Monday, May 23, 2022

RG.2- Amanda-rama in Paris, Part Deux


Amanda-rama, bo-banna
Amanda-fana fo-fanna
Fee-fi-mo-manna
Amanda!




#27-seeded Amanda Anisimova came into this Roland Garros having gone just 2-2 in the event since her surprise SF run in Paris at age 17 in 2019, but her encouraging 2022 start to this season rightly made the Bannerette (at least to anyone paying attention, no matter what the "official" odds/moneyline were) the favorite in her Day 2 match against Naomi Osaka, the same four-time slam champ that Anisimova had knocked off (as the reigning AO champ) on hard court in Melbourne earlier this year.

Anisimova, 20, posted three straight QF+ results on clay this spring (Charleston SF, Madrid/Rome QF) and three Top 10 wins, a nice follow-up to the rocky stretch that had followed a Week 1 title run and AO Round of 16 result Down Under which had included a 2-4 skid that included a public break-up with "almost coach" Darren Cahill. Even while still having occasional "hiccups" along the way, such as mid-match "phases," blown leads and/or love sets lost even on the path to victory, Anisimova's 10-3 clay record in '22 stood in stark contrast to Osaka's 1-1 mark, which *did* include a nice win over Anastasia Potapova (just off her Istanbul title run) but had ended with a discouraging Achilles injury that had pretty much put an official capper on any notions that maybe *this* might be the spring stretch in which the four-time hard court slam winner might finally get her clay court legs. At least she showed up in Paris without all the ridiculousness that accompanied her arrival a year ago, about which there has thankfully been little noise and/or overdone reflection heading into this RG.

Anisimova took an early break lead at 3-1 in the opening set, but Osaka got things back on serve and threatened to surge into the lead. Anisimova rallied from love/30 to hold for 4-4, then after failing to put away three BP of her own at 5-5 saw Osaka hand it to her with a DF on #4. Serving at 6-5, Anisimova held at love to take the set.

At 3-3 in the 2nd, noticeably flexing her leg (the Achilles injury?) during the game, Osaka again DF'd to give Anisimova the lead. A game later, after Anisimova had broken a string at the start of the game and was forced to play a series of slice shots, Osaka failed to take advantage of her opponent's limited shot availability and instead gifted an error that let her off the hook. Anisimova held for 5-3, and two games later served for her second slam win over Osaka this season. Up 40/love, Anisimova saw her lead shrink to 40/30, but didn't allow one of her recent hiccups to reappear and interfere with the moment. Smacking a backhand winner down the line on her third MP, she took the match 7-5/6-3 to reach the 2nd Round in Paris for the third time in four years.

Meanwhile, though Osaka has only exited RG in the opening round on one previous occasion (2017), her results in majors not played on hard courts cut a strikingly different profile than what she's done in Melbourne and New York. 48-9 in her AO/US career, Osaka is now 11-8 at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

Anisimova, even with another slam win over a major champion, doesn't enjoy the advantage of an easy draw. She'll next face 2019 RG Round of 16er Donna Vekic (a qualifier this year), with the likes of Maria Sakkari ('21 SF) a potential 3rd Round opponent. But Anisimova has been here before, at this very major. Her past experience worked to her advantage in another face-off with Osaka today, so maybe the trend will continue.




=DAY 2 NOTES=
...meanwhile, the new queen of women's tennis made her presence in Paris known to the proletariat on Day 2.



Not unexpectedly, once again highlighting just how good Liudmula Samsonova was in Stuttgart when she very nearly upset the world #1, Iga Swiatek wasn't really challenged in her match against qualifier Lesia Tsurenko. Rather than get bored, though, the Pole just kept bulling her way over and through her latest opponent. Swiatek won twelve of the first fourteen points against the Ukrainian, taking a 3-0 lead before further fine-tuning her game as the match wore on. After losing two games (!!) and once dropping serve (!!!) in the opener, Swiatek posted her 14th macaron set in her now 29-match winning streak en route to a 6-2/6-0 victory. She's now won 16 straight sets, and 44 of 45 (Samsonova had ended Iga's 28-set run last month).



