To HoF, or Not to HoF #1
Rather than talk about what would have been the crowning of perhaps the latest entrant in the future-slam-champ-by-way-of-Indian Wells club, as this year's winner would have followed in the big footsteps put down by recent winners Naomi Osaka (2018) and Bianca Andreescu (2019), this week's offering in "Tennis in the Time of Coronavirus" is the first of a nulti-part series that updates the "To HoF, or Not to HoF, That is the Question" post from a couple of years ago (which came after the original in '13) that sought to rank and categorize the past and present WTA players who had not *yet* been enshrined in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, but who surely would (or *could*) at some point down the line...
Since the original posting, three of the women listed (Li Na, Mary Pierce and Conchita Martinez, the latter in 2020) have finally been awarded their historic space in Newport. In the updated listings included in Part 1, I'll focus on the seemingly "open-and-shut" cases for those who'll surely follow them into "tennis immortality," and note how a few active players have essentially (IMHO) secured their originally-debatable future places in the Hall with their continued success over the last two-plus seasons.
In Part 2, I'll highlight those retired and active contenders who would *seem* to be in good standing, but for whom pro *or* con cases are far more evenly debatable. In Part 3, it'll be all about those still "on the cusp," including a few recent slam winners who may still need one or two big results to be added to their career resumes, as well as a few mid-career (thought)-contenders who haven't made the progress necessary since 2018 to maintain their upward trajectory toward Newport and have accordingly slipped *down* the charts.
Additionally, while the Hall has scooped up a few of the remaining dangling non-enshrinees from previous WTA playing generations (Martinez, most notably, as well as '18 enshrinee Helena Sukova) I'll also be adding to the list a few other long-retired possible honorees who've moved up a notch or two in the proverbial pecking order, and wrap up with a shorter list of the likely contenders from the men's side of the sport (though, let's be honest, the contenders aren't nearly as varied from the past twenty years since the ATP tour has so thoroughly been dominated by such a small circle of players).
So, what makes someone a "Hall of Famer?" Winning too many big titles to keep count, or contributing something perhaps a bit less tangible to the tennis landscape? Dominance, or consistency? Adoration, lionization or a respected reputation garnered from a career marked by competitiveness and success, or some notion created when all such things are mixed together to produce the public image of an individual, some who might even reach so high a status that they may be recognized by simply uttering their first name alone?
Yes. All of that.
While some individuals might be more readily acknowledged before others as "worthy" of inclusion within the hallowed halls of the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, is someone whose virtues must be listed and argued for somehow *less* of a Hall of Famer than any number of more easily recognized "all-time greats?" It's the sort of notion that has fueled arguments for years, regarding various sports and institutions.
But I'm not going to debate all that. I'm simply here to attempt to list, in some semblance of order, the women who are currently waiting in line to take their turn in the spotlight -- for some a fait accompli, for others long overdue -- by officially being honored as a Hall of Famer, remembered for decades thereafter and waiting to be discovered (or rediscovered) by current and/or future generations for all that they accomplished.
Of course, this list, as with the original, is confined to (mostly, with a few exceptions) recent eras. The careers of the included players here mostly began no earlier that at some point in the 1980s, most of whose careers I had some passing acquaintance with in something close to 'real time." Otherwise, it'd be like trying to argue who was the "greatest player ever" when I really didn't have much first-hand knowledge or memory or some of the individuals involved in the discussion other than some grainy film clips and accounts of the day. Of course, no one ever does *that*... well, wait. Of course they do.
That said, an athlete's collective, "raw numbers" for a career *do* matter, as sometimes they are the one thing about their time in the sport that is unchanging, evergreen and, rightly or wrongly, able to be weighed and argued for/against vs. those of others, especially the peers with whom they competed. Otherwise, the accomplishments of those past players might be overlooked by, if not completely "lost" to time.
To date, more than 250 people from 26 different nation-states have been inducted as official members of the Hall.
Here's a rundown of individuals who'll soon join them. Or maybe not.
ORANGE - retired 5-10 years (eligible for HOF)
RED - retired less than 5 years (not yet eligible in '20)
BLUE - more than 10 years past retirement
PURPLE - group entry/special class
Serena Williams - Do I really need to list the reasons? All right... 23 slams, just for starters, without even mentioning all the *other* records and cultural impact. End of discussion. Well, one other thing, major #24 to tie Margaret Court, considering recent and ongoing developments with the Australian Hall of Famer, would be the case of Serena doing a big favor for *all* of tennis. A 25th would almost be worth foregoing the five-year wait for enshrinement.
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Venus Williams - Before Serena, there was Venus. Actually, there might be Venus after Serena, too, come to think of it. Though she hasn't won a title in years, now her epic longevity (only Original Martina can view her career's length and not flinch) is at the heart of her continuing story.
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Esther Vergeer (retired 2013) - the Dutch great won't be the first wheelchair tennis athlete in the HoF, but she'll be the greatest. She may have been the most dominant athlete in any sport, anywhere, anytime. Ever. 2020 wasn't Vergeer's first year of eligibility, but she's still not yet inducted. Why? She won 470 straight singles matches to end her career, was ranked #1 from 1999 until her 2013 retirement, claimed 47 slam titles (or the equivalent of, as changes occurred as the sport grew during her career) -- and they didn't have a Wimbledon singles competition when she played -- as well as 23 Masters titles and seven Paralympic Gold medals. They're *all* records, and likely will be for a long time. The most recent WC athlete inducted was Monique Kalkman in 2017, twenty years after the three-time Gold winner's final match (after which she bestowed Vergeer, then a teenager she'd mentored over the course of that season, with one of her rackets, saying, "Now it's your turn."). The induction of Vergeer, recently diagnosed with breast cancer, should *not* have to wait two decades to become official.
