Thursday, January 30, 2020

AO.11 - The Party Crasher

Once more, Sofia Kenin did not *care* who was in her way.





=DAY 11 NOTES=
...on Thursday, as the Australian summer heat finally arrived quite fashionably late at this AO, the women's draw determined its singles finalists. Though the scorelines of the two semifinal contests were nearly identical, how both matches got to that point couldn't have been much more different.

...no matter how many now wish to denigrate and/or minimize what has become the sort of traditional immigrant stories that helped to build the nation's character for generations, similar success stories still persist in the U.S. Sofia Kenin's is one of them. Her family arrived from the former Soviet Union with a few hundred dollars in hand when she was an infant, following a dream across the Atlantic and soon seeking to make that of their daughter's come true. Today it did. Well, at least part of it, for Kenin's gritty, feisty, fight-to-the-end persona always seems to demand more. One more ball. One more point. One more game. One more win.

Against the world #1 playing in her home slam, 21-year old Kenin outfought, outgutted and outlasted Ash Barty, winning in straight sets despite having to climb out of multi-SP holes in both stanzas, denying the top seed the first spot in the AO women's final filled by an Aussie since 1980.



That said, even with such dramatics, the match wasn't exactly a showcase for how to play under pressure on a big stage. Both women, Barty less than a year after winning Roland Garros and Kenin in her first career major semifinal, were noticeably nervous throughout much of the match, with uncharacteristic misses and pulled-up shots characterizing most the match's play.

Still, even while both were operating at something less than an optimal level, things carried deep into the 1st set without either player having dropped serve. In fact, only Barty had had what was really a legitimate chance to break through the first half. Up 15/40 in game 6, she saw Kenin stave off three BP and hold for 3-3. At 5-5, Kenin took a love/30 lead on Barty as the Aussie's game took a tip at a key moment in the set, only to then commit back-to-back errors of her own. Barty's mistakes on two GP chances kept the game alive, then the #14 seed laced a forehand pass down the line to shut down GP #3. Finally, on her fourth GP, Barty used her most reliable shot in the set (her first serve) to fire an ace to take a 6-5 lead. At 30/30 a game later, Kenin's forehand winner ended a rally that saw Barty linger behind the baseline staring at the mark of a ball that *hadn't* been called out in the middle of the rally. Replay showed that Kenin's ball *had* landed beyond the line, and the missed call had prevented Barty from reaching SP. Instead the U.S. player held to force a tie-break.

The two saved their best 1st set play for what turned out to be a fourteen-point affair.

Kenin opened the TB with a lob winner to take a mini-break lead. But Barty got the break back and grabbed a 4-2 edge of her own. At 4-3, Barty's forehand flew out, but she responded with a rally-ending forehand and inside-out return winner off a Kenin second serve to reach double SP at 6-4. On the first, the Aussie netted her usually consistent backhand slice shot, then on SP #2 Kenin's wide bouncing return allowed her to immediately seize control of the point, which she ended with a forehand winner behind Barty as she scrambled to escape the Laver Arena sidelines, knotting the TB at 6-6. Barty couldn't lift a lob over Kenin at the net, and she the the Bannerette ended the point with a volley winner to reach reach SP for the first time. Barty's forehand return failed to clear the net, and Kenin won the TB 8-6. Winning the last four points, she'd grabbed the match lead despite never having reached BP on the Aussie's serve in the set. Turned out, she didn't need to.



In the 2nd set, Barty got an early break for a 2-1 lead, and remained tidy on serve throughout. She seemed well on her way to forcing a deciding 3rd, but then saw virtually her entire game let her down. Up 30/love, she again couldn't clear Kenin via a lob and lost another point that should have been hers. Meanwhile, suddenly her first serve became an issues, as she'd missed all but two in the game. Still, the Aussie again had two SP chances. Kenin saved the first with a drop shot and volley combination, then saw Barty fire a forehand out on the second. A big forehand return gave Kenin her first BP of the match. She squandered missing on a return, but a backhand passing shot gave her another chance. On her second BP, Kenin scrambled to get a ball back into the court, and Barty netted an easy volley, putting the set back on serve at 5-5. Kenin held for 6-5, forcing Barty into a win-or-else 12th game. Serving to stay in the match just moments after having been a point away from a 3rd set, Barty DF'd to put herself in a love/30 hold, having lost 11 of 12 points. Down 15/40, Barty's forehand winner saved Kenin's first MP, but the same groundstroke went wide on MP #2, giving Kenin a 7-6(6)/7-5 win that sends her into her maiden slam final.




