Sunday, February 07, 2021

Wk.2- Wombatty for Barty

Welcome to 2021, Ash Barty.










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*WEEK 2 CHAMPIONS*
MELBOURNE (Yarra Valley), AUSTRALIA (WTA 500/Hardcourt Outdoor)
S: Ash Barty/AUS def. Garbine Muguruza/ESP 7-6(3)/6-4
D: Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara (JPN/JPN) d. Anna Kalinskaya/Viktoria Kuzmova (RUS/SVK) 6-3/6-4
MELBOURNE (Gippsland), AUSTRALIA (WTA 500/Hardcourt Outdoor)
S: Elise Mertens/BEL def. Kaia Kanepi/EST 6-4/6-1
D: Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova (CZE/CZE) d. Latisha Chan/Chan Hao-ching (TPE/TPE) 6-3/7-6(4)
MELBOURNE (Grampians), AUSTRALIA (WTA 500/Hardcourt Outdoor)
S: [Cancelled] Anett Kontaveit/EST = Ann Li/USA


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PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Ash Barty/AUS
...Barty still hasn't played a match outside of Australia since last February, but she re-joined the tour in top form in Melbourne, taking the Yarra Valley event with four wins -- including victories over Ana Bogdan, Marie Bouzkova, Shelby Rogers and Garbine Muguruza in the final, along with a SF walkover from Serena Williams -- to improve her combined mark to 16-2 dating back to her title run last Januayr in Adelaide. It's a stretch that has seen the world #1, who held onto her spot due to the stretched-out pandemic ranking system, put up W-SF-SF-W results in her last four events.

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RISERS: Elise Mertens/BEL and Ekaterina Alexandrova/RUS
...a former AO semifinalist (2018), Mertens knows about winning Down Under. Helped along by a SF walkover from Naomi Osaka, the Waffle picked up her sixth career WTA crown in the Gippsland event, posting victories over Caroline Garcia, Elina Svitolina (Top 10 win #8) and Kaia Kanepi while dropping just one set all week. After having staged an eleventh hour surge to finish '20 in the Top 20 (at #20), Mertens thus leapfrogs the likes of Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina, Madison Keys and Petra Martic to reach #16, her highest ranking in nearly two years (#14 in March '19). This was also her first singles title runs since February of that year in Qatar.



After having lost in a 3rd set TB to Elina Svitolina in Abu Dhabi, Alexandrova bounced back -- big time -- with her SF run in the Gippsland event. After rallying from a set back to defeat Anna Karolina Schmiedlova in three in her opening match, the Hordette knotched superior wins over Iga Swiatek and Simona Halep in back-to-back fashion before falling to opponent-killing Estonian Kaia Kanepi.

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SURPRISES: Yui Kamiji/Momoko Ohtani, JPN/JPN
...the rise of Japanese wheelchair star Momoko Ohtani (def. Diede de Groot in '20 RG semis, and now at a career high #7 in the WC rankings) continues to prove to be a boon for world #2 Kamiji. While Kamiji has teamed with Brit Jordanne Whiley to great success in majors, she's lacked the high-level countrywoman partner for international events such as the Paralymics. That's over now.

In perhaps a preview of this year's Paralympics doubles competition in Tokyo (well, you know, if...), the Japanese duo defeated de Groot & Aniek Van Koot in the semis of the Victorian Open (10-8 MTB) and then handled KJ Montjane/Lucy Shuker 6-2/6-3 in the final to take the crown.

Never a previous factor in Paralympic doubles, Kamiji may now be the Gold medal favorite alongside Ohtani, and she'll surely relish the chance to get de Groot on home hard courts in singles, too. The all-Japanese team is set to face de Groot/Van Koot again this week in their opening match in the Melbourne WC Open, and could face off again a week after that in the AO.

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VETERANS: Kaia Kanepi/EST and Garbine Muguruza/ESP
...in an event that saw a big winning streak stopped, #1 seed Simona Halep ousted easily in the QF, RG champ Iga Swiatek lose in straight sets for the first time since September, and #2 seed Naomi Osaka voluntarily skip her SF (a one-day COVID pause after a hotel employee tested positive had pushed the final back to Sunday) it was 35-year old Kanepi who was arguably the star of the week at the Gippsland tournament.



After rallying from 6-1/5-3 down against Astra Sharma, Kanepi ended Aryna Sabalenka's 15-match winning streak, threw some cold water on Dasha Kasatkina's good '21 start (3-1 out of the gate) and then took down Iga/Simo conqueror Ekaterina Alexandrova to reach her ninth career WTA singles final, her first in more than seven and a half years (a win in Brussels in May '13). The Estonian fell to 4-5 in tour-level finals with her 4 & 1 loss to Elise Mertens, but now heads into the AO with more upset possibilities on her mind. She'll open with Anastasija Sevastova, then could face defending champ Sofia Kenin.

Kanepi jumps from #94 to #65 with this result. It's her highest ranking since 2018.

Meanwhile, Muguruza is rounding into fine form just in time for her follow up attempt to defend her '20 AO finalist run (or maybe go one better?). The Spaniard dropped just ten total games through four matches en route to the Yarra Valley final, knocking off Alison Van Uytvanck, Anastasia Pavlychenkova, Sofia Kenin (6-2/6-2 in a '20 AO final "redo") and Marketa Vondrosova (6-1/6-0). Muguruza fell 7-6/6-4 to top seed Ash Barty in her 13th career final (7-6).

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COMEBACK: Katie Boulter/GBR
...Boulter's comeback from the back injury that kept her out a good chunk of the '19 season (after that Fed Cup rumble vs. Kazakhstan in April of that year) is getter farther in the 24-year old's rearview mirror. The Brit had reached a career high (#82) in the February prior to the injury, but fell as far as #441 last season as she toiled (when she could) mostly on the challenger level. After going 5-3 late in '19, she was 13-5 in ITF/125 tournaments in '20, reaching one $15K final while going 1-3 in tour-level events.

