Saturday, June 26, 2021

Wk.22- Latvian Thunder Goes Green

Why is this woman smiling? Hmmm, does she smell Thunder?








futuristic-fonts


*WEEK 22 CHAMPIONS*
EASTBOURNE, ENGLAND (WTA 500/Grass Outdoor)
S: Alona Ostapenko/LAT def. Anett Kontaveit/EST 6-3/6-3
D: Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara (JPN/JPN) def. Nicole Melichar/Demi Schuurs (USA/NED) 6-1/6-4
BAD HOMBURG, GERMANY (WTA 250/Grass Outdoor)
S: Angelique Kerber/GER def. Katerina Siniakova/CZE 6-3/6-2
D: Darija Jurak/Andreja Klepac (CRO/SLO) def. Nadiia Kichenok/Raluca Olaru (UKR/ROU) 6-3/6-1
BILLIE JEAN KING CUP ZONE PLAY PROMOTIONAL FINALS
Europe/Africa III: Norway def. Bosnia 2-0 (Vilnius, LTU)
Europe/Africa III: Lithuania def. Malta 2-0 (Vilnius, LTU)
Americas II: Ecuador def. Uruguay 2-0 (Panama City, PAN)


kosova-font
eggs-font


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Alona Ostapenko/LAT
...is that Latvian Thunder emanating from Eastbourne? Why, yes, it was. Whether it can travel to London (and beyond) is the real question.

Ostapenko has made a career out of blazing hot, firing winners and knocking over mountains when her game is in tune. It feeds her confidence, leading to even more remarkable acts of tennis brilliance. Thing is, like the engine of a fine sports car, keeping her game in tip-top shape is the real dilemma. Sometimes, and maybe more often than not, she ends up by the side of the road with smoke coming from beneath the hood after taking yet another long stretch of highway at a carelessly screaming speed. So, take the Latvian's glorious title run in Eastbourne for what it is -- a nice reminder that Ostapenko is *still* capable of a blow-out week (or two?) of eye-popping tennis that will likely make her a "wild card" contender in any tournament she plays for much of the remainder of her career. She didn't use up all her magic in Paris four years ago, and that's a realization that is one to hold onto no matter what happens off this single result.

As an actual wild card in the Eastbourne draw, Ostapenko put down RG finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Birmingham champ Ons Jabeur, Birmingham finalist Dasha Kasatkina and RG quarterfinalist Elena Rybakina to reach her first final since her closing event in Luxembourg at the end of the '19 season. Against Anett Kontaveit in the final, Ostapenko didn't relent and allowed the Estonian just four games in an all-Baltic region final to pick up her first title on grass since she won the Wimbledon juniors back in 2014.

Ostapenko has had pro success at SW19, as well, including reaching the QF a month after her '17 RG title run, then the semis a year later. She has a tough 1st Round opponent next week in Leylah Fernandez, could face Kasatkina again in the 2nd Round, and likely would find either Bianca Andreescu or Alize Cornet waiting if she got to the 3rd Round.

If Ostapenko makes it through all that, then the smile and overflowing confidence (she's aiming for a Top 10 return) she showed after winning Eastbourne will be seen as her having known something more than a full week before anyone else had *totally* bought in to the notion. If not, well, at least this was a great week on which to build in the perpetual quest to recreate Latvian Thunder without all the messy inconsistencies that cause Ostapenko herself to often become the victim of her own lethal force of nature.

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


RISERS: Camila Giorgi/ITA and Anett Kontaveit/EST
...for a bit it looked as if this might be the biggest week of Giorgi's career. Then -- poof -- it was over.

The Italian qualified in Eastbourne, then proceeded to knock off defending champ Karolina Pliskova, Shelby Rogers and top-seeded Aryna Sabelenka. The wins over Pliskova and Sabalenka, her first Top 10 victories since 2018, gave her multiple such wins in the same event for the first time in her career (4 of her total of 11 have come on grass). She was in a 1st set battle with Anett Kontaveit in the semis, then suddenly called for a trainer and soon after retired down 5-4 due to a thigh injury.

Wimbledon has been Giorgi's best major. She's 14-9 overall, and reached her only slam QF there in 2018 (as well as one of her other two slam 4th Round finishes, way back in '12). Her maiden tour title (of 2) came on the grass at Rosmalen (in 2015), as well.



Meanwhile, once again Kontaveit took on a starring role during the week only to be outplayed in the end with a title on the line. Also in Eastbourne, the Estonian opened with a win over Svetlana Kuznetsova, then recorded her 13th career Top 10 victory over Bianca Andreescu. Viktorija Golubic served for the match in the QF, but Kontaveit pushed through to the semis, where Giorgi retired after just nine games. In her second final of the season (the Grampians championship match wasn't contested due to the upcoming start of the AO) and third at the tour level in the last eleven months (on three different surfaces), Kontaveit was seeking her second career title (her first, in 2017, had come on the Rosmalen grass in 's-Hertogenbosch). She was dominated by Alona Ostapenko in the match.



The loss drops Kontaveit to 1-6 in contested singles finals in her WTA career. She's reached the 3rd Round in each of her last three Wimbledon appearances.
===============================================
SURPRISE: Viktorija Golubic/SUI
...even the switch in surface isn't slowing down the surprising upturn in Golubic's results this year, as the 28-year old Swiss -- already playing in her third grass event -- revved up after a slow 1-2 run (w/ the win coming via a ret.) the last two weeks by winning four times in Eastbourne. Two qualifying victories were followed my MD wins over Sam Stosur and Berlin runner-up Belinda Bencic to reach her first grasscourt QF in five years. She fell to Anett Kontaveit in the next round, but had a chance to advance, serving for the match in the 2nd set before dropping a TB, then a tight 7-5 3rd.



Overall, Golubic stands at 39-12 on the season. After a 25-5 all-level run on hard courts which included two ITF (1-1) and two tour-level finals (Lyon and Monterey), she got off to a 9-1 start on clay (w/ a 125 title in Saint-Malo) before ending the spring on a three-match losing streak.
===============================================
VETERANS: Angelique Kerber/GER and Petra Kvitova/CZE
...with how excited Kerber was in the post-match ceremony after claiming her 13th career tour title in the inaugural edition of the Bad Homburg event, you'd have thought that maybe she'd been wondering whether she'd *ever* win another WTA title. Truth is, it *was* a lingering question after what had been a rather long, even more mediocre stretch for the former #1 and three-time slam champ. She came in at just 9-10 on the season. But the grass courts have always been Angie's friend, haven't they?

A year ago, Kerber officially christened the Bad Homburg courts even though the pandemic prevented the tournament from taking place...



A year later, the 33-year old made up for lost time, becoming the tour's oldest singles champion of the season with a turn-back-the-clock stretch that once again displayed the verve and grit she used to climb the tour ladder all the way to the top five years ago. Early wins over Anna Blinkova and Amanda Anisimova led up to a captivating SF triumph over Petra Kvitova (in Kerber's second match of the day, both of which she had to rally from a set down to win) in which the Czech served for the match before the German won a deciding TB. With the energy of a home crowd (maybe the first full-throated version of such we've seen since the shutdown) behind her, Kerber took out Katerina Siniakova 6-3/6-2 to claim her 13th career WTA title, her third on grass, and the first at all since her Wimbledon run three years ago.