Having saved two SP in the both the 1st and 2nd sets, Kenin is the youngest Australian Open finalist since 2008. She'll make her Top 10 debut after this slam, and could become the #1-ranked U.S. woman (climbing over Serena Williams) with a win.

One more ball. One more point. One more game. One more win.

...in the second semifinal, a battle of former Roland Garros and Wimbledon champions (as in they've *both* won *both*), the nervous tension that pervaded the previous match was nowhere to be seen when #4 Simona Halep and Garbine Muguruza hit the court. The winner would advance to the final and immediately be just two sets away winning a third major title, which would get them three-quarters of the way to a Career Slam.

And, as it turns out, the comeback is *real*.

As she's done so often at this AO, Muguruza proved in today's match to be an unrelenting competitor who continues to make the shell of a player she's resembled in recent seasons seem like a totally different individual altogether. But this isn't really a *new* Garbi, as it's clear now that this *is* the same player who won those two majors, seemed primed for more, and looked like she could beat *anyone* on *any* day if she was in her champion's frame of mind just a few years ago. She's just been, umm, "away." Well, now she's back. While her path through Halep to her fourth career slam final appearance didn't come via a straight line or direct route, she surely knew the way there.



While the first semi presented a case of two players seeking to find their game on this important day, Muguruza and Halep came out shots a-blazin'. In a match full of back-and-forth surges of momentum, it was just a case of which one's timing would prove to be more perfect.

In the 1st set, Halep held two BP in the second game. Though she's often dropped serve early in sets at this AO and still found ways to win them, Muguruza managed to hold this time. Saving two BP, Halep did the same three games later to maintain a slim 3-2 lead on the scoreboard. Up 15/40 on the Romanian's serve in game 7, Muguruza moved forward to put away a volley to go up 4-3, then swatted aside a BP a game later to hold for 5-3.

It was then that the two engaged is a sometimes-remarkable series of points streaks to finish out the set.

Halep held at love and turned things over to Muguruza, who served for the set. The Spaniard fell behind love/40. On a net cord ball, Muguruza short-armed her response as she seemed to spy Halep rushing forward from behind the baseline, causing the ball to fall short of clearing the net. Halep got the break for 5-5, having strung together eight straight points.

Halep held for 6-5 while losing just one additional point (via a DF), then went up love/30 on Muguruza's serve, having put away 14 of 15 points as the Spaniard's error totals suddenly spiked after she'd gotten close to taking the set. But she managed to break free of her mini-slump, saving two SP -- with an ace and by winning a long rally in which Halep tried in vain to force her to hit multiple "winners" -- and sending the set to a tie-break.

There, the streaks continued. Muguruza won three straight points, then Halep four, then Muguruza three to take a 6-4 lead. Halep saved both SP -- the second with a beautiful running forehand down the line that kissed the left stripe -- and put together another three-point surge to reach SP for a third time at 7-6. Muguruza saved it with a service winner, but a DF gave the Romanian a fourth attempt. Again, Muguruza battled and won a long, big-hitting (and loud, on both sides) rally when Halep's forehand went wide. At 8-8, Halep missed on a backhand and the Spaniard had her third SP. Muguruza's volley into the short deuce court was quickly responded to by Halep, who raced across the surface to reach the ball in front of the umpire's chair, seemingly in time to put it away with a winner. But she netted a crosscourt forehand and Muguruza won the TB 10-8. An angry Halep cracked her racket in response, garnering a code violation.

The 2nd set was again a winning example of a controlled and focused Muguruza playing with an eye on today and what it might lead to in the future, maybe even while simultaneously realizing what she's been missing in her forgettable recent past. What happened next may just keep that past where it belongs, too.

Halep fought off a BP in the second game, and the two exchanged breaks in games 3 and 4. The Romanian then took a 15/40 lead a game later and converted on her third BP chance to lead 3-2. After thwarting Muguruza on two BP opportunities a game later and holding for 4-2, even as she occasionally seemed to be forced to bend over at the waste in response to the 100-degree (F) late afternoon Melbourne heat, Halep seemed well on her way to sending things to a 3rd set. But the Spaniard didn't concede *anything*. She used several big first serves to hold for 4-3 and 5-4. In the tenth game of the set, with Halep serving to knot the match, the two battled fiercely in a seemingly endless string of long rallies. Finally, on her fourth BP of the game Muguruza struck back to tie the score at 5-5.

