Sunday, June 09, 2019

Au Revoir, Paris



Onward...




=DAY 15 NOTES=
...winning a slam is fun.





Kristina Mladenovic has now done it five times. Twice in Paris, with two different partners in the last four years. Today's women's doubles win with Timea Babos (the duo's second major, with the '18 AO) over Duan Yingying/Zheng Saisai combines with the Pastry's MX crowns with Daniel Nestor ('13 Wimb/'14 AO) to add yet another 2019 chapter to the resurrection of Mladenovic's career, not to mention at least the beginnng (crossing fingers) of the rehab of her off-court reputation following all those best-left-in-the-past issues (though the "Decade Best's" posts certainly reminded me how bad it was a one point).

Mladenovic will assume the #1 doubles ranking tomorrow, and move into the summer grass and hard court seasons (the latter in '17 was where her singles career began to fall apart for almost a two-year stretch, beginning with a loss in Washington to Bianca Andreescu, the first defeat in what became a 15-match losing streak). Coach Sascha Bajin will be along for the ride, looking to create another monster. Only this time, in Kiki's case, a good one.

I hear a potential sequel to the "original" Karmic Kiki Movie shown at the Sugarpova Cineplex at Backspin Academy two years ago is in the making that would reflect the changes... but it hasn't been officially greenlighted.


...in the Bol WTA 125 event final, Tamara Zidansek successfully defended her title with a 7-5/7-5 win over Sara Sorribes Tormo.

It must have been a weekend trend (see Rafa Dude), because the grasscourt Surbiton $100K challenger also saw Alison Riske successfully defend *her* title with a 6-7(5)/6-2/6-2 win the final over Magdalena Rybarikova. With Riske's victory, all five of the 2019 $100K challengers have been won by Bannerettes.

The next come in Manchester and Ilkley the next two weeks.




..."AND WHAT'S YOUR TAKE ON THAT STORY ABOUT JAY-Z's WIFE THIS WEEK?" ON DAY 15:

Talking about Simonne-Mathieu Court on NBC today, Mary Carillo noted that the 1930's French great's name "is on the trophy that Thiem's girlfriend and Timea Babos won earlier today."

Yes, she actually said that. I mean... come on, Mary.

And then again, moments later, it was "Dominic Thiem's girlfriend Kiki Mladenovic..." And this was a day after Carillo apparently mixed up the Kikis, misidentifying Mladenovic as Bertens.

Umm, one has five slam titles to her credit, while the other so far has zero. Maybe the identifying description should go in the other direction.

Now, if this had been purposeful shade being thrown at a player who rightly deserved it a year or two ago, here-here. But the karmic wheel has seemingly reversed course with Mladenovic, and I don't remember Carillo ever discussing all that back then, anyway.

...LIKE ON DAY 15:

Francesca Sighting!



...LIKE ON DAY 15:

Show-off...



...LIKE ON DAY 15:

#ItTakes... perseverence, and a love of the game (but you need the explanation for the words to be anything other than just that)

View this post on Instagram

“Ever since I was 12 I remember playing tennis with some kind of pain in my elbow. In order to continue my career I was taking painkillers until one doctor suggested surgery. After finishing a successful junior career at 16, I had to put my professional career on hold for rehab. It actually went well and I was pain free for 3.5 years. Other injuries were holding me back in the meantime, such as a herniated disc in my back and a twisted ankle. These were nowhere near the problems my sister faced. She had some kind of brain inflammation where they weren’t sure if she would pull through, but with a miracle she did. During this difficult time tennis kept me going. Little did I know the problems with my elbow were just starting. I was at a career high of 20 in the world in 2017 and maybe things were going too well. I woke up one morning during a tournament in Canada and couldn’t extend my right arm. After returning home, I found out I needed another surgery where they would shave the bone down and clean the joint. My positivity kept me going through rehab and after a long preseason I was ready to play. This time it only took one match to feel pain. I was forced to rest for six weeks after finding three stress reactions. I was not going to settle any longer and searched for the best doctor I could and ended up in the US. There was still uncertainty and I woke up after my third surgery to find out that they found nothing major and it was just another cleaning. Months of hard work got me back to where I was ready to start the clay and grass season in 2018. Only four matches in it was back. I took six months off from tennis to give it maximum time to recover. Now in 2019, I am trying every possible racquet, string and technique. I felt helpless that this sport, to which I dedicated my life to, is giving me all these problems. If I didn’t love hitting this yellow ball so much I would’ve quit a long time ago but I told myself give yourself one more chance. My fourth and final surgery, 2.5 hours long, ulnar ligament reconstruction. I have about 70% chance of returning but I am going for it. I have this goal set in my mind and I'm not accepting any other outcome.”