Saying she's currently in the best physical condition of her career, Boulter's results this week gave tangible evidence of the truth in her words as she followed up a 1st Round win in the Gippsland event over Anna Kalinskaya with a comeback victory over Coco Gauff, who had a MP and served for the win at 6-3/5-4 before seeing her advantage crumble. Boulter, ranked #371, won 3-6/7-5/6-2 as the Bannerette earned just one point in the final three games of the 2nd set, then DF'd three times in the final game of the match. A round later, Boulter took the opening set against Naomi Osaka before eventually falling in three.

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FRESH FACE: Ann Li/USA
...the 20-year old Li was tapped as a potential mover-and-shaker in '21, and her performance in her season debut did nothing to disabuse such notions. In the Gippsland event, the Bannerette put together the first tour-level final semifinal *and* final runs of her career, notching wins over Veronika Kudermetova, Sorana Cirstea and Jennifer Brady along the way.



With the final cancelled due to the tournament's mid-week delay, Li and (non-opponent) Anett Kontaveit share the runner-up honors for the week. Li, 24-9 on all levels since the start of last year, jumps from #99 to a new career high of #69.

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DOWN: Kristina Mladenovic/FRA and Bianca Andreescu/CAN??
...pre-slam injuries issues are always a sticky wicket, and with no lead-up to this AO -- and then *three* events taking place less than a week prior to Day 1 -- they potentially are an even bigger, more confusing fly in the ointment heading into 2021's first major.

In the Yarra Valley event in Melbourne, Mladenovic dropped her opening match to Jessica Pegula, then pulled out of her doubles partnership with Timea Babos soon afterward due to injury. Any sort of injury dealing a blow to Mladenovic's singles prospects in the Australian Open are (well, almost) inconsequential, as she's lost her last four MD matches in the event, is just 4-7 in *all* slams the last two years and hasn't advanced past the 2nd Round in the last eight. But in doubles, well, she and Babos are the defending AO champs, winners of the title twice in the last three years (finalists in *all* three), and have claimed four majors since the start of '18.

With this singles loss, Mladenovic has lost four straight tour matches (starting with her collapse vs. Varvara Gracheva at the U.S. Open and subsequent quarantine in NYC), and last won multiple MD matches in a tour-level event in October 2019 in Moscow, a stretch of futility that has now lasted twelve tournaments. She was 1-1 in a December $100K, as well, retiring from a 2nd Round match in Dubai.

NOTE: Mladenovic has pulled out of AO doubles.

Meanwhile, the Grampians Melbourne event was *supposed* to feature the (finally!) return of Andreescu.



Until it wasn't, that is.



The Canadian, who missed all of '20 after her '19 WTAF knee injury, *then* a foot injury during rehab and the pandemic restrictions that prevented her from fully getting the work required to return in the Restart, ultimately pulled out of the event the day before the start of play. And that was after coach Sylvain Bruneau, had tested positive for COVID-19 after coming into Australia on one of *those* flights.

Needless to say, one won't be able to *truly* believe that Andreescu will return at the AO until, well, she actually steps onto a court. It *looks* good, at least. For now.

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ITF PLAYER: Yuliya Hatouka/BLR
...the 20-year old may not be the Belarusian you're looking for, but she may be one to keep an eye on.



Hatouka has toiled in (mostly) obscurity over the past few years, but her win in this week's $15K in Shymkent, KAZ gives her eight challenger crowns since the start of '18 (including an "upper tier" total of three during last season's abbreviated schedule). The #2 seed, she won this week without dropping a set, defeating Russian Anastasia Tikhonova 7-5/6-2 in the final in her season debut. Hatouka has put together a 46-10 mark since the start of 2020.
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JUNIOR STARS: Linda Fruhvirtova/CZE and Oksana Selekhmeteva/RUS
...both teenagers stepped up to claim their first pro singles titles this week.

15-year old Fruhvirtova swept the singles and doubles titles in Monastir, TUN to "finally" claim her maiden titles in both disciplines. The Czech had been 0-2 in two previous ITF singles finals, both coming since December. This week, she defeated Pastry Manon Arcangioli 7-6(5)/7-5 to complete her week without having dropped a set. She won the doubles alongside Hordette Maria Timofeeva.



In Manacor, ESP the 18-year old Selekhmeteva didn't drop a set en route to her $15K title (her first in singles, after grabbing four in WD since September). She posted victories of Alexandra Eala (QF), Yvonne Cavalle-Reimers (SF) and Suzan Lamens in the final. In 2019, Selekmeteva reached the U.S. Open girls semis after knocking off Emma Navarro, Elsa Jacquemot and Katrina Scott, then pushing eventual champ Maria Camila Osorio Serrano to three sets.

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DOUBLES: Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara (JPN/JPN) and Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova (CZE/CZE)
...Aoyama/Shibahara have been an under-the-radar WD force since last 2019. Their Yarra Valley title is their fifth in that time span, including two in a row to start this season. The pair did it the hard way, winning 10-7 (Gauff/McNally) and 13-11 (Melichar/Schuurs) MTB en route to the final, where they recorded a 6-3/6-4 win over Anna Kalinskaya/Viktoria Kuzmova.



In the Gippsland event, Krejcikova & Siniakova returned to the spotlight with their first title together since last January (Shenzhen), winning a pair of MTB (Aiava/Sharma 10-8, Siegemund Zvonareva 10-6) before ousting Buzarnescu/Cornet (SF) and then the Chan sisters in the final. The Czech duo, who won three junior slams in '13, are now 6-4 in WTA finals, including three slam finals (w/ RG & U.S. wins in '18).