Picking up the (formerly) familiar scent of a slam final, Muguruza held for 6-5 and was just one game away from her first in two and a half years. Having used great offense *and* defense to climb back into the set, she was bouncing around on her toes and looked for all to see to be eager to accept whatever challenge Halep had left for her. As it turned out, Muguruza had more for *her*. Halep fell behind love/30 as the Spaniard's defense continued to shine. She raced to reach a short ball and her crosscourt forehand winner gave her double MP at 15/40. Halep saved the first with a deep corner shot off Muguruza's racket, but on the second she netted the Spaniard's big return to end the match. Muguruza's 7-6(8)/7-5 victory officially signals her "rebirth," and it arrives far earlier than even the most optimistic soul might have hoped when she installed Conchita Martinez as her coach after last season. Including Martinez herself.



While Halep comes up a match short of playing for something special, she emerges from January in fine form, back at #2 in the rankings, and with a season full of big titles within her reach, from Roland Garros to Wimbledon to Tokyo and, maybe, even a (longer) shot chance to pick up that third leg of a Career Slam in New York, where she's so far only reached one semifinal ('15).

Muguruza, though, suddenly finds herself right back on the crazy merry-go-round that is her headspinning (and sometimes headshaking) career. Has any player this side of Sveta Kuznetsova shown the ability to go from great highs to great lows as swiftly as her? She's now Spain's first AO women's finalist since 1998 (Martinez) and, since she was born in Caracus and still considers herself "half-Venezuelan," the first South American-born woman in the final since Brazil's Maria Bueno in 1965.

The last unseeded AO champ was Serena Williams in 2007, but now Muguruza will get the chance to change that vs. Kenin. Oh, Garbi. We knew she still had it in her. Somewhere. Thankfully, it looks like she does again, as well.

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...meanwhile, in the junior QF, three unseeded girls have reached the semis along with the #13 seed.

Poland's Weronika Baszek defeated #16 Wong Hong-yi Cody (HKG), and will next face German Alexandra Vecic, who added #12 Ane Mintegi del Olmo (ESP) to a list of upset victims that already included #1 Elsa Jacquemot and #15 Priska Madelyn Nugroho (INA). #13 Bai Zhuoxuan of China took out #8-seeded Russian Polina Kudermetova, and next up for her will be Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva of Andorra, who upset #2-seeded Bannerette Robin Montgomery.



...in the wheelchair semis, 1st Round Goliath-slayer Zhu Zhenzhen failed to follow up on her win over Diede de Groot, falling to the #1 seed's Dutch doubles partner Aniek Van Koot 1-6/6-0/6-4. The reigning Wimbledon champ, Van Koot's big forehand winner ended the match, and she let loose with a clenched fist and loud yell immediately after. She'll next see a familiar face in the final in #2-seeded Yui Kamiji, who defeated KG Montjane 6-3/7-5.

What with the '19 dominance at the majors of de Groot and Van Koot, last year was Kamiji's first since 2013 without winning a slam singles or doubles crown. This will be her third straight AO singles final, and her fifth in the last six years. Her only win came in 2017.

In the WC doubles, de Groot got the opportunity to extract some revenge on her conqueror Zhu, with Van Koot right by her side as the history-making Chinese player lined up with Marjolein Buis today. Buis/Zhu jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 1st set, likely causing de Groot to have a few unpleasant flashbacks to yesterday's match. They didn't last long, though, as the Dutch pair followed up their 2019 Grand Slam season by opening 2020 with a 6-3/6-3 victory. The match ends the AO career of Buis, the 2016 and '18 doubles champ in Melbourne who'll retire at season's end, while de Groot will next play in the final for a chance to win her eighth consecutive slam doubles crown (she's won five with Van Koot and two with Kamiji in the stretch).

They'll face nine-time slam doubles title-winning duo Kamiji & Jordanne Whiley, who defeated Sabine Ellerbrock & Montjane 6-1/6-4. The match ends Ellerbrook's career, as this AO was set to be the German's final event. She won the AO singles in 2014.

...in the Legends Doubles, Daniela Hantuchova & Martina Navratilova won their final round robin match to finish at 3-0. They'll advance to the final, where they'll play the winners of the final (tie-breaking) RR match between Jelena Dokic/Dinara Safina and Nicole Bradtke/Mary Joe Fernandez. Both duos are 1-1 thus far.