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Maria Sharapova (retired 2020) - her Career Slam completing win in Paris in 2012 (she was to come back from shoulder surgery to win a major) sealed the deal, and during her time on tour she helped grow the sport as much as any of her contemporaries. Don't let her suspension -- with far too many mitigating "yeah, but..." facts attached to cause any reasonable judge to give her induction anything more than a momentary pause -- be anything other than the footnote to her career that it will even more progressively prove to be as the next few years go by. If she doesn't go in on the first ballot, one will be tempted to wonder whether the voters were tripped up by the fine print in an email that announced that players would no longer be eligible until *six* years after retirement. (Wink, wink.)
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Caroline Wozniacki (retired 2020) - while the Dane's place in Newport was probably already assured even before her 2018 Australian Open title run, Wozniacki's WTA Finals/Melbourne two-fer eliminated any possibility for any legitimate naysaying voices when it came to her Hall of Fame chops. Being 17th all-time in tour titles (30), and 9th in weeks (71) at #1 (including two year-end top rankings), along with her fan favorite status and good standing on nearly all fronts, now serve to provide depth and context to her HoF bio, not the framework and spine they would have constituted had she remained slam-less.
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Simona Halep - when I last did this list, Halep had become the first Roman woman to reach #1, but was still in search of her first major. Now she has two, and the HoF discussion that was waiting to start could now be viewed as a foregone conclusion. Through she's lost a number of big finals (including 3 slams and a WTAF), she's won seven high Premier crowns and her consistency in ranking in among the best in the sport's history. She's ended seasons in the Top 4 every year since 2014, and her (still active) 320+ week Top 10 streak is ninth all-time (and climbing) in WTA history.
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Angelique Kerber - so many of her results were in one super-season in 2016, but her Wimbledon win in '18 essentially assuring her spot in Newport. Kerber hasn't had the consistency of a Halep (after four Top 10 years, she yoyo-ed with 1-21-2-20 season-ending rankings) and is 0-7 in high Premier/WTAF/Olympic finals, but she's three-quarters of the way to a Career Slam, and the other twelve women who won exactly three different majors are already in the HoF. Other than the Williams sisters and Sharapova, the German is the only other woman to win as many as three different majors since Justine Henin's AO win in 2004.
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Virginia Ruano Pascual/Paola Suarez (retired 2012/2010) - at this point, it's easy to forget just how much this duo accomplished together. In retrospect, they should *already* have been inducted. In 2010, the doubles duo of Gigi Fernandez/Natasha Zvereva were honor as a combo entry after going 14-4 in slam finals together. Suarez & VRP reached fourteen major finals, winning eight. Individually, Suarez won 44 doubles titles, as well as Olympic Bronze, while Ruano Pascual won 43 (plus two additional slams w/ Anabel Medina Garrigues), a mixed major and a pair of Olympic Silvers. Both reached #1 in doubles.
Cara Black (retired 2015) and Liezel Huber (retired 2017) - I'll list Black and Huber separately, as the rough public comments that accompanied the break-up of their doubles partnership might preclude the notion of only seeing one in connection with the other. Though they *did* accomplish much together, there's enough to allow both women to stand on their own. Black was #1 for 163 weeks (3rd all-time) to Huber's 199 (2nd), but she won 60 titles to Huber's 53. A former junior champ (2 girls singles/3 girls doubles slams), Black won a tour-level singles title early in her career, and went on to win five slam doubles (4 w/ Huber, 1 w/ Stubbs) and five mixed slams (she's one of four women with a Career Mixed Slam in the Open era). Huber, too, won an additional slam title (w/ Raymond), two mixed majors, and was a contributing member to her adopted nation's (U.S.) Fed Cup efforts. Together, they added two WTAF titles, with Black winning another with Sania Mirza while Huber claimed one with Raymond. The only thing that might delay Huber's enshrinement might be that she wasn't particularly the most well-liked competitor amongst her peers. But should that matter?
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Sara Errani/Roberta Vinci (retired 2018) - starting with a Roland Garros win in 2012, over a two and a half year stretch they combined to win five slam titles (w/ 8 finals), finishing off a Career Doubles Slam at Wimbledon in 2014, with both reaching doubles #1. It might be enough to make them a "conventional" HoF choice at some point, with both having also reach slam *singles* finals (Errani '12 RG, Vinci '15 US) and climbed into the Top 7 with their solo efforts. Of course, there *is* another more "unconventional" option to get them a spot in Newport, as well. (But that'll come later.)
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Lisa Raymond (retired 2015; played in '19) - a former NCAA champion, Raymond reached #1 in doubles (winning 79 titles, six slams, four WTAF and five mixed majors) and #15 in singles, too, reaching two slam QF before eventually becoming a doubles specialist. Her 137 weeks as WD #1 are fourth all time behind Navratilova, Huber and Black. Having retired in 2015, Raymond played two doubles matches at the challenger level in '19 with player she's coaching (Allie Kiick), so she may have "reset" her eligibility period.