In truth, it should probably come as no surprise that Kerber found more success on grass. She *always* does. She's reached a grass final in six of the last seven tour campaigns on the lawns, a remarkable thing considering the few available events on the surface that come up each year. The German reached the Eastbourne final in '14, won Birmingham in '15, was Wimbledon RU in '16 before winning the title in '18, then reached another Eastbourne final in the last grass court circuit held by the WTA in '19. The only "miss" came in her disappointing "year-after" 2017 campaign, when she was still 5-2 on the grass with a QF (Eastbourne) and 4th Round (Wimbledon) in a season in which she was 24-22 otherwise.



Kvitova's Bad Homburg experience met its end in the semis vs. Kerber (though Petra served for the match in the 3rd set), but her wins over Katarzyna Piter, Ann Li and Nadia Podoroska tuned up her game for another attempt at winning Wimbledon for a third time. Of course, she hasn't reached the second week at SW19 since her '14 title run, and even more lead-up grass season success (Birmingham wins in 2017-18) in the past hasn't seen her carry any real momentum over to the fortnight. But to dismiss any lingering ability to potentially "click-in" her game and dominate on the grass as a thing of the past would seem to be a risky proposition.
===============================================


COMEBACKS: Katerina Siniakova/CZE and Anastasija Sevastova/LAT
...perhaps Barbora Krejcikova's somewhat belated singles success on tour is finally inspiring doubles partner Siniakova to reclaim the promise she initially showed early in her own career.

Siniakova reached four tour-level singles finals in 2016-17, winning a pair of titles (including def. Wozniacki in Bastad), and climbing as high as #31 in 2018. Since then, though, while she's reached doubles #1 and won three slam WD crowns, the Czech has come in at #58 and #64 in the year-end singles rankings. She arrived in Bad Homburg at #76, but off a clay court spring that was her best in ages. It included an Istanbul QF, Parma semi and RG 3rd Round. In Germany, Siniakova reached her first final since January '18 after posting wins over Varvara Gracheva, Jessica Pegula, Laura Siegemund and Sara Sorribes Tormo. She fell in straights to Angelique Kerber, but Siniakova has officially (re-)joined the rather large Czech "watch list" for the remainder of '21.



After an extended dry spell after winning a title on home soil (Jurmala) two years ago, Sevastova has rediscovered her beady-eyed spirit in recent weeks. It resulted in a QF run as a lucky loser in Eastbourne, as the Latvian posted MD wins over Marta Kostyuk and Coco Gauff (from 6-4/5-2 down) before eventually losing a tough one against Elena Rybakina in which she'd held two MP in a match played late in the day on Thursday during which Sevastova had multiple issues with line calls and the chair umpire. She even outpointed Rybakina in the match.

Sevastova has had success on the grass before, reaching three straight Mallorca finals (2016-18), winning once on the surface.

After her title run in Jurmala in July '19, Sevastova had sunk into a 6-21 slump prior to her Adelaide QF this February. Since then, she's reached another QF in Miami and the 3rd Round in Madrid (as a qualifier) before coming up a point shy of the semis this week. Her 4-2 week improves her record to 17-9 over the past four-month stretch.
===============================================


FRESH FACE: Elena Rybakina/KAZ
...coming off her quarterfinal run in Paris, might Rybakina's big-hitting, big-serve game actually be more suited to a deeper run at the *next* major?

The Kazakh didn't win Eastbourne, she her power displays vs. the likes of Harriet Dart, Elina Svitolina (world #5, giving Rybakina her second-best career win behind #3 Pliskova last year in Dubai) and Anastasija Sevastova (showing her mettle by saving 2 MP and rebounding from losing a 4-2 lead in the 2nd and failing to serve out the match at 6-5 in the 3rd, taking a pair of TB to get the win) will surely make her a force to watch at SW19. She fell in the semis to Alona Ostapenko, and will now head to London to see what she can make of her Wimbledon MD debut.

Rybakina lost in '19 in the final qualifying round in an 8-6 3rd set in her only tournament appearance.
===============================================
DOWN: Karolina Pliskova/CZE
...is the clock finally ticking?

At the start of the season, the Hail Mary hiring by Pliskova of Sascha Bajin as coach seemed something of an odd fit at this stage in the Czech's career, and Wimbledon felt about as good as any spot on the schedule as the over/under dividing line for when the experiment might end. To date, Pliskova has had a truly disappointing season, likely her worst since breaking onto the scene. If not for a brief bubble up in Rome, where she reached her third straight final in the event and posted four of her fifteen match wins on the season, the "under" might very well have won out by now.

But, coming off her 2nd Round exit in Paris, here we are edging into Wimbledon and the Pliskova/Bajin story is still spooling out. Eastbourne won't be viewed as anything resembling a recharging moment, though.

Pliskova hasn't had the usual sort of SW19 success that Czech's often do -- though her Round of 16 results in her last two appearances in 2018-19 are her best -- but she *has* performed well in Eastbourne. Three of her four grass cout finals have come there, with title runs in 2017 and '19 (w/ '16 RU). But she lasted just one match this time around, losing a set lead to Camila Giorgi and then being run off 2 & 2 in the 2nd/3rd sets by the Italian, dropping her third straight match and fourth in her last five.

The loss will knock Pliskova, 11-11 on the season without her "propping-up" Rome result, out of the Top 10 heading into Wimbledon, the first time her standing has been so low since 2016. It will end a run of 230 consecutive Top 10 weeks that was the second longest active streak on tour behind only Simona Halep's nearly 370-week stretch.

At this point, the "over" in the Pliskova/Bajin scenario wins by default, but another quick exit in London and the partnership might *just* make it past the AELTC trip before it's all over (literally by just a few days, or maybe hours).

Pliskova can still "save" her season with a strong hard court summer, where she's had some of her biggest career results in the past. But will Bajin get the chance to see the Czech's attempt from a front row seat, or as a fleeting image in Karolina's rearview mirror?
===============================================
DOUBLES: Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara, JPN/JPN and Darija Jurak/Andreja Klepac, CRO/SLO
...Aoyama & Shibahara's run in Eastbourne gives them sole possession of the tour lead in '21 with four titles (4-0 in finals). After wins over Fichman/Olmos and L.Kichenok/Ninomiya (Nottingham W), the #2-seeded Japanese duo handled top seeds Nicole Melichar & Demi Schuurs 6-1/6-4, improving to 7-1 in tour finals (7 con. victories) over the last two seasons. All of Shibahara's WTA crowns have come alongside Aoyama, while Aoyama has now picked up sixteen championships at tour level.



In Bad Homburg, top-seeded veteran duo Jurak & Klepac picked up their first title as a pair (they previously reached the Parma final, and the RG QF earlier this season), following up a 10-5 match TB win over Blinkova/Rus with a 6-3/6-1 win over Nadiia Kichenok & Raluca Olaru in the final. It's the ninth career title for the 35-year old Klepac, and #8 for Jurak, 37.