...IT'S ALWAYS SOMETHING FROM DAY 11:




...RANKING NEWS ON DAY 11:




...LIKE (ALMOST) ON DAY 11:

Add "unfairly" before "judge" and I think I'd be on board with that. In some instances (you surely know a few), one *must* be judged by reasonable individuals in order to be held accountable, either personally or otherwise.




...LIKE ON DAY 11:

Conchita Martinez IS HAVING A GOOD WEEK.




...LIKE ON DAY 11:





Well, Ash won't likely get her own catchy theme song now, as fellow indigenous champion Evonne Goolagong did all those years ago. But, hey, maybe next year.


And, for the record, this one doesn't count... and I think we can all be thankful for that.






=SINGLES FINAL=
#14 Sofia Kenin/USA vs. Garbine Muguruza/ESP

=DOUBLES FINAL=
#1 Hsieh/Strycova (TPE/CZE) vs. #2 Babos/Mladenovic (HUN/FRA)

=MIXED DOUBLES SF=
Mattek-Sands/J.Murray (USA/GBR) vs. (WC) Sharma/JP.Smith (AUS/AUS)
#3 Dabrowski/Kontinen (CAN/FIN) vs. #5 Krejcikova/Mektic (CZE/CRO)

=WHEELCHAIR SINGLES FINAL=
Aniek Van Koot/NED vs. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN

=WHEELCHAIR DOUBLES FINAL=
#1 de Groot/Van Koot (NED/NED) vs. Kamiji/Whiley (JPN/GBR)

=GIRLS SINGLES SF=
Alexandra Vecic/GER vs. Weronika Baszek/POL
#13 Bai Zhuoxuan/CHN vs. #9 Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva/AND

=GIRLS DOUBLES SF=
#4 Eala/Nugroho (PHI/INA) vs. Falkner/Mutavdzic (SLO/GBR)

=LEGENDS DOUBLES FINAL=
Hantuchova/Navratilova (SVK/USA) vs. x/x


















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@tofu_sausage copied me ??

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*AUSTRALIAN OPEN FINALS - ACTIVE*
8...Serena Williams (7-1)
4...Maria Sharapova (1-3)
2...Victoria Azarenka (2-0)
2...Kim Clijsters (1-1)
2...Venus Williams (0-2)
1...Angelique Kerber (1-0)
1...Naomi Osaka (1-0)
1...SOFIA KENIN (0-0)
1...GARBINE MUGURUZA (0-0)
1...Simona Halep (0-1)
1...Petra Kvitova (0-1)

*SLAM SINGLES FINALS - ACTIVE*
33 - Serena Williams, USA (23-10)
16 - Venus Williams, USA (7-9)
10 - Maria Sharapova, RUS (5-5)
8 - Kim Clijsters, BEL (4-4)
5 - Simona Halep, ROU (2-3)
4 - Angelique Kerber, GER (3-1)
4 - GARBINE MUGURUZA, ESP (2-1)
4 - Victoria Azarenka, BLR (2-2)
4 - Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS (2-2)
3 - Petra Kvitova, CZE (2-1)
2 - Naomi Osaka, JPN (2-0)
2 - Sloane Stephens, USA (1-1)
2 - Samantha Stosur, AUS (1-1)
2 - Vera Zvonareva, RUS (0-2)
1 - Ash Barty, AUS (1-0)
1 - Alona Ostapenko, LAT (1-0)
1 - Bianca Andreescu, CAN (1-0)
1 - SOFIA KENIN, USA (0-0)
1 - Genie Bouchard, CAN (0-1)
1 - Sara Errani, ITA (0-1)
1 - Madison Keys, USA (0-1)
1 - Sabine Lisicki, GER (0-1)
1 - Karolina Pliskova, CZE (0-1)
1 - Marketa Vondrousova, CZE (0-1)