In singles, Krejcikova continued her solo surge, reaching the QF with an upset win over Elena Rybakina.
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WHEELCHAIR: Diede de Groot/NED
...de Groot's 2020 season, even while she claimed U.S. Open singles and RG doubles honors, was something of a mess. Between her service troubles, stunning losses on big stages, and the pandemic break, she didn't record her first win until September and suffered shocking singles SF upsets at the hands of Zhu Zhenzhen (AO) and Momoko Ohtani (RG). She's gotten things off to a rolling start in '21, though.

The Dutch #1 claimed the Victorian Open title with a victory in the final over world #2 Yui Kamiji, winning 6-1/7-5 to improve her mark in their career head-to-head to 18-14. She won their only '20 meeting, as well, in the U.S. Open final. Against her top rival, de Groot has now won seven straight, including going 16-3 in the last nineteen. She 15-7 in their meetings in singles finals, 15-2 in the last seventeen.
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1. Melb Yarra Valley Final - Ash Barty def. Garbine Muguruza
...7-6(3)/6-4. Barty has now reached singles finals in Australia for four years running, improving her mark to 2-2 with her win over '20 AO finalist Muguruza. If things fall correctly, they could meet again in Melbourne in about two weeks to decide another championship.
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2. Melb Grampians 2nd Rd. - Victoria Azarenka def. Yulia Putintseva
...6-4/1-6 [11-9]. After getting ready off the court with a new podcast, Azarenka made her '21 in-match debut an exciting one, saving two MP in the MTB vs. Putintseva after falling behind 5-1, 8-6 and 9-7. She'd already come back from 0-4 to claim the 1st set. Putintseva, of course, performed the usual art of racket abuse and huffing-and-puffing after having squandered her leads (the display seemed to have amused Vika), while Azarenka pulled out of the late-starting event soon afterward with the AO looming around the corner.

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3. Melb Gippsland Final - Elise Mertens def. Kaia Kanepi
...6-4/6-1. Though it didn't turn out as good as it *might* have, this week turned out to be Estonian tennis' shining (near) glory, with two singles finalists in a week for the first time. In her first final in over seven and a half years, Kanepi's remarkable run ended in straights. Meanwhile..

Melb Yarra Valley SF - Anett Kontaveit def. Maria Sakkari
...2-6/6-3 [11-9]. Kontaveit, with the final already having been cancelled due to the week's one-day COVID delay, saved two MP in the MTB to defeat Sakkari and reach her seventh tour-level final. She's still won just one title, as she and Ann Li will "share" the runners-up honors.

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4. Melb Yarra Valley 3rd Rd. - Nadia Podoroska def. Petra Kvitova
...5-7/6-1/7-6(7). Further proof that the Argentine is even *better* than some might even remember from her SF run in Paris, and a factor on surfaces other than clay, too. Podoroska's second Top 10 win (Svitolina/RG) came with a comeback from 5-2 down in the deciding TB. She ultimately fell in a MTB -- instituted across the board in all WTA matches for the week after a one-day, mid-week COVID delay in order to fastforward the tournament -- a round later to Marketa Vondrousova in the QF.

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5. Melb Gippsland 3rd Rd. - Irina-Camelia Begu def. Johanna Konta
...4-6/7-6(10)/7-6(4). The actual time of this one (see below) seemed to be in doubt on game day -- I saw it listed as 3:23, 3:36 and, finally, a seemingly official 3:32 -- but their was no dispute that it's the longest WTA match of '21 so far. Konta held two MP in the 2nd set, only to see Begu steal it on her own eighth SP to force a 3rd. The Romanian finally took the match in a TB on her ninth MP.

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6.Melb Gippsland 1st Rd. - Kaia Kanepi def. Astra Sharma 1-6/7-5/6-2
Melb Gippsland 2nd Rd. - Kaia Kanepi def. Aryna Sabalenka 6-1/2-6/6-1
...Kanepi's final run began with a comeback from 6-1/5-3 down vs. the Aussie, followed up by her ending of Sabalenka's 15-match winning streak on her sixth MP to earn her twelfth career Top 10 win.

Hmmm, does this effectively end Sabalenka's great momentum, or relieve the overwhelming pressure that would have been on her shoulders had she gone into the AO on, say, a 20-match, four-title rampage?
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7. Melb Gippsland 1st Rd. - Coco Gauff def. Jil Teichmann 6-3/6-7(6)/7-6(5)
Melb Gippsland 2nd Rd. - Katie Boulter def. Coco Gauff 3-6/7-5/6-2
...the soar-and-slip nature of Gauff's past year of play continued in Melbourne, as the Bannerette scrambled to win in 2:45 over Teichmann after having squandered a 4-2 lead in the 2nd and 4-1 edge in the 3rd. A round later, she led Boulter 6-4/5-4 and held a MP, only to win just one point in the final three games of the 2nd set, then DF three times in the final game of the match.

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8. Melb Yarra Valley 3rd Rd. - Sofia Kenin def. Jessica Pegula
...5-7/7-5/6-2. Before falling to fellow '20 AO finalist Muguruza a round later, reigning AO champ Kenin flashed her problem solving skills by battling back from 7-5/4-1 down against Pegula to drop her countrywoman to 0-6 in her career vs. the Top 10.
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9. Mel Yarra Valley 3rd Rd. - Marketa Vondrousova def. Vera Zvonareva
...7-6(4)/6-7(4)/6-4. The Czech, who cramped in the 3rd, survives a three-hour fight against the veteran Russian, escaping after Zvonareva served for the 1st set. Vondrousova won a 3rd set MTB in the QF over Podoroska, but then finally hit a wall (named Garbi?) in the SF when she won just one game in a straight sets loss.
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10. Melb Grampians 1st Rd. - Leylah Fernandez def. Sloane Stephens
...6-3/6-1. Stephens' family has been hit hard by COVID, as she's lost both her aunt and grandmother to the pandemic, then she was forced to quarantine herself after arriving in Melbourne on one of the infected planes. Things didn't get any better on the court. Personal grief aside, the '17 U.S. open champ has been sliding for a while now. She was just 4-11 in '20, and you wonder how much longer she's going to continue to go down this path without some major decision-making coming due.
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11. Melb Gippsland 3rd Rd. - Ekaterina Alexandrova def. Iga Swiatek
...6-4/6-2. A sign of Iga growing pains, or just an expected speed bump in her maiden event (her first since winning RG) while playing with a new racket? The Pole had rallied from a set down in her previous match to defeat Kaja Juvan, winning 11 of the final 12 games.