...in the other early matches that were completed before the rain briefly stopped play on the outer courts, #32 Petra Kvitova reasserted herself on the slam stage for the first time in a while. Just 4-5 in slam play since reaching the semifinals in Paris in '20, Kvitova was only seeded at this major because of the withdrawals of '21 finalist Anastasia Pavlycuchenkova and Elina Svitolina. Facing Anna Bondar today, she nearly dropped the 1st set, which would *not* have been a good sign. The Czech was 2-9 in '22 when she loses the opener, vs. 7-2 when Kvitova takes the lead.

Bondar served for the 1st at 5-3 but wasn't able to close it out. Kvitova forced a tie-break, which she dominated in shutout fashion, then ran away with the 2nd for a 7-6(0)/6-1 victory.



Few players were in better early season form than Chinese teenager Zheng Qinwen. The 19-year old began the year at 14-2, qualifying in Melbourne (reaching the SF) and the Australian Open (getting her maiden slam MD win) and then winning a $60K challenger title. She came to Paris having gone 3-6 since, failing to win multiple matches in six straight events, retiring in Charleston (down 5-2 in the 3rd, angering the betting hordes of social media for all times) against Ekaterina Alexandrova in a match in which Zheng fired 19 aces, and losing three-setters to the likes of Anna Kalinskaya, Leylah Fernandez, Angelique Kerber and Karolina Muchova.

Zheng had no such issues today, defeating Maryna Zanevska 6-3/6-1, hitting in six aces, winning 21 of 22 first serves and putting up 28/10 W/UE stats. She's now 18-8 in 2022.



Meanwhile, Rabat champ Martina Trevisan is still hot on the dirt. Winning in the 1st Round for the fourth time in six majors since reaching the QF of Roland Garros in 2020, the Italian thrashed Harriet Dart, Iga-style, winning 6-0/6-2. While Trevisan's match took 31 minutes longer to complete than that of the #1 seed, and her 62-37 points edge wasn't quite as good as Swiatek's 54-22 numbers, Iga faced two BP (and dropped serve once) in the match while Trevisan faced nary a single one.

...with the rains forcing suspensions of play all over the grounds, the retractable court roof on Chatrier allowed play to continue uninterrupted there, giving defending champ Barbora Krejcikova the chance to hit the court for the first time since her February elbow injury. Well, for a while, that was the story... then things, umm, took a turn.



#97-ranked Pastry Diane Parry has had eyes on her for a few years now. The junior #1 in 2019, her one-handed backhand drew comparisons to that of Amelie Mauresmo, and she recorded her maiden slam MD win in her debut match in Paris as a wild card. Three years later, even before today, the 19-year old had already begun to make a move. She didn't need a WC to get into the women's draw this year, having cracked the Top 100. Still, since ending 2021 with a WTA 125 title she came into Day 2 having gone just 7-12. Parry was without a tour-level MD win in '22, and her match on Monday vs. #2-ranked Krejcikova was the first of her career against a Top 10 player.

After an opening double-fault, things started well for Krejcikova, as she took the 1st set 6-1, winning fourteen consecutive points in one stretch, and led 2-0 in the 2nd. But starting with an incorrect call that went against the Czech, the entire match began to turn in the favor of the young Pastry. Parry would suddenly catch fire, sweeping six straight games to take the 2nd set, during which she committed just three UE.



Krejcikova broke Parry's serve to begin the 3rd, but the set was back on serve by game #7 until Parry held a BP that, if converted, would give her the chance to serve for the win. Krejcikova's miss on a swing volley gave the Pastry that opportunity and she put the match away, holding at 30 to win 1-6/6-2/6-3, giving France its first win on the women's side (Parry was the sixth Pastry to play in the 1st Round) while simultaneously handing the Czech Republic a first defeat (after going 4-0 to start this RG).



Krejcikova's loss adds her name to the short list of defending RG champs to exit in the 1st round, joining alongside the recent likes of Anastasia Myskina (2005) and Alona Ostapenko (2018). Not shockingly, all three had been first-time major winners when they triumphed in Paris. Myskina never won a second, and (so far) neither has the stunningly exciting (but also mind-bendingly streaky) Latvian. We'll see what happens with Krejcikova once she's fully healthy *and* has some matches under her belt.



...Parry's win opened the Pastry floodgate, as her triumph was soon followed by maiden slam MD victories from wild cards Elsa Jacquemot and Leolia Jeanjean, as well.