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




kosova-font


1. Bad Homburg 2nd Rd. - Victoria Azarenka def. Alize Cornet
...6-4/3-6/7-6(7). Just your typical Cornet match. Three hours. Cornet falling. Azarenka taking a medical time out mid-way through the 3rd, which she'd led 3-0, and then seemingly being moments away from a retirement before her treatment kicked in. Azarenka holding two MP at 5-4, then the Pastry with two of her own at 6-5 before things went to a deciding TB. There Cornet took a 5-3 lead, and ultimately held MP #3 and #4 before Azarenka finally won on her own *third* MP to improve to 8-0 in the career head-to-head series.



Not surprisingly, Azarenka pulled out of her QF match with Sara Sorribes Tormo the following day, the fourth time in eight '21 MD appearances in which she's exited an event due to a retirement or injury-related withdrawal.
===============================================
2. Bad Homburg SF - Angelique Kerber def. Petra Kvitova
...3-6/6-4/7-6(3). In a match-up of former Wimbledon champs, Kerber trims Kvitova's lead in their career head-to-head to one (8-7), taking their first meeting on grass despite the Czech having served for the match at 6-5 in the 3rd. It was Kerber's second comeback from a set down on Friday, as she won her QF match over Amanda Anisimova in the same fashion earlier in the day.

===============================================
3. Eastbourne 1st Rd. - Coco Gauff def. Elise Mertens
...0-6/7-6(4)/7-5. Obviously, reports of her death on the red clay were great exaggerated, as RoCoco sprung back to life on the grass.



Mertens led this one 6-0/2-0, and had two chances to serve out the match in the 2nd set. Gauff rallied and took a TB to go to a 3rd. There, the Belgian served up 4-2, dropped serve and then saw Gauff hold after saving five BP in game #8. Come game #11, Mertens DF'd to break herself and give the 17-year the chance to serve out the match. She did, improving her impressive three-set record to 12-4 on the season.

With another one-and-out result, and another blown lead, one has to wonder if Mertens' recent doubles flops with Hsieh Su-wei (losses after having 7 and 5 MP in back-to-back events) is negatively impacting her singles mindset.
===============================================
4. Eastbourne 2nd Rd. - Anastasija Sevastova def. Coco Gauff
...4-6/7-5/6-2. Unfortunately for Gauff, RoCoco wasn't just making a cameo appearance in Round 1. Like an extra from The Walking Dead in Eastbourne, she proved a round after Gauff's win over Mertens to have been fully risen from the ranks of the undead.

Gauff led Sevastova 6-4/5-2, only to see her forehand go off, the rollercoaster head back down a sleep slope, and then the match go away.

Unlike with Gauff's multi-event rejection of the "three-set plan" and Parma title sweep combining to make a deep run in Paris a topic of conversation heading into RG a few weeks ago (she eventually reached her first major QF), the teenager's two grass court adventures this week feel more like red flags when it comes to a similar SW19 result becoming a reality.

===============================================
5. Eastbourne QF - Elena Rybakina def. Anastasija Sevastova
...2-6/7-6(7)/7-6(5). Though she threw in a boatload of UE, and was out-pointed (121-113) on the day, Rybakina has quickly made the transition to grass after reaching the QF at Roland Garros.

Against Sevastova, she worked her way through a long match played deep into the 3rd set in fading light with disputed line calls, saving 2 MP at 6-4 down in the 2nd set TB. The Kazakh won the TB 9-7, then another (at 7-5) to finally put away the match after having previously failed to serve it out at 6-5.

===============================================
6. Eastbourne 1st Rd. - Elina Svitolina def. Paula Badosa
...4-6/6-1/7-6(1). It's a tradition for Svitolina at this time of year to fiddle around and yet still put up an impressive result on grass. Against Badosa, she led 4-1 in the 1st but then dropped the last five games in the set. After twice failing to serve out the match in the 3rd, she won anyway in the deciding TB.

Two years ago at Wimbledon, Svitolina reached her first slam semifinal after Margarita Gasparyan retired from their 2nd Round match after having had a decisive lead, then advanced past an overworked Karolina Muchova in the QF after the Czech had to come back after taking a 13-11 3rd set in the Round of 16 vs. Karolina Pliskova. Naturally, Svitolina was a no-show in the semi that year against Simona Halep.

True to form, Svitolina was run in straight sets by Rybakina in her next match in the Eastbourne 2nd Round.
===============================================


7. Eastbourne Final - Alona Ostapenko def. Anett Kontaveit 6-3/6-3
Bad Homburg Final - Angelique Kerber def. Katerina Siniakova 6-3/6-2
...the former slam champions get their first singles titles in a few years. Ostapenko since her season-closing win in Luxembourg in 2019, and Kerber when she won Wimbledon in 2018.

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


8. Eastbourne QF - Alona Ostapenko def. Dasha Kasatkina
...1-6/7-5/6-2. Both Ostapenko (WI) and Kasatkina (RG) were junior slam champs in 2014, and they met in the Charleston final in '17 when both were seeking their maiden tour title (the Russian got hers in her first WTA final, while Ostapenko had to wait until Paris two months later).

The result gives hope that Ostapenko's good Wimbledon past ('17 QF/'18 SF) might poke its head up again over the forthcoming fortnight, while Kasatkina at least avoided maybe peaking *too* soon heading into SW19 after having already reached the Birmingham final last week.
===============================================


9. Eastbourne 1st Rd. - Bianca Andreescu def. Christina McHale 6-4/2-6/6-2
Eastbourne 1st Rd. - Iga Swiatek def. Heather Watson 6-3/6-7(4)/7-5
...both have won slam titles on other surfaces, but these were the first career WTA MD wins on grass for Andreescu and Swiatek, the latter of whom won the Wimbledon junior crown in 2018.

While Andreescu was forced to three sets (again) to get a victory, Swiatek had to really from 4-1 down in the 3rd vs. Watson to get hers.



Both failed to get MD #2 in the 2nd Round, with Andreescu falling to Anett Kontaveit and Swiatek to Kasatkina (getting just one combined game in the 2nd/3rd sets vs. the Russian).

===============================================
10. Eastbourne 1st Rd. - Alona Ostapenko def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
...6-1/6-3. Pavlyuchenkova's "house money" match, and a typical post-big run result, especially with the switch from clay to the oh-what-is-this-stuff? grass.

Still, the fruits of her labor...



Pavlyuchenkova lost in the 2nd Round (to eventual Gold medalist Monica Puig) in Rio in 2016 in her only Olympic appearance to date.
===============================================
HM- $25K Pengueux FRA Final - Elsa Jacquemot vs. Diane Parry
...TBD. The last two top-ranked girls on the junior circuit -- Parry to end '19, Jacquemot in '20 -- will face off for a pro title on the Sunday before the start of Wimbledon. Parry picked up her first ITF win this past December, while fellow Pastry (and '20 RG girls champ) Jacquemot is seeking her maiden crown.

Parry has already picked up the doubles title with Margot Yerolymos.
===============================================



kosova-font
1. Eastbourne 1st Rd. - Camila Giorgi def. Karolina Pliskova
...2-6/6-2/6-2. A three-time finalist and two-time champ (2017, and the defender from '19), Pliskova falls in three in her opening match, ensuring her exit from the Top 10. Could this be the on-court equivalent of the final domino shaking and beginning to fall in the Pliskova/Big Sascha partnership?