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12. Melb Yarra Valley 1st Rd. - Elisabetta Cocciaretto def. Zhu Lin
...0-6/6-3/7-5. The Italian dropped the 1st at love in just :22, then charged back from 5-2 down in the 3rd, saving a MP, to get her lone win of the week.
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13. Melb Gippsland 3rd Rd. - Elina Svitolina def. Alona Ostapenko
...6-7(4)/6-3/6-2. A promising start for Ostapenko, in which she rallied from 0-3 in the TB to take the 1st on her fourth SP, or a disappointing one as she won just five additional games?
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14. Melb Gippsland QF - Ekaterina Alexandrova def. Simona Halep
...6-2/6-1. The Russian's second consecutive win over the Romanian, and one that allowed Halep some additional rest before AO play.

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15. Melb Yarra Valley QF - Garbine Muguruza def. Sofia Kenin
...6-2/6-2. A rematch in Melbourne of last year's AO final. If only...



They're on opposite ends of *this* year's AO draw, as well. I'm just sayin'.
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HM- $15K Shymkent KAZ Final - Weronika Baszak/Anastasia Tikhonova def. Daria Mishina/Noel Saidenova
...6-2/3-6 [10-6]. Within a week of the one year anniversary of her appearance in last season's AO girls singles final, Poland's 18-year old Baszak picks up her first pro title.
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1. Melb Yarra Valley 3rd Rd. - Danielle Collins def. Karolina Pliskova
...7-6(5)/7-6(3). 2-2 in '21 with Sascha Bajin, with her other loss coming to #292-ranked Anastasia Gasanova last month, makes me wonder if my over/under of Wimbledon for the end of the Pliskova/Bajin relationship might have been a bit optimistic.

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2. Melb Yarra Valley 3rd Rd. - Serena Williams def. Tsvetana Pironkova
...6-1/6-4. Serena moves to 6-0 in her career head-to-head vs. Pironkova (Venus is 1-3), after having last year defeated the Bulgarian in the U.S. Open QF and then giving her a walkover at RG.
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3. Melb Yarra Valley Final - Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova def. Latisha Chan/Chan Halo-ching
...6-3/7-6(4). In their first event since last February, the Chan sisters won an 11-9 MTB in the SF over Blikova/Kudermetova to reach their 22nd tour-level final as a pair, their first since Tokyo in October '19. They failed to get title #15, and remain eight behind the all-time WTA sisters title mark (held by the Williams sisters, naturally) of 22.
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HM- Melb Gippsland SF - Elise Mertens walkover Naomi Osaka
...thus, Osaka's "undefeated" run of 14 matches continues, but her unofficial "streak" heading into the AO is now a stretches that also includes a pair of walkovers.
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=MELBOURNE=





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**MOST WTA FINALS, 2018-21**
12 - 4/4/3/1 = Aryna Sabalenka (9-3)
12 - 6/3/3/0 = Simona Halep (7-5)
11 - 3/6/1/1 = ASH BARTY (8-3)
10 - 5/4/1/0 = Petra Kvitova (7-3)
10 - 3/5/2/0 = Karolina Pliskova (7-3)
10 - 4/5/1/0 = Kiki Bertens (6-4)
8 - 3/3/2/0 = Naomi Osaka (5-2+L)
7 - 0/4/3/0 = Sofia Kenin (5-2)
7 - 3/1/2/1 = ELISE MERTENS (5-2)
7 - 4/1/2/0 = Elina Svitolina (6-1)
7 - 0/2/5/0 = Elena Rybakina (2-5)

**2019-21 WTA HARD COURT TITLES**
7 - Aryna Sabalenka (3/3/1)
4 - ASH BARTY (2/1/1)
4 - Sofia Kenin (2/2/0)
4 - Naomi Osaka (3/1/0)
3 - Bianca Andreescu (3/0/0)
3 - Karolina Pliskova (2/1/0)

**WTA DOUBLES TITLES - 2019-21**
8 - Hsieh Su-wei (4/4/0)
8 - Barbora Strycova (4/4/0)
6 - SHUKO AOYAMA (3/1/2)
5 - Timea Babos (3/2/0)
5 - Nicole Melichar (3/2/0)
5 - Kristina Mladenovic (3/2/0)
5 - ENA SHIBAHARA (2/1/2)
5 - KATERINA SINIAKOVA (3/1/1)
4 - Chan Hao-ching (4/0/0)
4 - Latisha Chan (4/0/0)
4 - BARBORA KRECJIKOVA (2/1/1)
4 - Elise Mertens (3/1/0)
4 - Kveta Peschke (3/1/0)
4 - Aryna Sabalenka (3/1/0)

**WTA DOUBLES FINALS - DUOS, 2020-21**
5 - 5/0...Hsieh/Strycova (4-1)
3 - 1/2...AOYAMA/SHIBAHARA (3-0)
3 - 2/1...Carter/Stefani (1-2)
3 - 3/0...Melichar/Xu (1-2)