#215 Jacquemot, 19, was the RG junior champ in 2020. She received her third straight WC into the women's event in Paris this year and today it finally paid off when she eliminated Heather Watson in straight sets.

#227 Jeanjean, a 26-year old NCAA product of the University of Arkansas, was making her slam MD debut against Nuria Parrizas Diaz, who herself only made her slam debut (at age 30) at last year's U.S. Open. The French woman won 6-4/6-3 to add another chapter to a story that had already seen her reach three ITF finals in '22, winning a $25K crown and falling in a $60K final against young Czech Linda Noskova (more on her day on a very busy afternoon in Paris later). Jeanjean's win checked just about every box: not only was it her first in a major in her slam debut, but it was also her first tour-level victory, and allowed her to record her first win over a Top 100 player.

...before the rain had suspended play for a bit, a pair of former slam champions saw their '22 RG existence seemingly balancing on the head of a pin. Both Bianca Andreescu and #15 Victoria Azarenka may have been lucky to survive this day in the draw, but considering how other higher-seeded women *didn't* manage to do just that they'll surely take their victory and move on to the next round without worrying much about the path they took today.

Andreescu has played quite well since returning to the tour this spring, but noticeably blew a tire with her love 2nd set (welcome to the club) loss to Swiatek in the Rome QF after she'd battled the world #1 to a 1st set TB. Today against qualifier Ysaline Bonaventure, Andreescu took a quick 2-0 lead, then had to fight for her RG life. Bonaventure broke and soon took led 4-2. She closed out the set on the Canadian's serve with a break for 6-3. The Belgian led 2-0 in the 2nd, having won eight of nine games, and held a GP for 3-0. Andreescu got the break, but gave it back a game later. Four straight games were lost by the serving player as the two were locked at 3-3 mid-way through the 2nd.

Finally, Andreescu saved a BP to hold for 3-3 and belatedly began to take control. A break for 6-5 was followed by a hold to even the match. Andreescu broke serve again to open the 3rd, and led 3-0 when play was interrupted. When she returned, the Canadian rolled over Bonaventure, taking the set at love.



Andreescu next faces #14 Belinda Bencic, with a possible juicy match-up with countrywoman Leylah Fernandez dangling out there in the 3rd Round (#17 Fernandez faces Katerina Siniakova in the 2nd Rd.).

Meanwhile, Azarenka seemed to be actively searching for leads to lose against Ana Bogdan. She held a double-break edge on the Romanian at 4-1 in the 1st, and served for the set at 5-4 and 6-5 only to be broken both times. In the 1st set TB, she served two at triple SP at 6-3, only to see Bogdan take the breaker 9-7 on her own second SP.



Again, Azarenka took an early 3-1 lead in the 2nd, but Bogdan again battled back to get things on serve. Play was suspended with the score 3-3. When play resumed, Bogdan broke to take a 6-5 lead and served for the match. Azarenka stayed alive with a break of serve, then dominated a 7-1 TB. Up an early break again in the 3rd, this time Vika didn't let it slip, winning the decider 6-2.



...Swiatek's nearly perfect run over the last two months (save for one lost set) has brought Liudmila Samsonova's name out into the light once more. Jon Wertheim's pre-RG Seed Report on SI.com even referred to the Hordette as "perhaps the best player you’ve never heard of."

Samsonova has surely shown great promise over the last two seasons, romping last year on the grass in Berlin and starring in the Russian Tennis Federation's BJK Cup title run last fall before her near-miss vs. Swiatek in Stuttgart this year. But the fact is that Samsonova hasn't had a particularly good season to date. The #25 seed, she lost today to Danka Kovinic in three sets, falling to 9-11 in '22. She hasn't won a match since she pushed the world #1 to the brink in Stuttgart, with today's loss giving her four straight clay court defeats.

Did someone say "Iga Curse?"



Had she won, Samonsova would have been another victory away from getting the chance to finish what she left incomplete in Stuttgart, via another face-off with Swiatek in the 3rd Round. But now that'll have to wait.

...one might have thought that the amount of dramatic matches might ebb just a bit as Day 2 wore on, but such a thought would have been an erroneous one.

In an all-teenager match-up that pitted #12-seeded, 19-year old U.S. Open champ Emma Raducanu against a rising 17-year old, the youngest qualifier in Paris in 13 years, trying to be a bigger hitting version of the Emma (who was also a qualifier) from last summer in New York, Czech Linda Noskova -- the '21 RG girls' champ -- very nearly added her name to the list of players making the most of their slam MD debuts.