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Svetlana Kuznetsova - a two-time (RG/US) slam winner (and four-time finalist), Sveta was a Fed Cup stalwart during Russia's glory years of dominance who climbed as high as #2 in singles. A dual threat, she's added sixteen doubles titles, including two slams, to her seventeen singles crowns. Beloved by all, she's also the queen of historically long matches, having played in the longest women's singles matches in both slam *and* Fed Cup history. Even if her versatility didn't put her over the top, her FC history would. Her career might not *scream" "first-ballot Hall of Famer," but the Hall's new fan voting that gives an extra boost in the final tally might help along Sveta's cause -- and maybe *just* get her over the induction % threshold -- more than any other active player. Now, if the Russian were to put on one final slam title surge -- and with Kuznetsova, who's to say she won't when we least expect it? -- she'd easily climb from this category to the one above it.
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Petra Kvitova - she's never been #1 (though she's gotten within one match of doing so on multiple occasions), and her biggest success has come at just one of the majors (Wimbledon). But she's a MULTI-slam winner, *has* been ranked #2, has picked up 27 singles titles (and counting), Olympic Bronze and was the beastly heart and dominant soul of SIX (with maybe more to come) Czech Republic Fed Cup championship squads. Plus, she's now the author of a courageous comeback story after her life/career-threatening home invasion incident in '17, and everybody loves 'em some Petra. Still, another slam and *finally* reaching #1 would remove any notions that she's being quickly inducted into the Hall because of her beloved status rather than *solely* her tennis accomplishments. She nearly got both in the Australian Open final in '19. Hopefully she'll get another chance.
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Bethanie Mattek-Sands - BMS, while she's had some singles success, has made her mark as a doubles star despite a career filled with injuries. She's reached #1 and won 27 titles, including five slams (all with Lucie Safarova, with whom she swept the AO/RG titles in 2015 and '17). Mattek has also claimed four mixed majors, as well as Olympic Gold in the discipline. Her won't likely get her Career Doubles Slam *with* the now retired Safarova (unless the new Czech mother returns), but is missing just a Wimbledon WD crown to do it "on her own." A SW19 mixed title would give her a personal Career MX Slam, too. Add to that her big personality, sometimes-wild fashion sense and sure-to-continue tennis media presence after her playing days are over, and it's hard to see anyone *forgetting* Mattek anytime soon... though a case could be made that all *that* might overshadow her on-court feats, and lead to a longer wait for a call from Newport than she *should* have to endure.
Victoria Azarenka - is she still a given? No. Is her induction still highly likely? Yean, probably, but now less so than it was two years ago (and her standing had already slipped a bit by '18). Vika's injury history, long layoffs, and continuing off-court custody issues that have made her tennis career secondary and mostly-inconsequential when she *has* been able to play in recent years, making her career look more and more like a brilliant, short-lived comet shrieking across the sky than that of the generational great was once seemed destined to be.
Barring a significant (now) late-career comeback over the next few seasons (which she isn't even certain to attempt), the back half of her career will be forever tagged with something of a lingering whiff of "lost opportunity." Still, at her height, Azarenka was one of the few (of two, or maybe three, along with Venus and Henin) who were able to realistically threaten notions of Serena's on-court dominance over them (though she's still lost far most often than she won vs. Williams), won two slams (and reached two more finals), spent 51 weeks at #1, won a pair of mixed majors, two Olympic medals (1 MX Gold) and the "Sunshine Double" (IW/Miami in '16). That *should* be enough. Unlike, say, someone like Garbine Muguruza, Azarenka has enough "extra" on her career resume that her highlights don't *only* consist of her major title runs.
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Flavia Pennetta (retired 2015) - a belated addition to this list, though she'd retired by the time the last one was compiled. As the previous decade ended, a fuller appreciation of all that Pennetta accomplished during her *entire* career was gained in this corner. It was far more than *just* her '15 U.S. Open win and Fed Cup heroism. During last year's "Decade's Best" series, I concluded that "the Italian put together what has arguably become the most underappreciated great career in the sport since the turn of the century."
One of the grittiest competitors in the game, Pennetta won a little bit of pretty much everything, and a lot of some things, as she gradually built toward what would be a career crescendo at the 2015 U.S. Open, when she became the oldest first-time slam winner in the Open era (33) and the one who needed the most slam MD appearances (50) to finally get it done. A member of four Italian FC championship squads, in both 2009 and '10 when she finished off her nation's title runs with a clinching singles victory (in all, she was 25-5 in her FC career). She reached #1 in doubles, won a WD slam ('11 AO) and Tour Championships ('10), as well as four high Premier crowns. After overcoming 2012 wrist surgery, she hit her full stride in singles in her early thirties. Pennetta won the singles at Indian Wells in '14, and become one of the best U.S. Open players of the era (and a crowd favorite), participating in a number of hard-fought battles (see vs. Zvonareva '09 and Peng '11) while posting six QF+ runs over a seven-Open stretch, winning it all (vs. countrywoman Vinci in the first all-ITA major final) in '15 and then retired soon afterward.
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Sania Mirza - a few years ago she may have been something close to a "borderline" case, but even then she'd been a groundbreaking cultural icon in India, and was the first woman from the country to reach doubles #1. Her 42 titles are a good mark in her column, along with three mixed crowns. But that she didn't win her first doubles slam until 2015 (a decade into her career), during her brief-but-phenomenally-successful run with the already-enshrined Martina Hingis, is a bit of an eyebrow-raiser, though. Still, the partnership proved to be a tipping point as far as Mirza's HoF "worthiness" goes, as "Santina" won three majors in a span of just seven months. That Hingis found great success with Latisha Chan in her remaining post-Mirza time on tour, but Mirza has yet to do the same with another partner, is something of a demerit, though. Still, she should make it to Newport eventually. Having returned after over two years away while becoming a first-time mother, she immediately won a tour WD title in '20, and still has a chance to "lock-up" her spot in Newport if she can complete either a Career Doubles Slam (she needs RG) or Career Mixed Slam (she needs Wimbledon) -- or both? -- in her remaining playing days.