*de Groot vs. Kamiji*
2021 Victorian WC Open Final - DE GROOT 6-1/7-5
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2020 US Open Final - DE GROOT 6-3/6-3
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2019 NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters Final - DE GROOT 6-2/6-3
2019 US Open USTA WC Chsp. Final - DE GROOT 6-4/4-6/6-3
2019 US Open Final - DE GROOT 4-6/6-1/6-4
2019 British Open SF - DE GROOT 6-2/6-2
2019 Roland Garros Final - DE GROOT 6-1/6-0
2019 World Team Cup Final - KAMIJI 3-6/6-2/6-1
2019 Japan Open Final - DE GROOT 6-3/7-6(8)
2019 Australian Open Final - DE GROOT 6-0/6-2
2019 Melbourne Open Final - KAMIJI 3-6/7-5/7-6(11) - saved 5 MP
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2018 NED Wheelchair Tennis Masters Final - DE GROOT 6-3/7-5
2018 US Open Final - DE GROOT 6-2/6-3
2018 British Open WC Tennis Chsps Final - DE GROOT 6-2/3-6/3-6
2018 BNP Paribas Open de France Final - DE GROOT 7-5/6-4
2018 Roland Garros Final - KAMIJI 2-6/6-0/6-2
2018 Australian Open Final - DE GROOT 7-6(6)/6-4
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2017 NEC Wheelchair Tennis Masters Final - DE GROOT 7-5/6-4
2017 Open d'Amiens Hauts de France Final - DE GROOT 1-6/7-5/6-3
2017 US Open Final - KAMIJI 7-5/6-2
2017 US Open USTA WC Chsps Final - KAMIJI 5-7/6-3/7-6(12)
2017 British Open WC Tennis Chsps Final - KAMIJI 6-4/6-3
2017 BNP Paribas Open de France SF - KAMIJI 6-4/6-3
2017 Japan Open Final - KAMIJI 6-2/6-2
2017 Melbourne Wheelchair Tennis Open SF - KAMIJI 6-3/6-4
2017 Apia Int'l Sydney WC Tennis Open SF - DE GROOT 7-5/7-6(5)
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2016 Paralympic Games Bronze - KAMIJI 6-3/6-3
2016 BNP Paribas Open de France Final - KAMIJI 6-3/7-6(4)
2016 Toyota Open Int'l de L'ile de Re SF - DE GROOT 4-6/7-5/1-0 ret.
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2015 Sardinia Open QF - KAMIJI 6-1/6-1
2015 BNP Paribas Open de France QF - KAMIJI 6-2/6-4
2014 Swiss Open Starling Hotel Geneva 1st Rd. - KAMIJI 6-1/6-2
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de Groot leads 18-14 (16-3 last 19); 15-7 in singles F (15-2 last 17)






**RECENT WOMEN'S SLAM WINNERS**
2018 AO: Caroline Wozniacki, DEN*
2018 RG: Simona Halep, ROU*
2018 WI: Angelique Kerber, GER
2018 US: Naomi Osaka, JPN*
2019 AO: Naomi Osaka, JPN
2019 RG: Ash Barty, AUS*
2019 WI: Simona Halep, ROU (2)
2019 US: Bianca Andreescu, CAN*
2020 AO: Sofia Kenin, USA*
2020 US: Naomi Osaka, JPN (3)
2020 RG: Iga Swiatek, POL*
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* - first-time slam champ

**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 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 (W)
2020 Roland Garros - Iga Swiatek (W)

**ACTIVE SINGLES PLAYERS - WON IN FIRST SLAM FINAL**
1999 U.S. Open - Serena Williams
2004 Wimbledon - Maria Sharapova
2011 Wimbledon - Petra Kvitova
2012 Australian Open - Victoria Azarenka
2016 Australian Open - Angelique Kerber
2017 Roland Garros - Alona Ostapenko
2017 U.S. Open - Sloane Stephens
2018 U.S. Open - Naomi Osaka
2019 Roland Garros - Ash Barty
2019 U.S. Open - Bianca Andreescu
2020 Australian Open - Sofia Kenin
2020 Roland Garros - Iga Swiatek

**RECENT AUSTRALIAN OPEN SINGLES CHAMPIONS**
2010 Serena Williams, USA
2011 Kim Clijsters, BEL
2012 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
2013 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
2014 Li Na, CHN
2015 Serena Williams, USA
2016 Angelique Kerber, GER
2017 Serena Williams, USA
2018 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
2019 Naomi Osaka, JPN
2020 Sofia Kenin, USA

**AUSTRALIAN OPEN TOP SEEDS - since 2010**
2010 Serena Williams, USA (W)
2011 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN (SF)
2012 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN (QF)
2013 Victoria Azarenka, BLR (W)
2014 Serena Williams, USA (4th)
2015 Serena Williams, USA (W)
2016 Serena Williams, USA (RU)
2017 Angelique Kerber, GER (1st)
2018 Simona Halep, ROU (RU)
2019 Simona Halep, ROU (4th)
2020 Ash Barty, AUS (SF)
2021 Ash Barty, AUS

**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
2020 Sofia Kenin, USA

**AUSTRALIAN OPEN FINALS - ACTIVE**
8...Serena Williams (7-1
2...Victoria Azarenka (2-0)
2...Kim Clijsters (1-1)
2...Venus Williams (0-2)
1...Sofia Kenin (1-0)
1...Angelique Kerber (1-0)
1...Naomi Osaka (1-0)
1...Simona Halep (0-1)
1...Petra Kvitova (0-1)
1...Garbine Muguruza (0-1)

**RECENT AUSTRALIAN OPEN SEMIFINALISTS**
2016: Kerber (W), S.Williams (RU), A.Radwanska/Konta
2017: S.Williams (W), V.Williams (RU), Lucic-B./Vandeweghe
2018: Wozniacki (W), Halep (RU); Mertens/Kerber
2019: Osaka (W), Kvitova (RU); Collins/Ka.Pliskova
2020: Kenin (W), Muguruza (RU); Barty/Halep