Noskova, the first of the new crush of Czechs to enter the slam fray (she's the youngest Czech to play a slam MD match since 2006), claimed the 1st set TB from the Brit in what was also the RG MD debut of Raducanu (she's now played at all four, so that's the last time we'll have to say that).



Noskova, with the match seemingly on her racket, pushed Raducanu's back against the wall in the 2nd, breaking to lead 4-3 and causing everyone to start scrambling to look up who might have defeated a player ranked any higher than Raducanu's current standing of #12 in their tour-level debut. But Raducanu's oft-overlooked fight (and big stage experience, something she *does* have even though she's played so little thus far at tour-level) helped to drag her back into the battle. The Brit got the break back, and soon Noskova was serving down 6-5 to stay in the set. The Czech saved three Raducanu SP and held a GP to force a TB, but Raducanu did just enough to eke out the break to get into a 3rd set.

Once there, the errors from Noskova started to become more prevalent, while Raducanu remained firm. The Brit got the early break in the set, saved a BP (barely, as Noskova just missed on a tough -- perhaps too risky, but she'll learn -- down the line forehand attempt at a clean winner from a difficult angle) and took a commanding 4-1 lead. Raducanu pulled away to win 6-7(4)/7-5/6-1, maintaining her (thus far) perfect 1st Round record (4-0) in majors.



...lost in the pummeling nature of today's matches (they just kept coming): #5 Anett Kontaveit's slam troubles continued, as she fell 7-6(5)/7-5 to Ajla Tomljanovic, making it four (so far) Top 10 seeds out in the 1st Round of the women's draw. Meanwhile... Schmeidy! Anna Karolina Schmiedlova saw Kristina Kucova serve at 6-4/5-4 and hold a MP, but AKS took a 7-1 2nd set TB in the all-Slovak affair to force a 3rd set. She raced to a 3-0 lead, winning 4-6/7-6(1)/6-2. Schmiedlova was the RG junior finalist a full decade ago in Paris.

...and then there was Angie, baby.

The 34-year old Strasbourg champ arrived in Paris having just won her first clay title in six years, winning an epic three-setter in the final against Kaja Juvan. So, naturally, Angelique Kerber today proceeded to win another even more epic three-setter in the 1st Round of Roland Garros, notching her first victory (and winning her first set, actually) in the event since her 2018 QF run. The German had exited RG in the 1st Round in five of the last six editions of the tournament, even being the First Seed Out in both 2019 and '21.

She very nearly lost in her opening match again, but instead took Magdalena Frech on a gruelling ride that'll have 'em talking for years.



The #21-seeded Kerber found herself battling for her Paris life in the 3rd, but seemingly loving every minute of it, just like the delirious crowd that showed their love and respect for the three-time slam champion (she's only missing, well, *this* one) by chanting her name. Down 2-0, 4-2 and with Frech serving at 5-4, Kerber carved out double BP at 15/40 only to see the Pole win three straight points to reach MP. Kerber saved it, then another MP, getting the break on BP #3 to tie the score.

Kerber, after facing her near certain demise (again) in this event, would ultimately sweep the final four games of the match, winning on her second MP, 2-6/6-3/7-5, and celebrating in ways that even her past exuberantly celebrating self rarely (if ever) has.



Hmmm, I seem to remember another time Kerber saved MP in the 1st Round of a major. Yeah, she ended up winning the whole thing.

(Don't mind me... I'm just making a mental note.)





...in Sunday night's NCAA women's team championship final in Champaign, Illinois it was the Texas Longhorns downing Oklahoma 4-1 to successfully defend last year's title. Freshman Allura Zamarripa, as was the case throughout the team event, provided the clinching point, getting the win with a MP drop shot and mid-court volley winner.







...Hmmm... ON DAY 2:

Pam Shriver calling the French crowd "savvy" on Tennis Channel when they booed Krejcikova for daring to take time to change outfits between the 2nd and 3rd sets. I'm sure she must have meant "pissy," right? I mean, she's been going to Paris for decades... she knows.


...PDA at the NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS:




...COCO BEING VERY COCO ON DAY 2 1:




...ONTO THE NEXT DISCUSSION POINT ON DAY 2:

It's not very well communicated in the actual tweet, but this is about the decision to not offer ranking points at Wimbledon.