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*TOP PLAYER*
1.Sofia Kenin, USA
2.Hsieh Su-wei/Barbora Strycova, TPE/CZE
3.Simona Halep, ROU
4.Elena Rybakina, KAZ
5.Garbine Muguruza, ESP
6.Timea Babos/Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA
7.Serena Williams, USA
8.Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
9.Ash Barty, AUS
10.Karolina Pliskova, CZE
11.Kiki Bertens, NED
12.Ons Jabeur, TUN
13.Yui Kamiji, JPN (WC)
14.Heather Watson, GBR
15.Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley, JPN/GBR (WC)
HM-Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
*RISERS*
1.Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
2.Ash Barty, AUS
3.Ons Jabeur, TUN
4.Ekaterina Alexandrova, RUS
5.Wang Qiang, CHN
6.Jessica Pegula, USA
7.Jennifer Brady, USA
8.Elina Svitolina, UKR
9.Magda Linette, POL
10.Maria Sakkari, GRE
11.Alison Van Uytvanck, BEL
12.Ajla Tomljanovic, AUS
13.Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
14.Camila Giorgi, ITA
15.Misaki Doi, JPN
*SURPRISES*
1.Renata Zarazua, MEX
2.Leonie Kung, SUI
3.Zhu Zhenzhen, CHN (WC)
4.Anna-Lena Friedsam, GER
5.Storm Sanders, AUS
6.Arantxa Rus, NED
7.Jaqueline Cristian, ROU
8.Laura-Ioana Paar/Julia Wachczyk, ROU/GER
9.Zhu Lin, CHN
10.Greet Minnen, BEL
11.Martina Trevisan, ITA
12.Irina Bara, ROU
HM-Ulrikke Eikeri, NOR
*VETERANS*
1.Hsieh Su-wei/Barbora Strycova, TPE/CZE
2.Simona Halep, ROU
3.Serena Williams, USA
4.Karolina Pliskova, CZE
5.Kiki Bertens, NED
6.Heather Watson, GBR
7.Petra Kvitova, CZE
8.Petra Martic, CRO
9.Anastasia Rodionova, AUS
10.Kateryna Bondarenko, UKR
11.Sania Mirza, IND
12.Olga Govortsova, BLR
HM-Johanna Konta, GBR
*COMEBACKS*
1.Garbine Muguruza, ESP
2.Heather Watson, GBR
3.Anna-Lena Friedsam, GER
4.Alona Ostapenko, LAT
5.Oceane Dodin, FRA
6.CiCi Bellis, USA
7.Sania Mirza, IND
8.Olga Govortsova, BLR
9.Kateryna Bondarenko, UKR
10.Patricia Maria Tig, ROU
11.Christina McHale, USA
12.Zarina Diyas, KAZ
13.Monica Niculescu, ROU
14.Marketa Vondrousova, CZE
15.Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK
HM-Dasha Kasatkina, RUS
*FRESH FACES*
1.Elena Rybakina, KAZ
2.Leylah Fernandez, CAN
3.Marie Bouzkova, CZE
4.Leonie Kung, SUI
5.Coco Gauff, USA
6.Iga Swiatek, POL
7.Wang Xiyu, CHN
8.Veronika Kudermetova, RUS
9.Liudmila Samsonova, RUS
10.Coco Gauff/Caty McNally, USA/USA
11.Paula Badosa, ESP
12.Kaja Juvan, SLO
13.Ann Li, USA
14.Elisabetta Cocciaretto, ITA
15.Anastasia Potapova, RUS
16.Lizette Cabrera, AUS
17.Barbara Haas, AUT
18.Antonia Lottner, GER
19.Caty McNally, USA
20.Eva Lys, GER
HM-Clara Burel, FRA
*DOUBLES*
1.Hsieh Su-wei/Barbora Strycova, TPE/CZE
2.Timea Babos/Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA
3.Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
4.Barbora Krejcikova, CZE
5.Asia Muhammad/Taylor Townsend, USA/USA
6.Nicole Melichar/Xu Yifan, USA/CHN
7.Nadiia Kichenok/Sania Mirza, UKR/IND
8.Coco Gauff/Caty McNally, USA/USA
9.Desirae Krawczyk/Giuliana Olmos, USA/MEX
10.Kateryna Bondarenko/Sharon Fichman, UKR/CAN
11.Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara, JPN/JPN
12.Anastasia Rodionova/Storm Sanders, AUS/AUS
13.Alona Ostapenko, LAT
14.Gabriela Dabrowski, CAN
15.Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA
*JUNIORS*
1.Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, AND
2.Veronika Baszak, POL
3.Alexandra Vecic, GER
4.Bai Zhuoxuan, CHN
5.Polina Kudermetova, RUS
6.Robin Montgomery, USA
7.Diana Shnaider, RUS
8.Romana Cisovska, SVK
9.Elvina Kalieva, USA
10.Matilde Paoletti, ITA
11.Kristina Dmitruk, BLR
12.Aunchisa Chanta, THA
HM-Solana Sierra, ARG
*NCAA*
1.Ashley Lahey, USA (Pepperdine)
2.Estela Perez-Somarriba, ESP (Miami)
3.Alexa Graham, USA (North Carolina)
4.Anna Turati, ITA (Texas)
5.Sara Daavettila, USA (North Carolina)
*ITF*
1.Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
2.Olga Govortsova, BLR
3.Shelby Rogers, USA
4.Nadia Podoroska, ARG