*ACTIVE SINGLES PLAYERS - FIRST SLAM FINAL*
1997 U.S. Open - Venus Williams
1999 U.S. Open - Serena Williams (W)
2001 Roland Garros - Kim Clijsters
2004 Wimbledon - Maria Sharapova (W)
2004 U.S. Open - Svetlana Kuznetsova (W)
2010 Roland Garros - Samantha Stosur
2010 Wimbledon - Vera Zvonareva
2011 Wimbledon - Petra Kvitova (W)
2012 Australian Open - Victoria Azarenka (W)
2012 Roland Garros - Sara Errani
2013 Wimbledon - Sabine Lisicki
2014 Roland Garros - Simona Halep
2014 Wimbledon - Genie Bouchard
2015 Wimbledon - Garbine Muguruza
2016 Australian Open - Angelique Kerber (W)
2016 U.S. Open - Karolina Pliskova
2017 Roland Garros - Alona Ostapenko (W)
2017 U.S. Open - Sloane Stephens (W)
2017 U.S. Open - Madison Keys
2018 U.S. Open - Naomi Osaka (W)
2019 Roland Garros - Ash Barty (W)
2019 Roland Garros - Marketa Vondrousova
2019 U.S. Open - Bianca Andreescu (W)
2020 Australian Open - Sofia Kenin

*U.S. TOP 10 PLAYERS - by Top 10 debut year*
1975 Chris Evert
1975 Martina Navratilova (as TCH, later USA)
1975 Billie Jean King (also year-end #1 pre-computer rankings)
1975 Nancy Richey
1976 Rosie Casals
1977 Kathy May
1977 Kristien Shaw
1978 Tracy Austin
1980 Kathy Jordan
1980 Andrea Jaeger
1980 Pam Shriver
1981 Barbora Potter
1983 Zina Garrison
1984 Bonnie Gadusek
1984 Kathy Horvath
1984 Lisa Bonder
1986 Kathy Rinaldi
1988 Lori McNeil
1989 Stephanie Rehe
1989 Mary Joe Fernandez
1989 Monica Seles (as YUG, later USA)
1990 Jennifer Capriati
1994 Lindsay Davenport
1996 Chanda Rubin
1998 Venus Williams
1999 Serena Williams
2016 Madison Keys
2017 CoCo Vandeweghe
2018 Sloane Stephens
2020 Sofia Kenin

*FIRST-TIME SLAM CHAMPS AT AUSTRALIAN OPEN - OPEN ERA*
1977 Kerry Melville-Reid, AUS
1978 Chris O'Neil, AUS
1979 Barbara Jordan, USA
1980 Hana Mandlikova, CZE
1995 Mary Pierce, FRA
1997 Martina Hingis, SUI
2001 Jennifer Capriati, USA
2006 Amelie Mauresmo, FRA
2012 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
2016 Angelique Kerber, GER
2018 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN

*WC SLAM SINGLES FINALS - since 2013, post-Vergeer*
15 - YUI KAMIJI, JPN (6-8)
10 - Diede de Groot, NED (7-3)
10 - ANIEK VAN KOOT, NED (3-6)
6 - Jiske Griffioen, NED (4-2)
6 - Sabine Ellerbrock, GER (2-5)
1 - Marjolein Buis, NED (1-0)
1 - Jordanne Whiley, GBR (1-0)

*RECENT WHEELCHAIR SLAM CHAMPIONS*
[singles]
2017 AO: Yui Kamiji, JPN
2017 RG: Yui Kamiji, JPN
2017 WI: Diede de Groot, NED
2017 US: Yui Kamiji, JPN
2018 AO: Diede de Groot, NED
2018 RG: Yui Kamiji, JPN
2018 WI: Diede de Groot, NED
2018 US: Diede de Groot, NED
2019 AO: Diede de Groot, NED
2019 RG: Diede de Groot, NED
2019 WI: Aniek Van Koot, NED
2019 US: Diede de Groot, NED
[doubles]
2017 AO: Griffioen/Van Koot, NED/NED
2017 RG: Buis/Kamiji, JPN/NED
2017 WI: Kamiji/Whiley, JPN/GBR
2017 US: Buis/de Groot, NED/NED
2018 AO: Buis/Kamiji, NED/JPN
2018 AO: de Groot/Van Koot, NED/NED
2018 RG: de Groot/Kamiji, NED/JPN
2018 WI: de Groot/Kamiji, NED/JPN
2019 AO: de Groot/Van Koot, NED/NED
2019 RG: de Groot/Van Koot, NED/NED
2019 WI: de Groot/Van Koot, NED/NED
2019 US: de Groot/Van Koot, NED/NED