===============================================
2. Bad Homburg Final - Darija Jurak/Andreja Klepac def. Nadiia Kichenok/Raluca Olaru
...6-3/6-1. Nadiia fails to join sister Lyudmyla (Nottingham) as a grass court WD title winner this month. The sisters last won a tour title together (#3) in 2018. They won 22 on the ITF circuit.
===============================================


















=EASTBOURNE, ENGLAND=



=BAD HOMBURG, GERMANY=



=LONDON, ENGLAND=




A look back at the Wimbledon qualifying rounds...


*TOP Q-PLAYERS*
1. Ana Konjuh, CRO (23, #129) ...the Croat's comeback from four elbow surgeries continues, as she battled past #8-seeded Tsvetana Pironkova in the final qualifying round to reach her first Wimbledon MD since 2018. Konjuh qualified for this year's Roland Garros, as well, but lost in the final round of AO qualifying. She made her SW19 MD debut in 2014 at age 16, and became the youngest to reach the 3rd Round since 1999 (Dokic). Three years later, she reached the Round of 16, but has played just one MD match at SW19 since... until next week.

===============================================
2. Katie Volynets, USA (19, #200) ...the teenager, a $100K title winner (on clay) earlier this year, will make her Wimbledon debut after going through qualifying without dropping a set, finishing off her run with a win over Beatriz Haddad Maia. In Volynets' only other slam MD appearance she lost in the 1st Round of the '19 U.S. Open to some Canadian named Andreescu, who'd go on to win the tournament.

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


3. Greet Minnen, BEL (23, #119) ...for the third time this season, Minnen qualified for a major. Actually, she pulled off the feat at four of the last five (not counting the '20 U.S., which had no qualifying tournament). This time around, the Waffle posted wins over Kurumi Nara, Mayo Hibi and Varvara Lepchenko. Thus far, Minnen is just 1-3 in the slam MD matches.
===============================================


4. Danielle Lao, USA (30, #238) ...the former USC team captain qualifies for her third slam MD (in 11 Q-attempts), but first at Wimbledon after having lost in the final round two years ago. Lao knocked off Alexandra Dulgheru, #2 Viktoriya Tomova and Urszula Radwanska, and will try to record her first career slam MD win against British WC Katie Boulter.
===============================================


5. Katie Swan, GBR (22, #290) ...needing a wild card to get into the qualifying tournament after battling injuries the last two years, Swan reaches her first slam MD since the '19 Wimbledon with wins over Lizette Cabrera, Caty McNally (from 5-3 in the 3rd) and Arina Rodionova.

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

*OTHER WI QUALIFIERS*

Clara Burel, FRA (20/#142) - the Pastry makes her SW19 debut after posting wins over Chwalinska, Vickery and Sanders

Vitalia Diatchenko, RUS (30/#150) - the Hordette didn't lose a set, knocking off two seeds in #25 Kawa and #14 Kalinina; she's 4-14 in slam MD matches




Olga Govortsova, BLR (32/#136) - reaches her first slam MD since 2016 (she had a baby in early '18); reached the Round of 16 in '15

Anna Kalinskaya, RUS (22/#94) - rallied from 3-0 in 3rd vs. Priscilla Hon to qualify for second consecutive Wimbledon; her only two MD slam wins came at the U.S. Open (2019-20)

Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove, NED (29/#91) - saved two MP vs. Jule Niemeier in the final Q round to qualify for her second Wimbledon in a row

Claire Liu, USA (21/#120) - the '17 Wimbledon girls champ won a MD SW19 match in '18

Monica Niculescu, ROU (33/#193) - her no-sets-lost run puts the Romanian into her thirteenth consecutive Wimbledon MD; she reached the Round of 16 in 2015




Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL (19/#94) - follows up her RG qualifying run with another for SW19, winning a trio of three-set matches

Ellen Perez, AUS (25/#231) - lost no sets vs. Kung, Grabher and #10 Dodin, ending her string of five consecutive failed Q-attempts in majors

Lesia Tsurenko, UKR (32/#164) - after three straight failed qualifying attempts in majors, the vet reaches her first slam MD since the 2020 AO; reached Wimbledon 3rd Rd. in '17




Wang Xinyu, CHN (19/#144) - will make her WI debut after qualifying without dropping a set, ending her streak of four straight unsuccessful slam Q-attempts (which included Q3 AO/RG losses last season)



*WI LUCKY LOSER*

Kristie Ahn, USA (29/#118) - she of the spirited '19 U.S. Open Round of 16 run and '20 pandemic social media star turn, Ahn lost to Niculescu in the Q3 but still slips into her second straight WI MD


*WIMBLEDON "Q-PLAYER OF THE WEEK" WINNERS*
2006 Meilen Tu, USA
2007 Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE & Olga Govortsova, BLR
2008 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, ESP & Eva Hrdinova, CZE
2009 Viktoria Kutuzova, UKR
2010 Kaia Kanepi, EST
2011 Alexa Glatch, USA
2012 Sandra Zaniewska, POL
2013 Petra Cetkovska, CZE
2014 Michelle Larcher de Brito, POR
2015 Petra Cetkovska, CZE
2016 Mandy Minella, LUX
2017 Petra Martic, CRO
2018 Mona Barthel, GER
2019 Coco Gauff, USA
2021 Ana Konjuh, CRO


1. WI Q3 - Lesley Pattinama Kerhkove def. Jule Niemeier 6-4/2-6/9-7
...the 21-year old German nearly finished off her maiden slam qualifying tournament by reaching the MD, but couldn't convert two MP at 5-4, 40/15 in the 3rd set. After taking a mid-game MTO at 6-6, love/30 two games later, Niemeier fell to the Dutch vet (a '19 WI qualifier) in an extended 3rd set.

The German took Belinda Bencic, who'd reach the final, to three sets in the 1st Round in Berlin last week
===============================================
2. WI Q1 - Beatriz Haddad Maia def. Daria Snigur 3-6/6-2/6-4
...the 2019 Wimbledon girls champ falls in the opening round of qualifying. The 19-year old is still looking for her major MD debut, having gone 0-3 in slam qualifying matches.
===============================================
3. WI Q1 - Storm Sanders def. Sara Errani 3-6/7-6(2)/6-1
...the #3-seeded Errani led 6-3/5-3 and served for the win at 5-4 and 6-5. After qualifying and reaching the 3rd Round in Melbourne in February, the Italian has fallen in the RG and WI Q-rounds. With all her various suspension issues surrounding her '17 failed drug test, this was Errani's first appearance in *any* Wimbledon match since 2017.
===============================================
4. WI Q3 - Danielle Lao def. Urszula Radwanska 6-3/6-2
...with her fifth consecutive slam qualifying attempt coming up short, Ula's last slam MD appearance remains the 2016 Australian Open. The last time a Radwanska showed up in the MD was Aga at the 2018 U.S. Open.
===============================================
5. WI Q2 - Katie Swan def. Caty McNally 4-6/7-6(4)/7-5
...Swan made good a round later after rallying from 5-3 down in the 3rd a match earlier. Unlike in Paris, where McNally's qualifying run ended with an injury that knocked her out of the RG WD w/ Coco Gauff, "McCoco" will play through at SW19.
===============================================