5.Marta Kostyuk, UKR
6.Ingrid Gamarra Martins, BRA
7.Mayar Sherif, EGY
8.Aleksandra Krunic, SRB (WD)
9.Sandra Samir, EGY
10.Maddison Inglis, AUS
*WHEELCHAIR*
1.Yui Kamiji, JPN
2.Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley, JPN/GBR
3.Jordanne Whiley, GBR
4.Aniek Van Koot, NED
5.Zhu Zhenzhen, CHN
HM-Viktoriia Lvova, RUS
*DOWN*
1.Sloane Stephens, USA
2.Diede de Groot, NED (WC)
3.Venus Williams, USA
4.Naomi Osaka, JPN
5.Caroline Garcia, FRA
HM-Elise Mertens, BEL
*MOST IMPROVED*
1.Ons Jabeur, TUN
2.Leylah Fernandez, CAN
3.Jennifer Brady, USA
4.Jaqueline Cristian, ROU
5.Leonie Kung, SUI
6.Kaja Juvan, SLO
7.Hayley Carter/Luisa Stefani, USA/BRA
8.Caroline Dolehide/Maria Sanchez, USA/USA
9.Ann Li, USA
10.Paula Badosa, ESP
11.Priscilla Hon, AUS
12.Renata Zarazua, MEX
13.Lizette Cabrera, AUS
14.Usue Arconada, USA
15.Zhu Lin, CHN
HM-Storm Sanders, AUS
*COACH*
1.Conchita Martinez (Muguruza)
2.Stefano Vukov (Rybakina)
3.Alex Kenin (S.Kenin)
4.Michael Geserer (Brady)
5.Othmane Garma (Jabeur)
HM-Tom Hill (Sakkari) and Cori Gauff (Co.Gauff)
*PERFORMANCES*
1.Halep (Dubai)
2.Kenin (Australian Open)
3.Rybakina (reaches 4 finals)
4.S.Williams (Auckland)
5.Sabalenka (Doha)
[Doubles]
1.Hsieh/Strycova (Dubai/Doha)
2.Olmos (Acapulco, w/ Krawczyk)
3.Babos/Mladenovic (Australian Open)
4.Kamiji/Whiley (AO Wheelchair)
5.Mirza (Hobart, w/ N.Kichenok)
[Non-Title]
1.Zarazua (Acapulco SF)
2.Muguruza (Australian Open RU)
3.Jabeur (Australian Open QF)
4.Kung (Hua Hin RU)
5.Fernandez (Acapulco RU)
*MATCHES*
1.Dubai Final - Halep d. Rybakina 3-6/6-3/7-6(5)
2.Dubai 2nd Rd. - Halep d. Jabeur 1-6/6-2/7-6(7)
3.Acapulco Final - Watson d. Fernandez 6-3/6-7(8)/6-1
4.Brisbane SF - Ka.Pliskova d. Osaka 6-7(10)/7-6(3)/6-2
5.Australian SF - Muguruza d. Halep 7-6(8)/7-5
[Comebacks]
1.Acapulco 1st Rd. - Juvan def. V.Williams 4-6/7-6(4)/6-2 (7 MP)
2.Saint Petersburg QF - Rybakina def. Dodin 6-7(5)/7-5/6-2 (2 MP)
3.AO Girls 3rd Rd. - Jimenez Kasintseva def. Delai 3-6/7-6(7)/7-6(7) (3 MP)
4.Australian Open 2nd Rd. - Wozniacki def. Yastremska 7-5/7-5 (double-break down in both sets)
5.Acapulco 2nd Rd. - Zarazúa def. Volynets 4-6/7-5/6-0 (down 6-4/4-2)
[Upsets]
1.AO Wheelchair QF - Zhu def. de Groot 6-7(3)/6-3/7-5
2.Acapulco 1st Rd. - Zarazúa def. Stephens 6-4/6-2
3.Brisbane 1st Rd. - Samsonova def. Stephens 6-4/2-6/6-3
4.Adelaide 1st Rd. - Ar.Rodionova def. Stephens 6-2/6-2
5.Hobart 1st Rd. - Cabrera def. Garcia 4-6/6-4/6-2
*FED CUP*
[WG Qualifiers]
1.Aliaksandra Sasnovich, BLR
2.Alona Ostapenko, LAT (L)
3.Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP
4.Kiki Bertens, NED (L)
5.Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK
6.Jil Teichmann, SUI
7.Ekaterina Alexandrova, RUS
8.Sara Sorribes Tormo, ESP
9.Elise Mertens, BEL
10.Kirsten Flipkens, BEL
[Zones]
1.Dayana Yastremska, UKR
2.Aleksandra Krunic/Nina Stojanovic, SRB
3.Elisabetta Cocciaretto, ITA
4.Anett Kontaveit, EST (L)
5.Iga Swiatek, POL
=FED CUP CAPTAINS=
[WG Qualifiers]
1.Igor Andreev, RUS
2.Anabel Medina-Garrigues, ESP
3.Kathy Rinaldi, USA
4.Adrian Zguns, LAT (L)
5.Tatiana Poutchek, BLR
[Zones]
1.Tathiana Garbin, ITA
2.Tatjana Jecmenica, SRB
3.Agustin Moreno, MEX
4.Marina Erakovic, NZL
5.Mikhail Filima, UKR
??The Roland-Garros tournament will be played from 20th September to 4th October 2020.#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/eZhnSfAiQA
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) March 17, 2020
This is a proper statement & position relating to a future tournament, unlike our friends at Roland Garros. Let's take a breath, take our time, of course try and protect the 4 Majors as a priority, but come together to work together as a whole. ATP, WTA, ITF and Majors be all in. https://t.co/1v84z90wU6
— Darren Cahill (@darren_cahill) March 17, 2020
Joint Statement from WTA and ATP on suspension of the professional tennis season through June 7.
