 2007 and the brother of Andy Murray, will play doubles, joining, among others, Peter Fleming, Henri Leconte, Mansour Bahrami, Mark Woodforde and Anders Jarryd. Goran Ivanisevic withdrew from the singles field because he will undergo knee surgery.
SITTING ON TOP
For the third consecutive year, France has more players in the year-ending ATP Top 100 than any other nation. This year, however, Spain has tied France with 14 players in the Top 100. With Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at number six and Gilles Simon at number seven, it is the first time since 1986 that two Frenchmen have been in the year-end Top Ten. Yannick Noah and Henri Leconte did it then. Twenty-nine countries are represented in the Top 100. After France and Spain, Argentina has nine players in the Top 100, followed by the United States with eight, Germany and Russia with seven each, Croatia with five, the Czech Republic and Italy with four each, and Serbia and Belgium with three apiece.
STARS FOR SALE
The Heineken Open has reportedly been forced to shell out record appearance fees in order to land a couple of top players for the tournament in Auckland, New Zealand, beginning January 12. The headliners will be world number eight Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina and former champion David Ferrer of Spain. Tournament director Richard Palmer would not reveal the exact amount of appearance fees he had to pay to get the two, but said it was considerably less than the sums some top 10 players were demanding.
SO HAPPY
Organizers of the US Men’s Clay Court Championships in Houston, Texas, are smiling these days. Because of the changes in the ATP calendar for 2009, Lleyton Hewitt and the Bryan brothers, Bob and Mike, have committed to the US Clay Court. The Houston event now doesn’t bump up against Davis Cup competition or a popular clay-court tournament in Europe. And it directly follows the Masters 100 tournament in Miami, Florida. “This is a perfect example of how we’ve improved our prospects of getting some players we probably wouldn’t have had a shot at before,” said Van Barry, tennis director of River Oaks Country Club, site of the tournament.
SERBIAN DREAMS
The decrepit courts of the Milan Gale Muskatirovic Sports Centre in Belgrade, Serbia, will be restored in time to hold an ATP tournament in May. Tennis Masters Cup champion Novak Djokovic and his family are behind the changes, having acquired the ATP event only a few weeks ago. The Serbian government, city of Belgrade and municipality of Stari Grad will jointly pay more than USD $1 million for the venture. The courts also will be used by the Serbian Tennis Federation for Fed Cup and Davis Cup practice as well as university competition. When completed, the complex will have seven courts with seating for 5,000 at the Central Court. The restoration is scheduled to be completed by mid-April, two weeks before the tournament will begin.
SYDNEY CALLING
The Medibank International Sydney 2009 tournament will feature a number of top players, including Serena Williams, Jelena Jankovic, David Nalbandian and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Officials say the competition will be Sydney’s international sporting event of the Australian summer. Also in the field will be Russian Elena Dementieva and Frenchman Richard Gasquet, while Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt will be gunning for his fifth title in the tournament.
STICKING WITH IT
Argentina’s David Nalbandian refuted rumors that he is considering quitting his country’s Davis Cup team because of its loss to Spain. “For me it’s really an honor to represent my country. I’m going to continue defending these colors in the best way possible. For me, playing Davis Cup is the best and I’m upset that people have doubted me.” Nalbandian won the opening singles in the three-day competition, beating David Ferrer. But he and Agustin Calleri lost their doubles match and his “reverse singles” match was never played because Spain had already wrapped up its victory. “We’ve played in two Davis Cup finals in the last three years and I still think we can win it,” Nalbandian said.
SET FOR CHENNAI
India’s two top-ranked singles players, Somdev Devvarman and Prakash Amritraj, have been given wild cards into the Chennai Open tournament scheduled to begin January 5. The third wild card into the main singles draw has been offered to Lukas Dlouhy of the Czech Republic, who will partner India’s Leander Paes in the doubles. India’s Mahesh Bhupathi and his partner, Mark Knowles of the Bahamas, have also entered the tournament. While Paes and Bhupathi are India’s best-known players, neither play singles that much any more.
SAD NEWS
Anne Pittman, who coached Arizona State’s women’s tennis program for 30 years, died in Tempe, Arizona, after suffering a stroke. She was 90 years old. Pittman guided ASU to a 338-71 record from 1954 through 1984 and led the Sun Devils to national championships in 1971, 1972 and 1974. In 1995, she was selected as one of the charter members and only coach into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Women’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame. During her tenure, the women’s tennis coach was considered a volunteer position. Pittman refused to retire until funding was approved during the 1983-84 season to make the coach a paid, full-time position.
SHARED PERFORMANCES
Toyota (women): Emma Laine and Melanie South beat Kimiko Date-Krumm and Han Xinyun 6-1 7-5
Lima: Luis Horna and Sebastian Prieto beat Ramon Delgado and Julio Silva 6-3 6-3
Toyota (men): Frederik Nielsen and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi beat Chen Ti and Gazegorz Panfil 7-5 6-3
Cancun: Lukasz Kubot and Oliver Marach beat Lee Hsin-Han and Yang Tsung-Hua 7-5 6-2
SITES TO SURF
London: www.theblackrockmasters.com/
Australian Open: www.australianopen.com/
ATP: www.atptennis.com
WTA Tour: www.sonyericssonwtatour.com
ITF: www.itftennis.com
TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK
SENIORS
BlackRock Masters Tennis, London, England, carpet