A post shared by Behind The Racquet (@behindtheracquet) on



...A COMMENT TO BANK FOR FUTURE USE ON DAY 15:

From RG.com

"Diane Parry is a young player in whom we believe, owing to her ambition and her play, which resembles Amélie Mauresmo’s," said Forget. "When sometimes we worry about the future of French tennis, we can have hopes. We have a player like Diane and can be optimistic."


...DISLIKE ON DAY 15:

Not sure why RG.com is shortchanging Diede de Groot. The article about her history-making Saturday refers to what she accomplished like this: "The Dutch No.1 seed becomes first woman ever to hold all four Slam titles. Diede de Groot made tennis history in the women’s wheelchair championship when she overwhelmed her old rival Yui Kamiji to capture her first Roland-Garros crown. It made 22-year-old De Groot the first woman in history to hold the women’s wheelchair singles titles at all four Grand Slams simultaneously."

All true. But, umm, where's the "*and* she's the first *player* (period) to win all eight major titles in a career (and hold them simultaneously)?"

...OF NOTE (or not?) ON DAY 15:

So, now the top *three* players positioned on last year's Generation PDQ poster are slam champions. So "The Cricketeer" gets her stand alone movie. Does this mean that Sabalenka or Siniakova are next?



Marketa Vondrousova dropped off the one-sheet after stepping back a bit in '18. But she *was* on the '17 version...


...LEFTOVER NOTE ABOUT DAY 14 ON DAY 15:

I noticed this yesterday, too... and it *was* a little bit brilliant on Ash's part.



...LIKE ON DAY 15:

Party hearty...







Roland Garros is over. And the clay season is, too. So it's time for a quick review of the top performances and performers on the dirt...

1.QUEEN KIKI OF THE RED CLAY = Kiki Bertens wins Madrid, defeating three Top 10 players (defending champ Petra Kvitova, and both the '18 RG finalists, Sloane Stephens & Simona Halep, denying the latter a return to the #1 ranking) to claim her biggest career clay court title.

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Gracias madrid???? #mmopen @mutuamadridopen

A post shared by Kiki Bertens (@kikibertens) on


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2.CLAY COURT KEYS = Madison Keys wins her first career clay title, posting wins over three former slam champs (Alona Ostapenko, Sloane Stephens and Caroline Wozniacki)
===============================================
3.AUSTRALIAN RULES TENNIS = Ash Barty wins her maiden slam to become the first Australian to win Roland Garros since 1973


===============================================
4.AN INDOOR PETRA IS A GOOD PETRA = Petra Kvitova wins Stuttgart, defeating Kiki Bertens and Anett Kontaveit down the stretch to climb to #2
===============================================
5.STILL THE "OTHER PETRA?" = 28-year Petra Martic finally wins the maiden title of her oft injury-sidetracked career in Istanbul, winning four three-setters and defeating Marketa Vondrousova in the final
===============================================
HM-THE NEW GREEK AGE = Maria Sakkari becomes the first Greek woman to win a tour singles title since 2008, taking Rabat on the same weekend that countryman Stefanos Tsitsipas wins a title on the ATP tour