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) March 18, 2020
WTA and ATP rankings will be frozen until further notice. pic.twitter.com/tjtFzprxar
What does a 'frozen ranking' mean? 🤔@WTA_insider explained how the current suspension of the professional tennis season impacts the WTA Rankings --> https://t.co/eKeeulpWvY pic.twitter.com/KdLeLpYmid
— WTA (@WTA) March 19, 2020
We are so grateful for the bravery of our medical workers at these difficult times. I am committed to helping my country and have decided to donate medical equipment.
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) March 17, 2020
Please see my Facebook page for more info: https://t.co/D0Ko1lrtUp
Stay safe and look after each other ??????? pic.twitter.com/z8kbYWPUWO
In 2016, @vika7 became the 3?rd player in WTA history to win Indian Wells and Miami back-to-back! ??
— WTA (@WTA) March 17, 2020
Revisit her dramatic semifinal victory over Karolina Pliskova at the @BNPPARIBASOPEN --> https://t.co/rgKIGqyp32 pic.twitter.com/U0jYg1yuBD
We got stuck in Africa for a little bit, but finally on our way home! Going to self quarantine as soon as we get back! Stay safe everyone! #socialdistancing pic.twitter.com/6PWU4jtvmg
— Caroline Wozniacki (@CaroWozniacki) March 20, 2020
Get out!!! https://t.co/lVIbBfDwDx
— Daria Gavrilova (@Daria_gav) March 20, 2020
You got me out of my robe for a brief minute, @AngeKagame. Challenge accepted in an 80’s hair scrunchie ?? #SafeHandsChallenge #StayHome #please ???? Thanks for starting this initiative, @PaulKagame. We miss Rwanda so much ?????? pic.twitter.com/f1fjAGgYTw
— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) March 18, 2020
Regimented, war-like mentality, disciplined in practice.
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) March 17, 2020
Sound like @NickBollettieri is describing a drill sergeant?
Nope, just tennis princess @MariaSharapova. ??#Bollettieri'sStudentStories pic.twitter.com/jx6gd7Hg32
How fucking stupid are we? https://t.co/S0DNQ1NGtu
— andyroddick (@andyroddick) March 18, 2020
it has been so long since anyone asked americans to collectively sacrifice anything that they’ve forgotten how to do it
— b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) March 15, 2020
???????????? https://t.co/NgYzJmGJhA
— Rennae Stubbs (@rennaestubbs) March 17, 2020
2/26 “The 15 (people) within a couple of days is going to be down to close to 0”
— Ali Velshi (@AliVelshi) March 17, 2020
2/28 “One day, it’s like a miracle, it will disappear”
2/28 “This is their new hoax”
3/12 “It’s going to go away”
3/17 “I’ve felt that it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic”
2016 ?? https://t.co/5hYo8yanUN
— Max Weiss (@maxthegirl) March 18, 2020
This cat said, “ This quarantine shit ain’t cute, y’all being here during the day is fucking up my routine!” pic.twitter.com/mwKSICBh7C
— RISE UP WORKING CLASS (@AFlyBlackCommie) March 16, 2020
— mouhoubi lounes (@mouhoubi_lounes) March 16, 2020
I will post one Sopranos clip every night until we get sports back. pic.twitter.com/nSZA5sRT3e
— Funhouse (@BackAftaThis) March 13, 2020
Some good news for a change: Ana Konjuh, who has undergone four elbow surgeries since 2018, is closing in on a tour comeback according to Croatian media.https://t.co/oy76Rl94rA pic.twitter.com/jCSEGgGEvi
— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) March 17, 2020
An Israeli man walks his dog via drone (source: Facebook) pic.twitter.com/tLt5VVD94u
— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) March 19, 2020
Rush hour - 8am- at 16th & I St. NW. Washington,DC. pic.twitter.com/4fKans1Ept
— Doug Mills (@dougmillsnyt) March 16, 2020
And here's what Hanwha's intrasquad game looked like today. pic.twitter.com/9DitLXaF4O
— Dan Kurtz (@MyKBO) March 17, 2020
oh my god, the chicago aquarium closed due to coronavirus, so they let the penguins run around and check out the other exhibits. (staff was present.) pic.twitter.com/YGa8CugymE
— Evan McMurry (@evanmcmurry) March 16, 2020
My 8 year old daughter just yelled “Oh no the toilet is smoking!!” My wife and I ran to the bathroom to find this. It’s just day 4 of home school. pic.twitter.com/tG92vJPOtR
— Matthew Berry (@MatthewBerryTMR) March 19, 2020
Meanwhile in Denmark https://t.co/VL7HqmeEgM
— Antony Green (@AntonyGreenABC) March 19, 2020
so no one was gonna tell me that walruses can whistle i just had to find this out on my own? pic.twitter.com/Pn06ZSkddH
— 𝑒𝓂𝑜𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃𝒶𝓁 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓇𝓉𝓎 (@FrickinDelanie) March 19, 2020
This cat waving a passerby is the only thing you need to see today 😊pic.twitter.com/KhMxL4zLii
— Akki (@akkitwts) March 18, 2020
Final inesperado pic.twitter.com/ZKPcJ3Tcba
— Andrada ?? (@enchochadadeti) March 17, 2020
posted by Todd.Spiker @ 9:42 AM
17 Comments:
Todd, you're throwing me off! But better to be here than on twitter, which is giving us real time updates of crooks(politicians) in action.