**LOW-SEEDED AO CHAMPIONS - OPEN ERA**
Unseeded - 1978 Chris O'Neil, AUS
Unseeded - 2007 Serena Williams, USA
#14 - 2020 Sofia Kenin, USA
#12 - 2001 Jennifer Capriati, USA
#7 - 2005 Serena Williams, USA
#7 - 2016 Angelique Kerber, GER
#5 - 1979 Barbara Jordan, USA
#5 - 2008 Maria Sharapova, RUS
#4 - 1995 Mary Pierce. FRA
#4 - 1997 Martina Hingis, SUI
#4 - 2014 Li Na, CHN
#4 - 2019 Naomi Osaka, JPN

**LOWEST-SEEDED WOMEN IN AO SF, since 2010**
Unseeded - 2010 Zheng Jie, CHN
Unseeded - 2015 Madison Keys, USA
Unseeded - 2016 Johanna Konta, GBR
Unseeded - 2017 Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, CRO
Unseeded - 2017 CoCo Vandeweghe, USA
Unseeded - 2018 Elise Bertens, BEL
Unseeded - 2019 Danielle Collins, USA
Unseeded - 2020 Garbine Muguruza, ESP (RU)
Wild Card - 2010 Justine Henin, BEL (RU)
#30 - 2014 Genie Bouchard, CAN
#29 - 2013 Sloane Stephens, USA
#21 - 2018 Angelique Kerber, GER
#20 - 2014 Dominika Cibulkova, SVK (RU)
#16 - 2010 Li Na, CHN
#14 - 2020 Sofia Kenin, USA (W)
#13 - 2017 Venus Williams, USA (RU)
#11 - 2012 Kim Clijsters, BEL
#10 - 2015 Ekaterina Makarova, RUS

**RECENT AUSTRALIAN WOMEN IN AO ROUND OF 16**
[since 7-round event in '87]
1987 QF - Elizabeth Smylie
1987 4th Rd. - Janine Tremelling
1987 4th Rd. - Wendy Turnbull
1988 QF - Hana Mandlikova
1988 QF - Anne Minter
1989 4th Rd. - Nicole Provis
1990 4th Rd. - Rachel McQuillan
1991 4th Rd. - Rachel McQuillan
1993 4th Rd. - Nicole Provis
2003 4th Rd. - Nicole Pratt
2004 4th Rd. - Alicia Molik
2005 QF - Alicia Molik
2006 4th Rd. - Samantha Stosur
2008 4th Rd. - Casey Dellacqua
2009 QF - Jelena Dokic
2010 4th Rd. - Samantha Stosur
2015 4th Rd. - Casey Dellacqua
2016 4th Rd. - Dasha Gavrilova
2017 4th Rd. - Dasha Gavrilova
2019 QF - Ash Barty
2020 SF - Ash Barty
--
MOST RECENT WINNER: 1978 Chris O'Neil
MOST RECENT FINALIST: 1980 Wendy Turnbull
MOST RECENT SF: 1984 Wendy Turnbull, 2020 Ash Barty
MOST RECENT #1 SEED: 2020-21 Ash Barty

**AUSSIES IN AO SF+ - Open era**
1969 Margaret Court (W), Kerry Melville (SF)
1970 Margaret Court (W), Kerry Melville (RU), Karen Krantzcke (SF)
1971 Margaret Court (W), Evonne Goolagong (RU), Lesley Hunt (SF)
1972 Evonne Goolagong (RU), Helen Gourlay (SF), Kerry Harris (SF)
1973 Margaret Court (W), Evonne Goolagong (RU), Kerry Melville (SF)
1974 Evonne Goolagong (W), Kerry Melville (SF)
1975 Evonne Goolagong (W)
1976 Evonne Goolagong (W), Helen Gourlay (SF)
1977a Kerry Reid (W), Dianne Fromholtz (RU), Helen Gourlay (SF), Karen Krantzcke (SF)
1977b Evonne Goolagong (W), Helen Gourlay (RU), Kerry Reid (SF)
1978 Chris O'Neil (W), Diane Evers (SF), Christine Matison (SF)
1979 Mary Sawyer (SF)
1980 Wendy Turnbull (RU)
1981 Wendy Turnbull (SF)
1982-83 - none
1984 Wendy Turnbull (SF)
1985-19 - none
2020 Ash Barty (SF)

**AO WOMEN'S DOUBLES CHAMPIONS - since 2010**
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 Timea Babos / Kristina Mladenovic, HUN/FRA

**AO MIXED DOUBLES CHAMPIONS - since 2010**
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 Barbora Krejcikova & Nikola Mektic, CZE/CRO

**AO WHEELCHAIR CHAMPIONS**
2002 WC Classic 8's at AO: Esther Vergeer, NED
2003 WC Classic 8's at AO: Esther Vergeer, NED
2004 WC Classic 8's at AO: Esther Vergeer, NED
2005 WC Classic 8's at AO: Mie Yaosa, JPN
2006 WC Classic 8's at AO: Esther Vergeer, NED
2007 Esther Vergeer, NED
2008 Esther Vergeer, NED
2009 Esther Vergeer, NED
2010 Korie Homan, NED
2011 Esther Vergeer, NED
2012 Esther Vergeer, NED
2013 Aniek van Koot, NED
2014 Sabine Ellerbrock, GER
2015 Jiske Griffioen, NED
2016 Jiske Griffioen, NED
2017 Yui Kamiji, JPN
2018 Diede de Groot, NED
2019 Diede de Groot, NED
2020 Yui Kamiji, JPN
[doubles]
2004 WC Classic 8's at AO: Maaike Smit/Esther Vergeer, NED/NED
2005 WC Classic 8's at AO: Florence Gravellier/Maaike Smit, FRA/NED
2006 WC Classic 8's at AO: Jiske Griffioen/Esther Vergeer, NED/NED
2007 Jiske Griffioen/Esther Vergeer, NED/NED
2008 Jiske Griffioen/Esther Vergeer, NED/NED
2009 Korie Homan/Esther Vergeer, NED/NED
2010 Florence Gravellier/Aniek van Koot, FRA/NED
2011 Esther Vergeer/Sharon Walraven, NED/NED
2012 Esther Vergeer/Sharon Walraven, NED/NED
2013 Jiske Griffioen/Aniek van Koot, NED/NED
2014 Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley, JPN/GBR
2015 Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley, JPN/GBR
2016 Marjolein Buis/Yui Kamiji, NED/JPN
2017 Jiske Griffioen/Aniek van Koot, NED/NED
2018 Marjolein Buis/Yui Kamiji, NED/JPN
2019 Diede de Groot/Aniek Van Koot, NED/NED
2020 Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley, JPN/GBR