===============================================


1. Ash Barty, AUS - a better clay season than anticipated, and a slam breakthrough at the last place imagined
2. Kiki Bertens, NED - even with her RG sick-out, rates high with the top tour-level performance of the clay season in Madrid, not to mention SF in Stuttgart and Rome
3. Johanna Konta, GBR - came up a win short of the RG final, but reached two others this clay court spring
4. Diede de Groot, NED - her sweep of the WC titles in Paris locked up all eight slam titles (for her career *and* in a row) and officially taps her as the inheritor of the Vergeerian Throne
===============================================
5. Marketa Vondrousova, CZE - seemed in a good spot to be the first Czech champ at RG since 1981, but it wasn't mean to be. She still went 15-3, beat Halep on clay and avenged two of her three losses (vs. Martic and Konta) in Paris.
6. Timea Babos/Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA - Istanbul & Roland Garros champs (and Kiki posted they-look-even-better-now singles wins over Barty and Anisimova this spring, too)
7. Petra Martic, CRO - could have been playing in the RG final if she could have held a lead(s) in the QF, but 15-3 on clay with a singles title are eye-opening results
===============================================
8. Maria Sakkari, GRE - Charleston (QF), Rabat (W) and Rome (SF) runs weren't matched at RG (2nd Rd.), but she defeated three other players (Bertens, Konta and Kvitova) on this list
9.. Amanda Anisimova, USA - a title run in Bogota and SF in Paris (w/ win over Halep) could be just the beginning
10. Simona Halep, ROU - a year after winning in Paris she defeated two RG semifinalists (Barty & Konta in Madrid), but lost to the other two (Vondrousova in Rome, Anisimova in RG QF<,) and was thwarted by Bertens (again) in a tour final
===============================================
11. Madison Keys, USA - a good start (first clay title in Charleston) and finish (RG QF), but a mushy middle
12. Karolina Pliskova, CZE - a disappointing French, but she was the first Czech to win in Rome since 1978
HM- Petra Kvitova, CZE - started fast with an oft-brilliant run in Stuttgart, then spun out with QF-3r (ret.) and a RG withdrawal to end the CC schedule


=FED CUP (April)=
1.Ash Barty, AUS
2.Garcia/Mladenovic, FRA
3.Johanna Konta, GBR
4.Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP
5.Barty/Stosur, AUS
6.Sloane Stephens, USA
7.Simona Halep, ROU (L)
8.Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS
9.Marketa Vondrousova, CZE
10.Andrea Petkovic, GER
HM-Muguruza/Suarez-Navarro, ESP
[Zones]
1.Anastasia Kulikova, FIN
2.Anastasia Iamachkine, PER
3.Mayar Sherif, EGY
4.Andrea Gamiz, VEN
5.Sherif/Sherif, EGY
HM-Gamiz/Uzcategui, VEN
[captains]
1.Julien Benneteau, FRA
2.Alicia Molik, AUS
3.Kathy Rinaldi, USA
4.Igor Andreev, RUS
5.Anne Keothavong, GBR
HM-Jens Gerlach, GER
[Performances]
1.[SF] Barty goes 3-0, leads AUS past USA on road to reach first final since 1993
2.[SF] Garcia/Mladenovic win deciding doubles vs. ROU to send FRA to second final in four years
3.[WGII] Konta ends GBR's 26-yr. drought, leads past KAZ out of WGII Playoffs


*RISERS*
Yulia Putintseva/KAZ and Belinda Bencic/SUI
*SURPRISES*
Astra Sharma/AUS and Aliona Bolsova/ESP
*VETERANS*
Polona Hercog/SLO and Anastasija Sevastova/LAT
*COMEBACKS*
Victoria Azarenka/BLR & Kristina Mladenovic/FRA
*FRESH FACES*
Iga Swiatek/POL and Sonya Kenin/USA
*JUNIOR STARS*
Leylah Annie Fernandez/CAN and Emma Navarro/USA
*DOUBLES*
Latisha Chan/TPE, Hsieh Su-wei/Barbora Strycova (TPE/CZE) and Victoria Azarenka/Ash Barty (BLR/AUS)
*ITF*
Barbora Krejcikova/CZE, Marcela Zacarias/MEX and Lauren Davis/USA
*DOWN*
Alona Ostapenko/LAT and Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova (CZE/CZE)
*NCAA*
Estela Perez-Somarriba/ESP [Miami] and Katrina Jokic/SRB [Georgia]
*TEAMS*
Stanford women's team and NED Wheelchari World Cup team
*WTA 125*
Zheng Saisai/CHN and Tamara Zidansek/SLO
*WHEELCHAIR*
Yui Kamiji/JPN and Jordanne Whiley/GBR

*MOST IMPROVED*
1. Jil Teichmann, SUI
2. Aliona Bolsova, ESP
3. Veronika Kudermetova, RUS
4. Anna Blinkova, RUS
5. Astra Sharma, AUS
6. Elena Rybakina, KAZ
7. Whitney Osuigwe, USA
8. Fiona Ferro, FRA
9. Kaja Juvan, SLO
10. Antonia Lottner, GER
11. Marie Bouzkova, RUS
12. Greet Minnen, BEL
13. Giulia Capocci, ITA (WC)
14. Bernarda Pera, USA
15. Chloe Paquet, FRA
16. Liudmila Samsonova, RUS
17. Giulia Gatto-Monticone, ITA
18. Jasmine Paolini, ITA
19. Rebecca Peterson, SWE
20. Ann Li, USA
HM- Maria Florencia Moreno, ARG (WC)