Actually would have replaced Jabeur's AO run with Bouzkova in Monterrey.
Like the spotlight on coaches. A good one is sometimes like an offensive lineman- unnoticed because of the star.
Ruano Pascual/Suarez should have already been in.
The French Open moved to September. Though Pan Pacific, Guangzhou, Seoul, and Wuhan should have been consulted, it is the right move. Allie Kiick has been online taking about opportunity, and in a truncated season, slams and big events make more sense.
9 weeks- 2019 offseason
13 weeks- COVID-19 break
Monterrey finalist Bouzkova- 21k
Monterrey winner Svitolina- 43k
AO first round- 90k
AO first round-Q- 20k
In a season with less chances to play, bigger fields and purses are the way to go.
Stat of the Week- 5- Number of slams won by Pauline Betz.
9/11. Americans, and the world remember it for horrid reasons. But since we are trying to lighten the mood, let's take a look at the 4 major sports after that, and why we may see different names at the top when tennis returns.
Twelve days. That is all it took for the status quo in sports to be turned upside down, as the highest paid player in the NFL, Drew Bledsoe, went down with an injury in the Patriots first game played after 9/11. That led to Tom Brady's era, which officially ended today, as he signed with Tampa Bay.
Finals directly after 2001.
MLB- Diamondbacks d Yankees
NFL- Patriots d Rams
NBA- Lakers d Nets
NHL- Red Wings d Hurricanes
To recap, a 4th year expansion team(Diamondbacks) won their first title.
Former AFL Boston(now New England) Patriots win first NFL title.
Former ABA New York(then New Jersey, now Brooklyn) Nets reach first NBA final.
Former WHA Boston(then Hartford Whalers, now Carolina) Hurricanes reach first NHL final.
So what does this have to do with Betz? You see, HoF Betz won 3 of her 5 slams during WW2. And the first of those was when she was still playing college tennis at Rollins College. Then D-1, now D-2, they actually have had 3 slam winners including Shirley Fry Irvin and Dorothy Bundy. She took advantage of the US Championships being the only game in town. So is she really a Hall of Famer?
Her answer to that was 1946. The first year back with all 4 slams, she reached the finals of 3, skipping Australia. She Won Wimbledon, the reached the finals of the French Open. Wait, what?
That's right. in a return to normalcy, the schedule was not, leading the French Open to start on July 18th, 12 days after Wimbledon. Then went and won the US Championships for her 5th major.
The fact that she never won another major is one of the quirks of history. Sarah Palfrey's husband was exploring her pro opportunities, and mentioned that Betz would make a good opponent. Being mentioned in the letter got her banned from amateur play, leaving her with 5 slams and 8 finals in 10 slam entries.
Sadly, we never really got to know if she was a product of the times, or one of the best of all time.
Quiz Time!
Pauline Betz played a number of famous women. Which one of these is not in the Hall of Fame?
A.Sarah Palfrey Cooke
B.Louise Brough
C.Margaret Osborne DuPont
D.Doris Hart
Answer!
(B)Brough is wrong, having won 21 doubles titles, 8 mixed, and 6 singles. She is the one that split decades, as she won 3 singles slams in each the 40's and 50's.
(C)Osborne is also wrong. Brough's doubles partner, they are the reason Betz didn't win a doubles slam. Betz went 0-7 in finals, 0-6 vs Brough/Osborne. Osborne had the same number of singles and doubles slams as Brough, but won 10 mixed. 5 of her 6 singles titles were in the 40's.
(D)Hart is also wrong. Like the others so far, she won 6 singles titles, though 5 of her 6 were in the 50's. she also won 14 doubles titles, which stands out when she was Betz's partner for 6 of her 7 losses. She is the only one of the 4 to have played in the Open Era.
Not a misprint. After retiring in 1955, once the Open Era came, she played mixed doubles at 2 slams, 1968 Wimbledon and 1969 USO. She won a match.
That leaves (A)Palfrey, who only won 2 slams in singles, which means that this is a trick question, as she is also in due to her doubles play. She won 11 slams, 9 of them in the 30's.
It's hard for me to imagine Wozniacki's getting into the HOF without having one the AO. Are you basing that on her no. 1 status? It's especially jarring when I compare her with say, Kuznetsova, who has 2 singles majors, 2 doubles majors, and 3 Fed Cup championships.
Yeah, just trying to keep some form of "normalcy" in abnormal times, but I *did* post a little earlier this week. However many of these posts I end up doing, I'll probably finalize them on a Friday-or-Saturday schedule. I've got ideas that will take things into May (so far), I think.
I went with the historic nature of Jabuer's run, I guess (and that it was the highlight of her multiple "non-title" performances in the mix).
I hadn't realized the Bledsoe/Brady switch happened in the first post-9/11 game. It's a *really* odd coincidence that the Pats/Bucs switch happens now, of all times.
Still upset about that D-backs win (and they came back against the previously untouchable Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the 9th in Game 7, too). Luis Gonzalez...grrr.
So, essentially, the Nats (former Expos) winning their first World Series, the Blues their first Stanley Cup, and Virginia its first Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament (plus the Chiefs winning their first Super Bowl in 50 years) did things in reverse.
I seriously have no recollection of the Nets ever making the NBA Finals in my "viewable lifetime." But they made it there in *both* 2002 and 2003.