*2021 Q's BY NATION*
6 - USA [1/2/3]
4 - RUS [2/0/2]
3 - BEL [1/1/1]
3 - FRA [2/0/1]
3 - UKR [0/2/1]
2 - AUS [0/1/1]
2 - CHN [0/1/1]
2 - COL [0/1/1]
2 - CRO [0/1/1]
2 - GBR [1/0/1]
2 - ITA [2/0/0]
2 - ROU [0/1/1]
2 - SRB [1/1/0]
1...AO: BUL,CAN,EGY,HUN,JPN,SLO
1...RG: ESP,GEO,SUI,SVK,TPE
1...WI: BLR,NED
-
=LL=
1...AO: BEL/ROU/RUS/SVK
1...RG: BLR/ITA
1...WI: USA

=MULTI-SLAM QUALIFIERS IN 2021=
3 - Green Minnen, BEL (AO/RG/WI)
2 - Clara Burel, FRA (AO/WI)
2 - Ana Konjuh, CRO (RG/WI)
2 - Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL (RG/WI)

*YOUNGEST 2021 SLAM...*
=WC=
RG - Oceane Babel, FRA (17)
RG - Elsa Jacquemot, FRA (18)
RG - Diane Parry, FRA (18)
WI - Emma Raducanu, GBR (18)
RG - Hailey Baptiste, USA (19)
AO - Destanee Aiava, AUS (20)
RG - Clara Burel, FRA (20)
WI - Francesca Jones, GBR (20)

=Q=
AO - Whitney Osuigue, USA (18)
AO - Clara Burel, FRA (19)
AO - Elisabetta Cocciaretto, ITA (19)
AO - Olga Danilovic, SRB (19)
RG - Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL (19)
WI - Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL (19)
WI - Katie Volynets, USA (19)
WI - Wang Xinyu, CHN (19)

=LL=
RG - Elisabetta Cocciaretto, ITA (20)

=PR=
RG - Liang En-shuo, TPE (20)-Q
AO - Katie Boulter, GBR (24)
RG - Ivana Jorovic, SRB (24)

=OLDEST 2021 SLAM...=
=WC=
AO - Samantha Stosur, AUS (36)
WI - Samantha Murray Sharan, GBR (33)
AO - Arina Rodionova, AUS (31)
AO - Dasha Gavrilova, AUS (26)

=Q=
RG - Varvara Lepchenko, USA (35)
AO - Sara Errani, ITA (33)
WI - Monica Niculescu, ROU (33)
AO - Tsvetana Pironkova, BUL (33)
WI - Olga Govortsova, BLR (32)
WI - Monica Niculescu, ROU (32)
RG - Stefanie Voegele, SUI (31)
WI - Vitalia Diatchenko, RUS (30)
WI - Danielle Lao, USA (30)
AO - Rebecca Marino, CAN (30)

=LL=
AO - Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU (32)
RG - Olga Govortsova, BLR (32)
WI - Kristie Ahn, USA (29)
AO - Ysaline Bonaventure, BEL (26)
AO - Margarita Gasparyan, RUS (26)
AO - Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK (26)

=PR=
WI - Samantha Stosur, AUS (37)
AO - Vera Zvonareva, RUS (36)
WI - Elena Vesnina, RUS (34)
RG - Elena Vesnina, RUS (34)
WI - Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU (33)
RG - Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU (33)
WI - Andrea Petkovic, GER (33)
RG - Andrea Petkovic, GER (33)
AO - Yaroslava Shvedova, KAZ (33)
WI - Carla Suarez Navarro, ESP (32)

=MAKING SLAM MD DEBUTS=
=AUTOMATIC ENTRY MD=
AO - none
RG - none
WI - none

=WC=
AO - none
RG - Oceane Babel, FRA
WI - Jodie Burrage, GBR
WI - Emma Raducanu, GBR

=Q=
AO - Olga Danilovic, SRB
AO - Francesca Jones, GBR
RG - Ekaterine Gorgodze, GEO
RG - Liang En-shuo, TPE
RG - Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL
WI - none

=LL=
AO - none
RG - none
WI - none

=PR=
AO - none
RG - Liang En-shuo, TPE (Q)

=LOW-RANKED 2021 SLAM QUALIFIERS=
#312 - Rebecca Marino, CAN (AO)
#295 - Liang En-shuo, TPE (RG)
#290 - Katie Swan, GBR (WI)
#241 - Francesca Jones, GBR (AO)
#238 - Danielle Lao, USA (WI)
#236 - Clara Burel, FRA (AO)
#231 - Ellen Perez, AUS (WI)
#225 - Valeria Savinykh, RUS (AO)
#222 - Ekaterine Gorgodze, GEO (RG)
#212 - Aleksandra Krunic, SRB (RG)
#200 - Katie Voynets, USA (WI)

=LL=
#138 - Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU (AO)
#138 - Olga Govortsova, BLR (RG)
#135 - Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK (AO)
#125 - Magarita Gasparyan, RUS (AO)
#122 - Ysaline Bonaventure, BEL (AO)
#118 - Kristie Ahn, USA (WI)



4th
#14 Krejcikova def. #1 Barty
#31 Kasatkina def. #12 Azarenka
#19 Muchova def. Linette
#9 Bencic def. #6 S.Williams
#10 Kvitova def. #28 Riske
#23 Keys def. #29 V.Kudermetova
#7 Swiatek def. #11 Muguruza
#18 Rybakina def. #2 Sabalenka
QF
#14 Krejcikova def. #31 Kasatkina
#9 Bencic def. #19 Muchova
#23 Keys def. #10 Kvitova
#18 Rybakina def. #7 Swiatek
SF
#9 Bencic def. #14 Krejcikova
#18 Rybakina def. #23 Keys
FINAL
#18 Rybakina def. #9 Bencic






kosova-font






























mf-xinghei-font


kosova-font

*2021 WTA CHAMPIONS BY AGE*
17 - Coco Gauff (Parma)
18 - Clara Tauson (Lyon)
18 - Leylah Fernandez (Monterrey)
19 - Maria Camila Osorio Serrano (Bogota)
19 - Iga Swiatek (Adelaide)
19 - Iga Swiatek (Rome)
22 - Aryna Sabalenka (Abu Dhabi)
22 - Liudmila Samsonova (Berlin)
23 - Paula Badosa (Belgrade)
23 - Dasha Kasatkina (Phillip Island Melb.)
23 - Dasha Kasatkina (Saint Petersburg)
23 - Veronika Kudermetova (Charleston 500)
23 - Naomi Osaka (Australian Open)
23 - Aryna Sabalenka (Madrid)
24 - Ash Barty (Yarra Valley Melb.)
24 - Ash Barty (Miami)
24 - ALONA OSTAPENKO (EASTBOURNE)
24 - Sara Sorribes Tormo (Guadalajara)
25 - Ash Barty (Stuttgart)
25 - Barbora Krejcikova (Strasbourg)
25 - Barbora Krejcikova (Roland Garros)
25 - Elise Mertens (Gippsland Melb.)
25 - Astra Sharma (Charleston 250)
26 - Ons Jabeur (Birmingham)
27 - Garbine Muguruza (Dubai)
30 - Johanna Konta (Nottingham)
30 - Petra Kvitova (Doha)
31 - Sorana Cirstea (Istanbul)
33 - ANGELIQUE KERBER (BAD HOMBURG)
-
vacant - Kontaveit (25) vs. Li (20) [Grampians Melb. not played]