**RECENT WC SLAM SINGLES FINALS**
2018 AO - #2 Diede de Groot/NED def. #1 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2018 RG - #1 Yui Kamiji/JPN def. #2 Diede de Groot/NED
2018 WI - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. Aniek Van Koot/NED
2018 US - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2019 AO - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2019 RG - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2019 WI - Aniek Van Koot/NED def. #1 Diede de Groot/NED
2019 US - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2020 AO - #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN def. Aniek Van Koot/NED
2020 US - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2020 RG - #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN def. Momoko Ohtani/JPN

**SLAM TITLES AFTER AGE 30**
10..Serena Williams, USA (age 30-35)*
3...Martina Navratilova, USA (age 30-33)
3...Margaret Court, AUS (age 30-31)
2...Billie Jean King, USA (age 30 & 31)
2...Chris Evert, USA (age 30 & 31)
1...Flavia Pennetta, ITA (age 33)
1...Virginia Wade. GBR (age 31)
1...Ann Haydon Jones, GBR (age 30)
1...Angelique Kerber, GER (age 30)*
--
*-active

**OLDEST WOMEN'S SINGLES SLAM CHAMPIONS - OPEN ERA**
Serena Williams (35y/125) - 2017 Australian
Serena Williams (34/283) - 2016 Wimbledon
Serena Williams (33/285) - 2015 Wimbledon
Martina Navratilova (33/263) - 1990 Wimbledon
Serena Williams (33/254) - 2015 Roland Garros
Flavia Pennetta (33/201) - 2015 U.S. Open
Serena Williams (33/127) - 2015 Australian

**OLDEST WOMEN'S SINGLES SLAM FINALISTS**
Serena Williams (37,347d) - lost '19 US to Andreescu
Serena Williams (37,291d) - lost '19 WI to Halep
Martina Navratilova (37y,258d) — lost '94 WI to C.Martinez
Venus Williams (37,28d) - lost '17 WI to Muguruza
Serena Williams (36/347) - lost '18 US to Osaka
Serena Williams (36/291) - lost '18 WI to Kerber
Venus Williams (36/226) — lost '17 AO to S.Williams
Serena Williams (35/125) — '17 AO, def. V.Williams

**OLDEST FIRST-TIME SLAM CHAMPS**
33y,199d - Flavia Pennetta, 2015 U.S. Open
29y,346d - Francesca Schiavone, 2010 Roland Garros
29y,275d - Jana Novotna, 1998 Wimbledon
29y,154d - Kerry Melville-Reid, 1977 Australian Open
29y,98d - Li Na, 2011 Roland Garros
28y,277d - Marion Bartoli, 2013 Wimbledon
28y,12d - Angelique Kerber, 2016 Australian Open

**MOST SLAMS BEFORE FIRST TITLE**
49 - Flavia Pennetta (2015 U.S. Open)
47 - Marion Bartoli (2013 Wimbledon)
45 - Jana Novotna (1998 Wimbledon)
43 - Caroline Wozniacki (2018 Australian Open)
39 - Francesca Schiavone (2010 Roland Garros)
34 - Samantha Stosur (2011 U.S. Open)
33 - Angelique Kerber (2016 Australian Open)
32 - Simona Halep (2018 Roland Garros)
32 - Amelie Mauresmo (2006 Australian Open)

**RECENT FIRST-TIME SLAM CHAMPS AND RESULT AT NEXT MAJOR**
2010 Francesca Schiavone (RG): Wimbledon 1st
2011 Li Na (RG): Wimbledon 2nd
2011 Petra Kvitova (WI): U.S. 1st
2011 Samantha Stosur (US): Australian 1st
2012 Victoria Azarenka (AO): Roland Garros 4th
2013 Marion Bartoli (WI): DNP/retired
2015 Flavia Pennetta (US): DNP/retired
2016 Angelique Kerber (AO): Roland Garros 1st
2016 Garbine Muguruza (RG): Wimbledon 2nd
2017 Alona Ostapenko (RG): Wimbledon QF
2017 Sloane Stephens (US): Australian 1st
2018 Caroline Wozniacki (AO): Roland Garros 4th
2018 Simona Halep (RG): Wimbledon 3rd
2018 Naomi Osaka (US): Australian W
2019 Ash Barty (RG): Wimbledon 4th
2019 Bianca Andreescu (US): DNP 2020
2020 Sofia Kenin (AO): U.S. Open 5th
2020 Iga Swiatek (RG): ?