Of course, since Osaka is 4-3 in her Wimbledon career, and hasn't had a win there since 2018 I'm not sure her chances to rack up points at SW19 were particularly great, anyway. That being the case, it sort of brings to mind last year's pre-RG controversy, which just so happened to come at a slam played on a surface on which she's never done well. Coincidence? Hmmm.



...FAN-CREATED SIGNS ARE GREAT (why don't we see as many as we used to?) ON DAY 2:












One of the more memorable music videos of the 1980s.




FUN FACTS: more than 20 years after her high school years, Basil was wearing her actual Las Vegas High School cheerleading uniform for the video. In 2019, a 75-year old Basil choreographed Quentin Tarantino's movie "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" and appeared in an uncredited cameo in which she danced with Margot Robbie. Watching the 2020 interview segment below, I realized what a ridiculously under-the-radar career she's had over the decades... holy crap, the people she's worked with.







kosova-font







kosova-font

*RECENT NCAA WOMEN'S TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS*
2010 Stanford
2011 Florida
2012 Florida
2013 Stanford
2014 UCLA
2015 Vanderbilt
2016 Stanford
2017 Florida
2018 Stanford
2019 Stanford
2021 Texas
2022 Texas
[most team titles]
20 - Stanford
7 - Florida
4 - Texas
2 - Georgia, USC, UCLA
1 - Duke, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt

*IN WOMEN'S SLAM SINGLES MD...*
[oldest]
=2014=
AO: Kimiko Date, JPN (43)
RG: Kimiko Date, JPN (43)
WI: Kimiko Date, JPN (43)
US: Kimiko Date, JPN (43)
=2015=
AO: Kimiko Date, JPN (44)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (34)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (35)
US: Venus Williams, USA (35)
=2016=
AO: Venus Williams, USA (35)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (35)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (36)
US: Venus Williams, USA (36)
=2017=
AO: Venus Williams, USA (36)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (36)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (37)
US: Venus Williams, USA (37)
=2018=
AO: Venus Williams, USA (37)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (37)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (38)
US: Patty Schnyder, SUI (39)
=2019=
AO: Venus Williams, USA (38)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (38)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (39)
US: Venus Williams, USA (39)
=2020=
AO: Venus Williams, USA (39)
US: Venus Williams, USA (40)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (40)
=2021=
AO: Venus Williams, USA (40)
RG: Venus Williams, USA (40)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (41)
US: Samantha Stosur, AUS (37)
=2022=
AO: Samantha Stosur, AUS (37)
RG: Kaia Kanepi, EST (36)
[youngest]
=2014=
AO: Ana Konjuh, CRO (16)
RG: Fiona Ferro, FRA (17)
WI: Ana Konjuh, CRO (16)
US: CiCi Bellis, USA (15)
=2015=
AO: Ana Konjuh, CRO (17)
RG: Ana Konjuh, CRO (17)
WI: Ana Konjuh, CRO (17)
US: Sofia Kenin, USA (16)
=2016=
AO: Priscilla Hon, AUS (17)
RG: Tessah Andrianjafitrimo, FRA (17)
WI: Katie Swan, GBR (17)
US: Kayla Day, USA (16)
=2017=
AO: Destanee Aiava, AUS (16)
RG: Amanda Anisimova, USA (15)
WI: Anastasia Potapova, RUS (16)
US: Claire Liu, USA (17)
=2018=
AO: Marta Kostyuk, UKR (15)
RG: Marketa Vondrousova, CZE (18)
WI: Claire Liu, USA (18)
US: Whitney Osuigwe, USA (16)
=2019=
AO: Whitney Osuigwe, USA (16)
RG: Diane Parry, FRA (16)
WI: Coco Gauff, USA (15)
US: Coco Gauff, USA (15)
=2020=
AO: Coco Gauff, USA (15)
US: Robin Montgomery, USA (15)
RG: Coco Gauff, USA (16)
=2021=
AO: Coco Gauff, USA (16)
RG: Coco Gauff, USA (17)
WI: Coco Gauff, USA (17)
US: Ashlyn Krueger, USA (17)
=2022=
AO: Coco Gauff, USA (17)
RG: Linda Noskova, CZE (17)