*2021 OLDEST WTA FINALISTS*
35 - Kaia Kanepi, EST (Gippsland-L)
33 - ANGELIQUE KERBER, GER (BAD HOMBURG-W)
32 - Zhang Shuai, CHN (Nottingham-L)
31 - Sorana Cirstea, ROU (Strasbourg-L)
31 - Sorana Cirstea, ROU (Istanbul-W)
30 - Petra Kvitova, CZE (Doha-W)
30 - Johanna Konta, GBR (Nottingham-W)

*2021 WTA FINALS - CZECH*
3 - Barbora Krejcikova (2-1)
1 - Petra Kvitova (1-0)
1 - Marie Bouzkova (0-1)
1 - Karolina Pliskova (0-1)
1 - KATERINA SINIAKOVA (0-1)

*CAREER WTA GRASS TITLES - active*
8 - Serena Williams, USA
6 - Venus Williams, USA
4 - Petra Kvitova, CZE
3 - ANGELIQUE KERBER, GER
3 - Karolina Pliskova, CZE
2 - Ash Barty, AUS
2 - Kim Clijsters, BEL
2 - Caroline Garcia, FRA
2 - Simona Halep, ROU
2 - Madision Keys, USA
2 - CoCo Vandeweghe, USA

*2021 DEFEATED #1 SEED & DEFENDING CHAMPION, DIDN'T WIN TITLE*
Adelaide: Danielle Collins, USA...2r-Barty / QF-Swiatek
EASTBOURNE: CAMILA GIORGI, ITA...QF-Sabalenka / 1r-Ka.Pliskova

*WORST CAREER WTA RECORDS IN FINALS -active*
=1 or fewer titles=
0-7...Lucie Hradecka, CZE
0-4...Olga Govortsova, BLR
0-4...Ajla Tomljanovic, AUS
1-7...Genie Bouchard, CAN
1-7...Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
1-6...ANETT KONTAVEIT, EST (+1 DNP)

*2021 WTA DOUBLES FINALS*
4...AOYAMA/SHIBAHARA, JPN/JPN (4-0)
4...Krejcikova/Siniakova, CZE/CZE (3-1)
4...MELICHAR/SCHUURS, USA/NED (2-2)
3...Carter/Stefani, USA/BRA (0-3)




**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
2020 RG: Iga Swiatek, POL*
2021 AO: Naomi Osaka, JPN (4)
2021 RG: Barbora Krejcikova, CZE*
--
* - 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)
2021 Australian Open - Jennifer Brady
2021 Roland Garros - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
2021 Roland Garros - Barbora Krejcikova (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
2021 Roland Garros - Barbora Krejcikova

*WIMBLEDON #1 SEEDS SINCE 2008*
2008 Ana Ivanovic, SRB (3rd)
2009 Dinara Safina, RUS (SF)
2010 Serena Williams, USA (W)
2011 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN (4th)
2012 Maria Sharapova, RUS (4th)
2013 Serena Williams, USA (4th)
2014 Serena Williams, USA (3rd)
2015 Serena Williams, USA (W)
2016 Serena Williams, USA (W)
2017 Angelique Kerber, GER (4th)
2018 Simona Halep, ROU (3rd)
2019 Ash Barty, AUS (4th)
2021 Ash Barty, AUS

*RECENT WIMBLEDON SEMIFINALISTS*
=W/RU, SF/SF=
2010 S.Williams(W)/V.Zvonareva(RU); SF-P.Kvitova/T.Pironkova
2011 P.Kvitova(W)/M.Sharapova(RU); SF-V.Azarenka/S.Lisicki
2012 S.Williams(W)/A.Radwanska(RU); SF-V.Azarenka/A.Kerber
2013 M.Bartoli(W)/S.Lisicki(RU); SF-A.Radwanska/K.Flipkens
2014 P.Kvitova(W)/G.Bouchard(RU); SF-L.Safarova/S.Halep
2015 S.Williams(W)/G.Muguruza(RU); SF-M.Sharapova/A.Radwanska
2016 S.Williams(W)/Kerber(RU); SF-E.Vesnina/V.Williams
2017 G.Muguruza(W)/V.Williams(RU); SF-J.Konta/M.Rybarikova
2018 A.Kerber(W)/S.Williams(RU); SF-Ostapenko/Goerges

*LOW-SEEDED WIMBLEDON SEMIFINALISTS - Open Era*
[unseeded]
1968 Ann Jones
1969 Rosie Casals
1970 Francoise Durr
1971 Judy Dalton
1983 Yvonne Vermaak
1989 Catarina Lindqvist
1994 Gigi Fernandez
1994 Lori McNeil
1996 Meredith McGrath
1997 Anna Kournikova
1998 Natasha Zvereva
1999 Alexandra Stevenson (Q)
1999 Mirjana Lucic
2000 Jelena Dokic
2008 Zheng Jie (WC)
2010 Petra Kvitova
2010 Tsvetana Pironkova
2011 Sabine Lisicki (WC)
2016 Elena Vesnina
2017 Magdalena Rybarikova
2019 Barbora Strycova
[seeds]
#25 - Serena Williams, 2018 (RU)
#23 - Lucie Safarova, 2014
#23 - Sabine Lisicki, 2013 (RU)
#23 - Venus Williams, 2007 (W)
#21 - Vera Zvonareva, 2010 (RU)
#20 - Garbine Muguruza, 2015 (RU)
#20 - Kirsten Flipkens, 2013
#18 - Marion Bartoli, 2007 (RU)
#16 - Nathalie Tauziat, 1998 (RU)
#16 - Kathy Rinaldi, 1985
#15 - Marion Bartoli, 2013 (W)
#14 - Garbine Muguruza, 2017 (W)
#14 - Venus Williams, 2005 (W)
#13 - Julia Goerges, 2018
#13 - Aga Radwanska, 2015
#13 - Genie Bouchard, 2014 (RU)
#13 - Maria Sharapova, 2004 (W)
#12 - Alona Ostapenko, 2018
#12 - Kimiko Date, 1996
#12 - Billie Jean King, 1982
#11 - Serena Williams, 2019 (RU)
#11 - Angelique Kerber, 2018 (W)
#11 - Bettina Bunge, 1982
#10 - Venus Williams, 2017 (RU)
#10 - Gabriela Sabatini, 1986
#10 - Billie Jean King, 1983

*WIMBLEDON GIRLS FINALS - since 2010*
2010 Kristyna Pliskova/CZE d. Sachie Ishizu/JPN
2011 Ashleigh Barty/AUS d. Irina Khromacheva/RUS
2012 Genie Bouchard/CAN d. Elina Svitolina/UKR
2013 Belinda Bencic/SUI d. Taylor Townsend/USA
2014 Alona Ostapenko/LAT d. Kristina Schmiedlova/SVK
2015 Sofya Zhuk/RUS d. Anna Blinkova/RUS
2016 Anastasia Potapova/RUS d. Dayana Yastremska/UKR
2017 Claire Liu/USA d. Ann Li/USA
2018 Iga Swiatek/POL d. Leonie Kung/SUI
2019 Daria Snigur/UKR d. Alexa Noel/USA