1. Fed Cup SF Match #3 - Simona Halep/ROU def. Caroline Garcia/FRA
...6-7(6)/6-3/6-4. With the visiting (and loud, as always) Romanian fans cheering her on, Halep had dispatched Mladenovic 3 & 1 to open the tie, then outlasted Garcia in 2:57 in match #3 to put the Swarmettes up 2-1. Against Garcia, Halep had overcome a 4-0 1st set deficit to serve at 5-4, and later saved two SP before holding one of her own in the tie-break, only to lose her footing on the red clay and fall in the backcourt on a point that gave the Pastry her third SP, which she converted seconds later. Halep rallied to win in three, though, breaking Garcia for 5-4 (with the help of a pair of DF) and then serving out her eighth straight FC singles win (and ending the French woman's run of six).



It proved to have all been in vain, as the Pastries won the deciding doubles to return to the FC final.
===============================================
2. Roland Garros SF - Ash Barty def. Amanda Anisimova
...6-7(4)/6-3/6-3 (7-6/3-0). Barty's run to the RG title included a win in this pinball machine-like match in which momentum was batted around like a tiny metal ball beneath glass, complete with bright flashing lights and accompanying sound effects. The Aussie dominated early, winning 17 of the first 18 points and had double SP at 5-0, 40/15 on Anisimova's serve. Two backhard errors swatted the momentum to the Bannerette, who began stepping inside the baseline to get to Barty's sliced groundstrokes and won 25 of 35 points, taking the 1st set TB and leading 3-0 in the 2nd (winning 17 consecutive points). But errors then crept into her game, and Barty capitalized. Getting back on serve, she won the last six games of the 2nd and used her variety-filled game to pull away in the 3rd.

View this post on Instagram

🎢😳🤯

A post shared by Ash Barty (@ashbar96) on


===============================================
The GBR/KAZ World Group II Playoff was a tale of three matches...

3t. Match #2 - Yulia Putintseva/KAZ def. Katie Boulter/GBR 3-6/6-2/7-6(6)
Match #3 - Johanna Konta/GBR def. Yulia Putintseva/KAZ 4-6/6-2/7-5
Match #4 - Katie Boulter/GBR def. Zarina Diyas/KAZ 6-7(1)/6-4/6-1
...what the Fed Cup Gods giveth, they also taketh. The swiftly changing emotions of FC tennis have rarely been more evident than they were in this tie. An energized Putintseva seemed to have possibly broken Boulter and the Brits' will on Saturday, overcoming a 4-1 3rd set deficit and saving three MP in 2:31 while ending the Brit's previously undefeated career FC record.




But then Putintseva squandered a sure-win match of her own on Sunday, as Konta went into FC Warrior Mode and erased a double-break lead in the 3rd. Putintseva served as 5-4, but Konta extended her personal Fed Cup win streak to eleven matches by sweeping the final three games to win in 2:21 and give GBR a 2-1 edge in the tie.



As it turned out, Boulter's devastation turned to exhilaration as she clinched the tie as the Brits ended over two decades of frustration and climbed one more rung up the Fed Cup ladder.



Putintseva did manage to rebound by (finally) winning her first tour singles title a few weeks later. Konta had the best clay court season of her life and reached the RG semis, while the injured Boulter didn't play the rest of the clay season.
===============================================
4. Madrid QF - Belinda Bencic def. Naomi Osaka
...3-6/6-2/7-5. Osaka appeared lost at times during her match with Bencic. Still, she came within two points of the win, but later admitted to thinking about the stakes (a win would have protected her #1 ranking from Halep, though the Romanian ultimately came up short of the title and reclaiming the top spot anyway). This gave Bencic a tour-leading two #1 wins this season (both over Osaka, though she also had a win over Halep in Dubai right *after* she lost the top spot), and captured the up-and-down-and-not-sure-about-quite-a-bit tone of Osaka's first spring as the #1 ranked player in the world


===============================================
5. Roland Garros 3rd Rd - Anastasija Sevastova def. Elise Mertens
...6-7(3)/6-4/11-9. Sevastova saved five MP in wild-and-woolly 3:18 battle that allowed the Latvian to pull back another layer to reveal philosophical side. Said Sevastova of the difference between winning and losing, "It's just a millimeter. It doesn't make you better or worse player. In the end, it's a bit of luck."