*SLAM MX TITLES - active*
5...Katarina Srebotnik, SLO
4...Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA
3...Latisha Chan, TPE
3...Sania Mirza, IND
3...Samantha Stosur, AUS
2...Victoria Azarenka, BLR
2...Gaby Dabrowski, CAN
2...Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
2...Serena Williams, USA
2...Venus Williams, USA
2...Vera Zvonareva, RUS
[all-time]
21 - Margaret Court
15 - Doris Hart
11 - Billie Jean King
10 - Martina Navratilova
10 - Margaret Osborne duPont
9 - Elizabeth Ryan
[Open era]
10 - Martina Navratilova
7 - Martina Hingis
7 - Billie Jean King
6 - Margaret Court
6 - Anne Smith
5 - Cara Black
5 - Lisa Raymond
5 - Katarina Srebotnik
5 - Helena Sukova
5 - Wendy Turnbull

*ALL-TIME MIXED CAREER SLAMS*
Cara Black
Margaret Court
Daniela Hantuchova
Doris Hart
Martina Hingis
Billie Jean King
Martina Navratilova
[won each slam in Open era]
Cara Black
Margaret Court
Daniela Hantuchova
Martina Hingis
Martina Navratilova
--
NOTE: The Open era began four months after King's final AO mixed title in 1968

*CAREER MIXED SLAMS - DUOS*
Margaret Court/Ken Fletcher
Doris Hart/Frank Sedgeman
[Open era]
Margaret Court/Mary Riessen (1975)
Martina Hingis/Leander Paes (2016)

*CAREER OVERALL SLAM TITLES - ACTIVE*
[singles/doubles/mixed]
39 - Serena Williams, USA (23-14-2)
23 - Venus Williams, USA (7-14-2)
9 - Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA (0-5-4)
7 - Samantha Stosur, AUS (1-3-3)
6 - Kim Clijsters, BEL (4-2-0)
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) [in WD final]
5 - Maria Sharapova, RUS (5-0-0)

*AO WOMEN'S DOUBLES CHAMPIONS - since 2009*
2009 Serena Williams / Venus Williams, USA/USA
2010 Serena Williams / Venus Williams, USA/USA
2011 Gisela Dulko / Flavia Pennetta, ARG/ITA
2012 Svetlana Kuznetsova / Vera Zvonareva, RUS/RUS
2013 Sara Errani / Roberta Vinci, ITA/ITA
2014 Sara Errani / Roberta Vinci, ITA/ITA
2015 Bethanie Mattek-Sands / Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2016 Martina Hingis / Sania Mirza, SUI/IND
2017 Bethanie Mattek-Sands / Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2018 Timea Babos / Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA
2019 Samantha Stosur / Zhang Shuai, AUS/CHN
2020 ?

*AO MIXED DOUBLES CHAMPIONS - since 2009*
2009 Sania Mirza & Mahesh Bhupathi, IND/IND
2010 Cara Black & Mahesh Bhupathi, ZIM/IND
2011 Katarina Srebotnik & Daniel Nestor, SLO/CAN
2012 Bethanie Mattek-Sands & Horia Tecau, USA/ROU
2013 Jarmila Gajdosova & Matthew Ebden, AUS/AUS
2014 Kristina Mladenovic & Daniel Nestor, FRA/CAN
2015 Martina Hingis & Leander Paes, SUI/IND
2016 Elena Vesnina & Bruno Soares, RUS/BRA
2017 Abigail Spears & Juan Sebastian Cabal, USA/COL
2018 Gaby Dabrowski & Mate Pavic, CAN/CRO
2019 Barbora Krejcikova & Rajeev Ram, CZE/USA
2020 ?