*FIRST-TIME SLAM CHAMPS AT WIMBLEDON - Open era*
1968 Billie Jean King, USA
1978 Martina Navratilova, TCH (CZE)
1994 Conchita Martinez, ESP
1998 Jana Novotna, CZE
2000 Venus Williams, USA
2004 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2011 Petra Kvitova, CZE
2013 Marion Bartoli, FRA

*CAREER WIMBLEDON TITLES - OPEN ERA*
9...Martina Navratilova
7...Steffi Graf
7...Serena Williams*
5...Venus Williams*
4...Billie Jean King (+2 pre-Open era)

*WIMBLEDON FINALS - ACTIVE*
11..Serena Williams (7-4)
9...Venus Williams (5-4)
2...Petra Kvitova (2-0)
2...Angelique Kerber (1-1)
2...Garbine Muguruza (1-1)
1...Simona Halep (1-0)
1...Genie Bouchard (0-1)
1...Sabine Lisicki (0-1)
1...Vera Zvonareva (0-1)

*BEST WIMBLEDON GIRLS/LADIES RESULTS*
[won Girls & Ladies titles]
Martina Hingis (1994 Junior champion; 1997 Ladies champion)
Amelie Mauresmo (1996 Junior champion; 2006 Ladies champion)
[others]
Martina Navratilova - 1973 Junior RU; 9-time Ladies champion
Hana Mandlikova - 1978 Junior RU; 1981 & '86 Ladies RU
Zina Garrison - 1981 Junior champion; 1990 Ladies RU
Maria Sharapova - 2002 Junior RU; 2004 Ladies champion
Aga Radwanska - 2005 Junior champion; 2012 Ladies RU
Genie Bouchard - 2012 Junior champion; 2014 Ladies RU

*BACK-TO-BACK RG/WI WOMEN'S TITLES - OPEN ERA*
1970 Margaret Court, AUS
1971 Evonne Goolagong, AUS
1972 Billie Jean King, USA
1974 Chris Evert, USA
1982 Martina Navratilova, USA
1984 Martina Navratilova, USA
1988 Steffi Graf, FRG
1993 Steffi Graf, GER
1995 Steffi Graf, GER
1996 Steffi Graf, GER
2002 Serena Williams, USA
2015 Serena Williams, USA

*AO/WI TITLES IN SEASON - OPEN ERA*
1970 Margaret Court, AUS
1983 Martina Navratilova, USA
1985 Martina Navratolova, USA
1988 Steffi Graf, FRG
1989 Steffi Graf, FRG
1997 Martina Hingis, SUI
2003 Serena Williams, USA
2006 Amelie Mauresmo, FRA
2009 Serena Williams, USA
2010 Serena Williams, USA
2015 Serena Williams, USA

*FIRST-TIME SLAM SEMIFINALISTS AT WIMBLEDON SINCE 2010*
2010 Petra Kvitova, CZE
2010 Tsvetana Pironkova, BUL
2011 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
2011 Sabine Lisicki, GER (RU)
2012 Aga Radwanska, POL (RU)
2013 Kirsten Flipkens, BEL
2014 Lucie Safarova, CZE
2015 Garbine Muguruza, ESP (RU)
2016 Elena Vesnina, RUS
2017 Magdalena Rybarikova, SVK
2018 Julia Goerges, GER
2019 Elina Svitolina, UKR
2019 Barbora Strycova, CZE

*WIMBLEDON WHEELCHAIR CHAMPIONS*
[singles]
2016 Jiske Griffioen, NED
2017 Diede de Groot, NED
2018 Diede de Groot, NED
2019 Aniek Van Koot, NED
[doubles]
2009 Korie Homan/Esther Vergeer (NED/NED)
2010 Esther Vergeed/Sharon Walraven (NED/NED)
2011 Esther Vergeer/Sharon Walraven (NED/NED)
2012 Jiske Griffioen/Aniek van Koot (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 Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley (JPN/GBR)
2017 Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley (JPN/GBR)
2018 Diede de Groot/Yui Kamiji (NED/JPN)
2019 Diede de Groot/Aniek Van Koot (NED/NED)

*RECENT WIMBLEDON DOUBLES CHAMPIONS*
2010 Vania King & Yaroslava Shvedova, USA/KAZ
2011 Kveta Peschke & Katarina Srebotnik, CZE/SLO
2012 Serena Williams & Venus Williams, USA/USA
2013 Hsieh Su-Wei & Peng Shuai, TPE/CHN
2014 Sara Errani & Roberta Vinci, ITA/ITA
2015 Martina Hingis & Sania Mirza, SUI/IND
2016 Serena Williams & Venus Williams, USA/USA
2017 Ekaterina Makarova & Elena Vesnina, RUS/RUS
2018 Barbora Krejcikova & Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
2019 Hsieh Su-wei & Barbora Strycova, TPE/CZE

*RECENT WIMBLEDON MIXED DOUBLES CHAMPS*
2010 Cark Black & Leander Paes, ZIM/IND
2011 Iveta Benesova & Jurgen Melzer, CZE/AUT
2012 Lisa Raymond & Mike Bryan, USA/USA
2013 Kristina Mladenovic & Daniel Nestor, FRA/CAN
2014 Samantha Stosur & Nenad Zimonjic, AUS/SRB
2015 Martina Hingis & Leander Paes, SUI/IND
2016 Heather Watson & Henri Kontinen, GBR/FIN
2017 Martina Hingis & Jamie Murray, SUI/GBR
2018 Nicole Melichar & Alexander Peya, USA/AUT
2019 Latisha Chan & Ivan Dodig, TPE/CRO

*RECENT WIMBLEDON GIRLS DOUBLES CHAMPS*
2010 Timea Babos & Sloane Stephens, HUN/USA
2011 Genie Bouchard & Grace Min, CAN/USA
2012 Genie Bouchard & Taylor Townsend, CAN/USA
2013 Barbora Krejcikova & Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
2014 Tami Grende & Ye Quiyu, INA/CHN
2015 Dalma Galfi & Fanny Stollar, HUN/HUN
2016 Usue Arconada & Claire Liu, USA/USA
2017 Olga Danilovic & Kaja Juvan, SRB/SLO
2018 Wang Xinyu & Wang Xiyu, CHN/CHN
2019 Savannah Broadus & Abigail Forbes, USA/USA

**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
2021 AO - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN
2021 RG - #1 Diede de Groot/NED def. #2 Yui Kamiji/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**
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 2020/2021 AO 2nd
2020 Sofia Kenin (AO): U.S. Open 5th
2020 Iga Swiatek (RG): Australian 4th
2021 Barbora Krejcikova (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

**FIRST-TIME SLAM SEMIFINALISTS SINCE 2017**
=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)
=2021=
AO: Jennifer Brady/USA (RU)
RG: Krejcikova/CZE (W), Pavlyuchenkova/RUS (RU), Sakkari/GRE, Zidansek/SLO
--
NOTE: at 10 con Wimb. (2010-19)