TOP QUALIFIER: #2q Jule Niemeier/GER (slam MD debut; 7 games lost in 3 Q-matches)
TOP EARLY-ROUND (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE-ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q2: #10q Viktoriya Tomova/BUL def. Marina Melnikova/RUS 2-6/7-5/6-0 (trailed 6-2/5-1; reached MD as LL)
TOP EARLY-RD. MATCH (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE-RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.-WC): xx
=============================
FIRST VICTORY: #26 Sorana Cirstea/ROU (def. Maria/GER)
FIRST SEED OUT: #6 Ons Jabeur/TUN (1st Rd. to Magda Linette/POL)
FIRST SLAM MD WINS: Elsa Jacquemot/FRA, Leolia Jeanjean/FRA
UPSET QUEENS: xx
REVELATION LADIES: xx
NATION OF POOR SOULS: xx
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: 1st Rd. wins: Danilovic/SRB, Vekic/CRO
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: 1st Rd. wins: Jacquemot/FRA, Jeanjean/FRA, Saville/AUS
PROTECTED RANKING WINS: 1st Rd. wins: Andreescu/CAN
LAST PASTRY STANDING: 1st Rd. wins: Jacquemot, Jeanjean, Parry
Ms./Mademoiselle OPPORTUNITY: xx
IT "TBD": Nominee: Parry/FRA
COMEBACK PLAYER: xx
CRASH & BURN: Nominee: #6 Jabeur (1st Rd. to Linette; Madrid W/Rome RU - previous three who reached both finals also reached RG final); #2 Krejcikova (DC; 1st Rd. to Parry, led 6-1/2-0)
ZOMBIE QUEEN OF PARIS: Top Nominees (of far too many to list here): Danilovic (3 Q-round comeback; 1st Rd saved 2 MP vs. Galfi); Kerber (1st Rd. - Frech served for match, held 2 MP)
DOUBLES STAR: xx
VETERAN PLAYER (KIMIKO CUP): xx
Mademoiselle/Madame OF THE EVENING: xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx
Légion de Lenglen HONOREE: xx
Coupe LA PETIT TAUREAU: xx






All for Day 2. More tomorrow.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 7:15 PM 

3 Comments:

Blogger colt13 said...

Nice piece on Toni Basil.

Osaka actually played well, but Anisimova is more in form.

On the other hand, Kontaveit was sloppy. On clay, she looked like Sharapova on grass near the end of her career. Lack of caused a number of errors, ending up with 30W, 40UE.

Konjuh being on the youngest list multiple times stands out as does anyone from a non slam country.

Stat of the Day- 61*- Number of WTA members when they ratified in 1973.

*Note- Different sources all have numbers between 60-64.

Yesterday, we talked about the ATP boycott of Wimbledon. But did you know, that on the same day in 1973 that the seeds were released, the WTA was officially formed?

June 20th 1973. It was the perfect storm. A month prior, Billie Jean and Larry King had founded what became World Team Tennis. With 96 women on the grounds for Wimbledon, it was the perfect time to unionize.

Being that the potential boycott had dragged on for almost a month, the women thought that they might have the stage to themselves. So they tried to get equal prize money. That didn't happen overnight.

Meanwhile, King, Betty Stove and Rosie Casals led a meeting in which 64 women had a chance to form the WTA. The women signed up, and history was made.

World Team Tennis probably had more to do with equal pay that we realized. On August 3rd, World Team Tennis held a player draft for the 1974 season. With men and women mixed on teams, the US Open gave out equal pay for the 1973 Open.

In 1972, the men's winner got 25K, while the women got 10. Both got 25K in 1973. The next number might be laughable now, but R64 male losers in 1972 got 400 bucks, while the women got 100. In 1973 they both got 400.

WTA would have eventually happened, but the boycott showed what having an advocate could do.

Mon May 23, 10:10:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Diane said...

I want to have a Kerber cellular cocktail injected into my veins. And wear an Angelique perfume. The woman continues to be a wonder of strength, fortitude and just plain bad-ass never-back-down-ism.

Tue May 24, 09:26:00 AM EDT  
Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

C-

I seriously didn't know *anything* about Basil other than that song. I do now. ;)

Of course, if I included doubles on those lists, the Oldest would have had a lot of "Peschke."


D-

:)

Tue May 24, 09:29:00 PM EDT  

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