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TOP QUALIFIER: #31 Ann Li/USA
TOP EARLY ROUND (1r-2r): #8 Serena Williams/USA
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): Garbine Muguruza/ESP
TOP LATE ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3 - #5 Anna Kalinskaya/RUS def. Wang Xiyu/CHN 4-6/7-6(2)/6-2 (down 6-4/5-3, MP at 5-4)
TOP EARLY RD. MATCH (1r-2r): 2nd Rd. - Caroline Wozniacki/DEN def. #23 Dayana Yastremka/UKR 7-5/7-5 (double-break down in both sets, 5-1 in 1st; staves off retirement)
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): 3rd Rd. - #27 Wang Qiang/CHN def. #8 Serena Williams/USA 6-4/6-7(2)/7-5 (first first week HC slam loss since '06)
TOP LATE RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr./WC/Doub.): Nominee: WC QF - Zhu def. #1 de Groot 6-7(3)/6-3/7-5 (on 10th MP; first match by CHN in WC slam history)
=============================
FIRST VICTORY: Paula Badosa/ESP (def. Larsson/SWE)
FIRST SEED OUT: #32 Barbora Strycova/CZE (1st Rd. - lost to Cirstea/ROU)
FIRST SLAM MD WINS: Paula Badosa/ESP, Barbora Krejcikova/CZE, Ann Li/USA, Greet Minnen/BEL, Elena Rybakina/KAZ
UPSET QUEENS: Spain
REVELATION LADIES: Kazakhstan
NATION OF POOR SOULS: BLR (0-2 1st Rd., #11 Sabalanka highest seed out, Azarenka absent)
LAST QUALIFIERS STANDING: Harriet Dart/GBR, Nao Hibino/JPN, Barbora Krejcikova/CZE, Ann Li/USA, Caty McNally/USA, Greet Minnen/BEL (all 2nd Rd.)
LAST WILD CARDS STANDING: Patricia Hon/AUS and Arina Rodionova/AUS (both 2nd Rd.) [PR: CiCi Bellis/USA - 3rd Rd.]
LAST AUSSIE STANDING: Ash Barty (first Aussie in SF since '84)
Ms. OPPORTUNITY: Sofia Kenin/USA
IT (Arab): Ons Jabeur, TUN (first Arab in slam QF)
COMEBACK PLAYER: CiCi Bellis/USA
CRASH & BURN: #8 Serena Williams/USA (3r/Q.Wang - out of first week of HC slam for first time since 2006)
ZOMBIE QUEEN OF MELBOURNE: Coco Gauff (2nd Rd. - down 3-0 in 3rd vs. Cirstea/ROU)
KIMIKO VETERAN CUP: Nominees: Hsieh/Strycova, Mattek-Sands, Van Koot (WC)
LADY OF THE EVENING: Garbine Muguruza/ESP (announced return to form w/ dominating 3rd Rd. win over #5 Svitolina)
"G'DAY/GOOD ON YA, MATE" AWARD: Aces for Bushfire Relief program
DOUBLES STAR: Nominee: Babos/Mladenovic, WC-Jr. duos, Sharma, Krejcikova, Dabrowski
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx




All for Day 11. More tomorrow.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 6:25 AM 

3 Comments:

Blogger colt13 said...

Love the kids homemade Barty-Mite shirts.

Final probably is 70/30 Kenin. Almost like Andreescu, in which the US Open final was probably easier than Toronto, she's already beaten the country's favorite.

The fact that Muguruza is at 30% is a credit to her. After years starting the season poorly, she comes in without any tape on her legs. The movement is there. The shots are dialed in. She looks like one of the best players in the world.

It won't be enough. Kenin will probably use the same gameplan Barty would have, and eventually get her to wear herself out. Kenin in 2, but this should be a springboard for a special season for Muguruza.

One of the odd things about Muguruza's run? Think back to her first slam win, when she dropped the first set of the tournament to Schmiedlova, then won everything else? She dropped the first set here 0-6 to Shelby Rogers, the person she beat in the quarters back in 2016. She did also drop a set to Tomljanovic, but has not against the 4 seeds she has played.

Stat of the Day- 19- Out of 20 years in which a YEC participant from the prior season reached the Australian Open final.

And Kenin is the one who did it! Most years both participants reach as chalk works well at the start of the season. Some years, like when Henin came out of retirement, or Cibulkova reached the final, there were only one.

So you would guess that Serena would be involved. You would be right, but may get the wrong year. It was YEC 2016/AO 2017, as Serena skipped YEC, and #13 seed Venus was too low to play.

Thu Jan 30, 09:49:00 AM EST  
Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

I think I'd give a slight edge to Muguruza, if for nothing else because *that* Muguruza (you know the one) will feel the moment in the final and not squander it. Hard to believe she took out Halep in *straights* the way Simona played in that match. We'll see, I guess. The sets could be super tight, and just a few points might be the difference.

Aside from some semifinals (MX/Jr.), there are just the three doubles finals -- women's, wheelchair and girls -- today so it'll be a pretty short post tonight. Whew!

Thu Jan 30, 03:45:00 PM EST  
Blogger Diane said...

I give the edge to Muguruza, too, but if she goes off for a moment, Kenin—now that she knows what to do about a great player’s “off”—won’t hesitate to insert herself any way she can. I think it’s going to be a great match, though it’s hard to imagine anything being more high-quality than Muguruza-Halep was.

Thu Jan 30, 05:52:00 PM EST  

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