Wow, I'd never heard that story with Betz and the letter. Almost puts some of WADA's actions to shame. *Almost.* (And *some*.)
D-
I think her numbers are good enough (aside from her other intangibles) that she would have, but it would have taken a while without the AO title.
The two #1 seasons, run of ranking consistency (more Top 10 seasons than Kuznetsova, who hasn't had one since '09), weeks at #1 (71, while Sveta never got there), (now) 30 titles (Li, for example, only had 9, and Kuznetsova 18) and large # of wins in big non-slam events (1 WTAF and 6 PM/P5) would have been hard to totally set aside. Also, though Sveta's career is longer, they're virtually equal in Top 10 wins, too.
But, let's be honest, her popularity (which will likely also come into play w/ Kuznetsova... which is good since her biggest career moments are now quite a bit in the past) with so many people would have given her an extra boost even though a legit argument could have been made against her if she hadn't won a slam. The Melbourne win closed a whole lot of major (no pun intended) loopholes she'd left open before '18.
An interesting case study about what the fate might have been for a slam-less Wozniacki could end up being Dementieva, who was also slam-less and reached a slam final (& won Olympic Gold), but her career otherwise wouldn't equal Wozniacki's. Like the Dane, she was long considered "the best active player not to have won a major."
* - Sveta just one Top 10 season *since* 2009. ;)
Okay, I get that. (Still trying to figure out what those "intangibles are, though :D)
(I know you'll raise your eyebrow at *one* of these.) ;)
Basically what I said later, her popularity and "star" persona outside the sport (she's probably one of the handful of players aside from the Williams sisters and Sharapova who are recognizable to a large number of non-tennis fans), that she's at least perceived by most -- esp. sponsors and fans -- as being one of the friendliest players, won the Diamond Aces award multiple times (for promoting the sport) and, really, rose from a region/nation that hadn't produced any players really close to having had her level of accomplishment (not to the level of someone like Li, as far as opening new doors, but still noteworthy).
Bringing my eyebrow down as I type :).
I remember when there was no way you could get in if you had won fewer than two majors. My, how the times have changed. I do have some respect for Wozniacki's athleticism, and she "should" have won more majors. And I even understand the star power, though I wish I didn't.
I just flashed on the time in Charleston when a member of the media chewed her out because she wouldn't stay for her own press conference. It's the only I can recall someone actually calling her out,
Heehee.
I think, on both tours, the huge number of wins by Serena and the three top men (I mean, other than Murray and Wawrinka, how many of their contemporaries will have anything close to what would have used to be anything remotely close to adequately-worthy HoF credentials over the last 15 years?), has almost forced at least a temporary change in the "unwritten rules of order."
But, of course, *all* sports Hall of Fames have somewhat become "Hall of the Very Good" copies of one another. Otherwise, they'd hardly ever induct anyone anymore, I guess. :/
Golf may have had it right all along, with (even active) players being automatically inducted once they reach a known accomplishment threshold, and certain parameters being necessary for inclusion. Fewer arguments about worthiness, but a cleaner process.
Colt is changing his name to Delta Boeing to be eligible for a bailout.
Been enjoying the back and forth over potential HoF members, and I think what has been said about other sports, especially football and baseball are relevant here.
Whomever is on Serena's first year is going to get overlooked. And Wozniacki retires the same year as Sharapova, so I assume Maria pulls her votes in the beginning.
C... err, I mean DB-
;)
At least they unpinned Sharapova's retirement announcement Friday afternoon. Small victories.
Even in golf, there's a bit of a wobble (though I support it). Lorena Ochoa--who would have most likely ended her career as one of the most winning champions in history--instead, ended her career abruptly as a very young woman. (She reported that she had said, from the beginning, that she wouldn't be around long, but I guess no one believed her or took her seriously.) Technically, she is not eligible for the HOF, but there's a workaround that will get her in.
Ah, well, that's good.
Something I didn't realize: the Hall recently set up an "automatic inclusion" process (at least for nominations).
From the site:
*Automatic Inclusion*
A Player Category candidate will bypass Enshrinee Nominating Committee review and shall be automatically included on the ballot in the candidate’s first year of eligibility if the candidate satisfies any of the following criteria:
=Singles Players=
...Won at least three major singles titles and was World Number 1 for at least 13 total weeks; or
...Won at least five major singles titles
=Doubles Players=
...Won at least 12 major doubles titles and was World Number 1 for at least 52 total weeks; or
...Won at least 15 major doubles titles
Also, those changes included eliminating the "Master Player" category, which was for players who'd been retired 20+ years, and said such players wouldn't be eligible for the remaining "Player" (less than 20 years retired) category, either. Unless they get in as a Contributor, does this mean that such players have *no* avenue to be inducted now? I haven't seen where an additional process was created (ala the "Senior Committee" in other sports' Hall of Fames). Considering that would now include players who played as recently as *1999*, that seems especially shortsighted.
Just a few years ago, a player from the 1930's was inducted, and Helena Sukova had been retired 20 years when she went in in 2018.
Additionally, when these changes occurred, the Wheelchair and Contributor categories were set up to only be voted on every four years. The Contributor class will in included on the 2021 ballot, but the Wheelchair won't be again until 2023, which would maybe explain why Vergeer isn't yet in. But still, with her 2013 retirement, five-year wait and seeming WC candidates' inclusion on the 2019 ballot (four years before '23. so...), how was she overlooked last year?
Not only should Vergeer have been included last year, it seems crazy to me to restrict wheelchair players to every four years (not sure I like restricting contributors, either).
If anyone on Earth should be included, it's Esther.
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