**CAREER SLAM #1 SEEDS - active**
20...Serena Williams
6...Simona Halep
5...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)

**RECENT SLAM JUNIOR CHAMPS**
[2017]
AO: Marta Kostyuk, UKR
RG: Whitney Osuigwe, USA
WI: Claire Liu, USA
US: Amanda Anisimova, USA
[2018]
AO: Liang En-shuo, TPE
RG: Coco Gauff, USA
WI: Iga Swiatek, POL
US: Wang Xiyu, CHN
[2019]
AO: Clara Tauson, DEN
RG: Leylah Fernandez, CAN
WI: Daria Snigur, UKR
US: Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL
[2020]
AO: Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, AND
US: DNP
RG: Elsa Jacquemot, FRA
[2021]
AO: POSTPONED
RG: Linda Noskova, CZE





futuristic-fonts


kosova-font


kosova-font



kosova-font



Gaetz derisively shaking his head in the middle of it tops it off perfectly, too.


kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font


Ummm, are you kiddin' me? I mean, really?




kosova-font



What a great, gospel-infused version of that song (plus, broken arm Bono).


kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font



kosova-font






All for now.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 6:55 PM 

3 Comments:

Blogger colt13 said...

Eddie Murphy/Rick James bop is underrated.

Don't see Pironkova in yet.

10 On the Up Side- The how will this be any less exciting than Roland Garros edition.

1.Muchova- The Jon Rahm effect? PGA star Rahm had a 6 stroke lead at the Memorial, then got DQ for COVID. He then came back and won the US Open. This is Muchova's Olympics. She qualified, but Vondrousova used PR, leaving her as the highest ranked player left out at 22. With her grass game she is talented enough to win. The red flag? Only has 12 wins on the season, due to 2 1/2 months off due to ab injury. Only players who won this event and ended up with less that 40 on the season? Serena in 2016 and Bartoli, who retired before seasons end in 2013.
2.Pegula- Good court coverage and underrated at net, she has a similar issue as Muchova. She is the #5 American, so she can go all out, with a week off in late July. May have an early match vs Kvitova in which she can show her improvement.
3.Muguruza- In mutch better health than a month ago. 2017 winner and 2015 finalist could find form with a number of seeds expected to leave early.
4.Kostyuk- With youngsters making milestones every week, why not the 19 year old? Well, she will be on Monday. She's in Barty's section, which if Barty isn't 100%, it is wide open.
5.Kerber- In the non Serena category, Kerber has the best grass pedigree in the last 10 years. After Hsieh at AO and Pavlyuchenkova at RG, maybe Kerber is the next veteran to make a deep run. QF would not be a shock.
6.Konta- Knee is an issue, but in an event where 3 or 4 players will fall the first day, maybe Konta, the player that falls on hard but stands up on grass, will have an advantage.
7.Kvitova- Ankle is not a problem. Moving better than she has in years. The red flag are that her strokes are erratic. Anywhere from 3rd rd to SF is her range.
8.Podoroska- Better than her record. In her first year playing only WTA events and has a career high in wins with 12. Not expecting her to go real deep, but to get experience.
9.Perez- One of 5 women, along with Volynets, Diatchenko, Niculescu and Wang Xinyu not to drop a set in qualifying. Perez is the only one to defeat 3 higher ranked players. This was at Roehampton, which might play different than Wimbledon. Not Four Seasons to Four Seasons Landscaping different, but still.
10.Pironkova- Lost in Q, but up to 103 in rankings. Will still get Q points, so should make USO MD, which will close after Wimbledon. Shows what Clijsters could have done, even with a limited schedule.

Sat Jun 26, 11:59:00 PM EDT  
Blogger colt13 said...

10 On the Down Side.

1.Cornet- The Cornet/Andreescu match is a treat for us, but terrible for them. If they live up to their history, this will be a 3 hr match, which will also be the reason neither has anything left for the second week. Also, Cornet is one of 5(Pavlyuchenkova, Vondrousova, Alexandrova, Barthel) that have a 3 match losing streak here.
2.Krejcikova- Comes in without a match on grass. In the last 10 years, there have only been 3 in which the winner has not played a grass event before Wimbledon. No surprise, it was Serena in 2012, 15 and 16. Still looking for her first MD grass win, she is one of 5 seeds(Sakkari, Williams, Kenin, Barty) that didn't play one.
3.Sabalenka- Sabalenka in a slam is like Ben Simmons in the playoffs. Too soon? She actually has a good draw, and if she could actually make it to the second week, she might be the favorite. Think about it- everybody seems to have some type of physical ailment. Sabalenka doesn't have those concerns.
4.Swiatek- Grass neophyte gets the trickster is Hsieh. Even if she wins, it is about getting comfort for the future.
5.Yastremska- Gets cleared 1 day after her name is pulled out of the draw. 3 slams missed is worth 300K. Real curious if she will play with a chip on her shoulder for the rest of this season.
6.Li- Had early season success, then got hurt and is only 2-3 since Monterrey. Former junior RU has the game to reach QF, but not this year.
7.Mertens- On 3 match LS in which all 3 have gone 3 sets, with 5 tiebreaks. So she isn't far off, but in a mini slump.
8.Giorgi- Plays like she is double parked. If healthy, she would be QF threat, even with no plan B. Plus she's in Muchova's section.
9.Brady- Having pulled out, neither AO finalist is here. With Krejcikova and Pavlyuchenkova's recent grass records looking light, most likely that we have our 5th and 6th different slam finalist this year.
10.Niemeier- A missed opportunity, though Kerkhove is the German slayer, having knocked off current analyst Sabine Lisicki here a couple of years ago.

Sun Jun 27, 12:21:00 AM EDT  
Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

Yeah, I think I looked at Wikipedia or somewhere right after qualifying and both Ahn and Pironkova were listed as LL so I included her in the lists. Obviously that didn't turn out to be the case.

(Wish it had, though. I mean, if anyone was worth a wild card...)

I was looking for an original "Radwanska Day" entry on Saturday (June 26) but couldn't find anything worthy. Maybe the Rad got *me* this year? :/

I wasn't looking to put Muchova as far in my picks as I did, but after I committed to some early upsets I didn't have much choice.

* - "This was at Roehampton, which might play different than Wimbledon. Not Four Seasons to Four Seasons Landscaping different, but still." :D

Really, I went into the picks with just a few thoughts about players I had good thoughts for (Keys, Rybakina, etc.) and others I didn't (Sabalenka, Gauff, etc.) and got to my QF and had *no idea* which ones I was going to pick for the final. Rybakina/Bencic won out, even if the picks look a bit like those for a HC event in February (or maybe early August).

I actually did pretty well at RG. I had 5/8 of the QF (w/ 3 SF alive) in a group that was hardly chalk, but then saw them all wiped out in one round. Don't know about this one. I will say, it's easier predicting wilder-looking brackets w/o Osaka on hard courts or Halep in the mix at all, Serena not on top of her game, Barty possibly injured, and the Top 3 seeds including Sabalenka and Svitolina (and #4 Kenin and #5 Andreescu w/o any good grass history). ;)

Sun Jun 27, 10:12:00 AM EDT  

Post a Comment

<< Home