===============================================
HM- Charleston 2nd Rd. - Alona Ostapenko def. Shelby Rogers
...4-6/6-3/7-6(4). While it didn't ultimately mean anything (in *this* tournament or the clay season as a whole), Latvian Thunder *did* make a brief cameo appearance in Charleston this spring. Ostapenko's winner-fueled comeback came on the heels of vowing to play "fearless" once more. She did, and it saved a match in which Rogers served for the match at 5-1 and 5-3 in the 3rd set and held a MP. The Latvian ran off five straight games and served for it at 6-5. She dropped serve and things went to a TB, but she wasn't to be denied.


===============================================


$25K Sunderland ENG 1st Rd. - Tara Moore def. Jessika Ponchet
...0-6/7-6(7)/6-3. Moore's historic escape brought to mind Chanda Rubin's 1995 Roland Garros win over Jana Novotna after having trailed 5-0, 40/love in the 3rd set and facing nine MP. The Brit's week didn't have a fairy tale ending, as she didn't build upon her win from 0-6/0-5, 30/40 down (saving two MP) to win the title. She reached the SF, as well as the doubles final.






All right, grass season... whattaya got?






=WOMEN'S SINGLES FINAL=
#8 Ash Barty/AUS def. Marketa Vondrousova/CZE 6-1/6-3

=WOMEN'S DOUBLES FINAL=
#2 Babos/Mladenovic (HUN/FRA) def. Duan/Sai.Zheng (CHN/CHN) 6-2/6-3

=MIXED DOUBLES FINAL=
L.Chan/Dodig (TPE/CRO) def. #2 Dabrowski/Pavic (CAN/CRO) 6-1/7-6(5)

=GIRLS SINGLES FINAL=
#1 Leylah Annie Fernandez/CAN def. #8 Emma Navarro/USA 6-3/6-2

=GIRLS DOUBLES FINAL=
Beck/Navarro (USA/USA) def. #4 Charaeva/Tikhonova (RUS/RUS) 6-1/6-2

=WHEELCHAIR SINGLES FINAL=
#1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN 6-1/6-0

=WHEELCHAIR DOUBLES FINAL=
#1 de Groot/Van Koot (NED/NED) def. #2 Buis/Ellerbrock (NED/GER) 6-1/6-1
















*2019 WTA DOUBLES FINALS*
3...BABOS/MLADENOVIC (2-1)
3...Chan/Chan (2-1)
2...Mertens/Sabalenka (2-0)
2...Hsieh/Strycova (2-0)
2...Stosur/Sh.Zhang (1-1)
2...Dabrowski/Xu (1-1)
2...Melichar/Peschke (1-1)
2...Kalinskaya/Kuzmova (1-1)
2...Groenefeld/Schuurs (0-2)
[individuals]*
3...TIMEA BABOS, HUN (2-1)
3...Chan Hao-ching, TPE (2-1)
3...Latisha Chan, TPE (2-1)
3...KRISTINA MLADENOVIC, FRA (2-1)
3...Anna-Lena Groenefeld, GER (1-2)
3...Nicole Melichar, USA (1-2)
3...DUAN YINGYING, CHN (0-3)

*RECENT RG CHAMPIONS*
[Women's Doubles]
2010 Serena Williams & Venus Williams, USA/USA
2011 Andrea Hlavackova & Lucie Hradecka, CZE/CZE
2012 Sara Errani & Roberta Vinci, ITA/ITA
2013 Ekaterina Makarova & Elena Vesnina, RUS/RUS
2014 Hsieh Su-Wei & Peng Shuai, TPE/CHN
2015 Bethanie Mattek-Sands & Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2016 Caroline Garcia & Kristina Mladenovic, FRA/FRA
2017 Bethanie Mattek-Sands & Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2018 Barbora Krejcikova & Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
2019 Timea Babos & Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA

*CAREER OVERALL SLAM TITLES - ACTIVE*
[singles/doubles/mixed]
39 - Serena Williams, USA (23-14-2)
23 - Venus Williams, USA (7-14-2)
8 - Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA (0-5-3)
7 - Samantha Stosur, AUS (1-3-3)
6 - Sania Mirza, IND (0-3-3)
6 - Katarina Srebotnik, SLO (0-1-5)
5 - Sara Errani, ITA (0-5-0)
5 - KRISTINA MLADENOVIC, FRA (0-3-2)
5 - Maria Sharapova, RUS (5-0-0)