**TEEN SLAM CHAMPS - since 1997**
1997 Martina Hingis, 16 (AO)*
1997 Iva Majoli, 19 (RG)*
1997 Martina Hingis, 16 (WI)
1997 Martina Hingis, 16 (US)
1998 Martina Hingis, 17 (AO)
1999 Martina Hingis, 18 (AO)
1999 Serena Williams, 17 (US)*
2004 Maria Sharapova, 17 (WI)*
2004 Svetlana Kuznetsova, 19 (US)*
2006 Maria Sharapova, 19 (US)
2019 Bianca Andreescu, 19 (AO)*
2020 Iga Swiatek, 19 (RG)*
--
* - first-time slam winner

**BIGGEST AGE DIFFERENCE IN SLAM FINAL**
18y,263 - Andreescu (19) d. S.Williams (37) = '19 U.S.
17y,45d - Seles (17) d. Navratilova (34) = '91 U.S.
16y,20d - Osaka (20) d. S.Williams (36) = '18 U.S.
15y,180d - Martinez (22) d. Navratilova (37) = '94 WI
14y,175d - Graf (18) d. Evert (33) = '88 AO
13y,113d - Muguruza (23) d. V.Williams (37) = '17 WI

**LOW RANKED IN SLAM FINAL - Open era**
NR - Evonne Goolagong, 1977 Australian (W)
NR - Kim Clijsters, 2009 US Open (W)
NR - Justine Henin, 2010 Australian
#181 - Serena Williams, 2018 Wimbledon
#111 - Chris O'Neil, 1978 Australian (W)
#83 - Sloane Stephens, 2017 US Open (W)
#81 - Serena Williams, 2007 Australian (W)
#78 - Betsy Nagelson, 1978 Australian
#68 - Barbara Jordan, 1979 Australian (W)
#66 - Venus Williams, 1997 US Open
--
LOW-RANKED RG WINNER: #54 Iga Swiatek, 2020

**FIRST-TIME SLAM SEMIFINALISTS SINCE 2013**
=2013=
AO: Sloane Stephens/USA
RG: -
WI: Kirsten Flipkens/BEL
US: Flavia Pennetta/ITA
=2014=
AO: Genie Bouchard/CAN
RG: Simona Halep/ROU (RU), Andrea Petkovic/GER
WI: Lucie Safarova/CZE
US: Ekatarina Makarova/RUS, Peng Shuai/CHN
=2015=
AO: Madison Keys/USA
RG: Timea Bacsinszky/SUI
WI: Garbine Muguruza/ESP (RU)
US: Roberta Vinci/ITA (RU)
=2016=
AO: Johanna Konta/GBR
RG: Kiki Bertens/NED
WI: Elena Vesnina/RUS
US: Karolina Pliskova/CZE (RU)
=2017=
AO: CoCo Vandeweghe/USA
RG: Alona Ostapenko/LAT (W)
WI: Magdalena Rybarikova/SVK
US: -
=2018=
AO: Elise Mertens/BEL
RG: -
WI: Julia Goerges/GER
US: Naomi Osaka/JPN (W), Anastasija Sevastova/LAT
=2019=
AO: Danielle Collins/USA
RG: Amanda Anisimova/USA, Ash Barty/AUS (W), Marketa Vondrousova/CZE (RU)
WI: Barbora Strycova/CZE, Elina Svitolina/UKR
US: Bianca Andreescu/USA (W), Belinda Bencic/SUI
=2020=
AO: Sofia Kenin/USA (W)
US: Jennifer Brady/USA
RG: Nadia Podoroska/ARG, Iga Swiatek/POL (W)
--
NOTE: 29/32 to RG 2020
NOTE: 8 con AO (2013-20)

**CAREER SLAM #1 SEEDS - active**
20...Serena Williams
6...Simona Halep
3...Ash Barty
3...Victoria Azarenka
3...Angelique Kerber
2...Naomi Osaka
2...Karolina Pliskova
1...Kim Clijsters
1...Venus Williams

**EARLIEST EXIT BY SLAM #1**
[pre-Open era]
1962 Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Margaret Court (lost to Billie Jean Moffitt)
[Open era]
1979 Australian Open 1st Rd. - Virginia Ruzici (lost to Mary Sawyer)
1994 Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Steffi Graf (lost to Lori McNeil)
1999 Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Martina Hingis (lost to Jelena Dokic)
2001 Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Martina Hingis (lost to Virginia Ruano Pascual)
2017 Roland Garros 1st Rd. - Angelique Kerber (lost to Ekaterina Makarova)
2018 US Open 1st Rd. - Simona Halep (lost to Kaia Kanepi)




*TOP Rd.of 16* *BOT Rd.of 16*
#1 Barty #21 Kontaveit
#18 Mertens Collins
#4 Kenin #22 Brady
#12 Azarenka #5 Svitolina
#8 Andreescu #9 Kvitova
#14 Muguruza #3 Osaka
#7 Sabalenka #10 S.Williams
#17 Rybakina #2 Halep
*TOP QF* *BOT QF*
#1 Barty #18 Mertens
#4 Kenin #12 Azarenka
#9 Kvitova #14 Muguruza
#7 Sabalenka #2 Halep
*TOP SF* *BOT SF*
#1 Barty #4 Kenin
#14 Muguruza #7 Sabalenka
*TOP Finalist* *BOT Finalist*
#1 Barty #7 Sabalenka




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Remain vigilent.
All for now.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 5:06 PM 

3 Comments:

Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

I wrote that Mladenovic section early in the week, and hadn't seen that she'd pulled out of the WD. But, at this point, I'll just add a little note.

Sun Feb 07, 05:32:00 PM EST  
Blogger colt13 said...

I don't have Barty winning, but is a good pick.

Don't have Rybakina going far.

I think we both might have failed according to the lowest seed stats. 6 straight years for an unseeded player to reach SF, and neither of us picked one.

I don't have Kenin winning this, but if she does, she should Jordan meme the press.

Sun Feb 07, 06:21:00 PM EST  
Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

Actually, though the chart makes it look like it, I didn't pick a *true* winner, just two finalists (keeping up my recent "partial-pick" AO tradition). If I had to pick one, I'd probably go with Sabalenka just because of my preseason picks and that the AO might be her best shot.

But my predictor's head -- for what *that's* worth, though I have unofficially-but-not-in-a-post picked two '21 winners so far (Sabalenka Abu Dhabi, Barty this past week) -- might say the Aussie.

Mon Feb 08, 03:32:00 AM EST  

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