*CAREER WOMEN'S DOUBLES SLAM TITLES - ACTIVE*
14...Serena Williams, USA
14...Venus Williams, USA
5...Sara Errani, ITA
5...Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA
3...Ekaterina Makarova, RUS
3...Sania Mirza, IND
3...KRISTINA MLADENOVIC, FRA
3...Samantha Stosur, AUS
3...Elena Vesnina, RUS

*RG "DOUBLES STAR" WINNERS*
2006 Lisa Raymond & Samantha Stosur, USA/AUS
2007 Katarina Srebotnik, SLO
2008 Anabel Medina-Garrigues & Virginia Ruano Pascual, ESP/ESP
2009 Virginia Ruano Pascual, ESP
2010 Katarina Srebotnik, SLO
2011 Andrea Hlavackova & Lucie Hradecka, CZE/CZE
2012 Sara Errani & Roberta Vinci, ITA/ITA
2013 Ekaterina Makarova & Elena Vesnina, RUS/RUS
2014 Anna-Lena Groenefeld, GER
2015 Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA
2016 Caroline Garcia & Kristina Mladenovic, FRA/FRA
2017 Gaby Dabrowski, CAN
2018 Barbora Krejcikova & Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
2019 Kristina Mladenovic, FRA

*RECENT SLAM DOUBLES CHAMPIONS*
2016 AO: Martina Hingis/Sania Mirza, SUI/IND
2016 RG: Caroline Garcia/Kristina Mladenovic, FRA/FRA
2016 WI: Serena Williams/Venus Williams, USA/USA
2016 US: Bethanie Mattek-Sands/Lucie Safarova,USA/CZE
2017 AO: Bethanie Mattek-Sands/Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2017 RG: Bethanie Mattek-Sands/Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2017 WI: Ekaterina Makarova/Elena Vesnina, RUS/RUS
2017 US: Latisha Chan/Martina Hingis, TPE/SUI
2018 AO: Timea Babos/Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA
2018 RG: Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
2018 WI: Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
2018 US: Ash Barty/CoCo Vandeweghe, AUS/USA
2019 AO: Samantha Stosur/Zhang Shuai, AUS/CHN
2019 RG: Timea Babos/Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA

*2019 WTA 125 FINALS*
Newport Beach, USA - Bianca Andreescu/CAN def. Jessica Pegula/USA
Indian Wells, USA - Viktorija Golubic/SUI def. Jennifer Brady/USA
Guadalajara, MEX - Veronika Kudermetova/RUS def. Marie Bouzkova/RUS
Anning, CHN - Zheng Saisai/CHN def. Zhang Shuai/CHN
Bol, CRO - Tamara Zidansek/SLO def. Sara Sorribes Tormo, ESP)

*2019 $100K FINALS*
Midland, USA (hci) - Caty McNally/USA def. Jessica Pegula/USA
Charleston, USA (gco) - Taylor Townsend/USA def. Whitney Osuigwe/USA
Bonita Springs, USA (gco) - Lauren Davis/USA def. Ann Li/USA
Trnava, SVK (rco) - Bernarda Pera/USA def. Anna Blinkova/RUS
Surbiton, ENG (gr) - Alison Riske/USA def. Magdalena Rybarikova/SVK
Manchester, ENG (gr) - (June)
Ilkley, ENG (gr) - (June)




TOP QUALIFIER: #22q Elena Rybakina/KAZ
TOP EARLY-ROUND (1r-2r): #2 Karolina Pliskova/CZE
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): #26 Johanna Konta/GBR
TOP LATE-ROUND (SF-F): #8 Ash Barty/AUS
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: #1q Bernarda Pera/USA def. #21q Kaja Juvan/SLO 6-4/1-6/7-6(1) [Juvan up break three times in 3rd, served at 5-4]
TOP EARLY-RD. MATCH (1r-2r): 2nd Rd. - #1 Naomi Osaka/JPN def. Victoria Azarenka/BLR 4-6/7-5/6-3 (down 6-4/4-2, BP for 5-2)
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): 3rd Rd. - #12 Anastasija Sevastova/LAT def. Elise Mertens/BEL 6-7(3)/6-4/11-9 (saved 5 MP; 3:18)
TOP LATE-RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): SF - #8 Ash Barty/AUS def. Amanda Anisimova/USA 6-7(4)/6-3/6-3 (Barty lost 5-0, 40/15 lead in 1st; trailed 7-6/3-0)
=============================
FIRST VICTORY: #31 Petra Martic/CRO (def. Jabeur/TUN)
FIRST SEED OUT: #5 Angelique Kerber/GER (1st Rd./Potapova)
UPSET QUEENS: Russia
REVELATION LADIES: Russia
NATION OF POOR SOULS: Italy (0-2, none in RG 2nd Round for first time since 1982)
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: Aliona Bolsova/ESP (4th Rd.)
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: Lauren Davis/USA, Priscilla Hon/AUS, Diane Parry/FRA (all 2nd Rd.)
LAST PASTRY STANDING: Carolina Garcia, Krisinta Mladenovic & Diane Parry (all 2nd Rd.)
MADEMOISELLE OPPORTUNITY: Ash Barty/AUS and Diede de Groot/NED (first with all 8 WC major titles)
IT "??": Generation PDQ Teens (Amanda Anisimova/USA, Iga Swiatek/POL and Marketa Vondrousova/CZE)
COMEBACK PLAYER: Johanna Konta/GBR
CRASH & BURN: Alona Ostapenko, LAT (1st Rd.; zero RG wins before/after '17 title)
ZOMBIE QUEEN OF PARIS: Anna Blinkova/RUS (Q2: trailed 6-3/3-1 vs. Kalinina; Q3: trailed Glushko 3-0 in 3rd; 1st Rd.: trailed Gaspayarn 4-0 in 3rd; 2nd Rd.: trailed Garcia 3-0 in 3rd)
DOUBLES STAR: Kristina Mladenovic/FRA (new #1; second RG title)
VETERAN PLAYER (KIMIKO CUP): Latisha Chan/TPE (defended MX title)
JUNIOR BREAKOUTS: Diane Parry/FRA (young MD winner since '09) and Emma Navarro/USA (girls singles RU/doubles W)
Légion de Lenglen HONOREE: Court Simonne-Mathieu
Coupe LA PETIT TAUREAU: Simona Halep/ROU (awarded on LPT Day/June 1, Henin's birthday)




All for now. RG "Decade's Best" wrap-up soon.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 6:29 PM 

2 Comments:

Blogger colt13 said...

Behind the Racquet is always a solid piece.

Stat of the Week- 16- The number of Junior Slam titlists that won their title in the last 10 years and have reached a WTA final.

13 have won, and 3 have reached one. That is out of 38, and in 201, both Belinda Bencic and Ana Konjuh won two.

Obviously inspired by Barty, but the slams aren't everything. Good to see them breaking out on tour, and in most cases at a young age.

Counting the last 40 slams, years 2009-14 have someone who reached the Top 10. Technically, Mladenovic shouldn't count as I am using Barty's slam, but did to point out the success rate.

Then you have 2016-18, in which each year has a Top 100 entrant, like Swiatek and Anisimova.

The outlier so far is 2015, the only year in which none have broken through to the Top 100 yet. The highest ranking of all belonged to Sofya Zhuk at 116, but Dalma Galfi, Paula Badosa Gibert, and Tereza Mihalikova have underwhelmed.

But have no fear, a couple of years ago, the 2011 class stood out as non achievers, then Barty and Jabeur started putting up results.

Quiz Time!
In the last 10 years, how many French Open winners have that event as their only clay title of their career?

A.2
B.3
C.4
D.8






Answer!
(D)8 is wrong, but the number of winners this decade, as Serena and Maria won twice. Without a Nadal type-ie Henin or peak Maria, this tourney may stay wide open as there are double digit contenders here.

(A)2 is wrong, but is the amount of winners that have only reached 1 clay final.

(C)4 is the answer. As we recently mentioned that Li reached 5 clay finals, but only won one, while Ostapenko reached 2, Muguruza and Barty have this as their only final. Eventually that should change, but being that it has happened 3 of the last 4 years, don't be surprised if that trend continues.

Mon Jun 10, 11:07:00 AM EDT  
Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

Completely forgot about Li. Had Ostapenko & Muguruza to go with Barty. :(

Mon Jun 10, 04:42:00 PM EDT  

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