Monday, February 27, 2023

Wk.8- A Funny Thing Happened on the Way Out of the Desert

If Iga Swiatek is the WTA's latest version of a cape-wearing superbeing, well, Barbora Krejcikova might just be her Kryptonite... err, make that Krejcikonite.







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*WEEK 8 CHAMPIONS*
DUBAI, UAE (WTA 1000/Hard Court Outdoor)
S: Barbora Krejcikova/CZE def. Iga Swiatek/POL 6-4/6-2
D: Veronika Kudermetova/Liudmila Samsonova (RUS/RUS) def. Chan Hao-ching/Latisha Chan (TPE/TPE) 6-4/6-7(4) [10-1]
MERIDA, MEXICO (WTA 250/Hard Court Outdoor)
S: Camila Giorgi/ITA def. Rebecca Peterson/SWE 7-6(3)/1-6/6-2
D: Caty McNally/Diane Parry (USA/FRA) def. Wu Fang-Hsien/Wang Xinyu (TPE/CHN) 6-0/7-5




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PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Barbora Krejcikova/CZE
...if most of the rest of the tour cowers at the sight of the world #1, Krejcikova most definitely does not. The result in Dubai of such fearlessness was perhaps the greatest week of results of any player on tour this season, as the 27-year old Czech not only saved 4 MP in the early rounds, but also became just the fifth woman (though the second in four months) to defeat the world's top three players in the same event, closing out her four Top 10-win run by becoming the first player to defeat Iga Swiatek twice since the Pole rose to the top ranking a year ago, doing so for the second time in a final.

Of course, anyone with even a thread of sense of the tour landscape *knew* before this week that is was laughable to consider Krejcikova just the 30th-best player in the WTA, no matter what her ranking heading into Dubai might have said. Truth is, she was ranked #2 a year ago, before an elbow injury cost her three months and then she contracted Covid upon her return. The Czech didn't really rediscover her form until the fall, when she won back-to-back titles, posting five Top 20 wins over two weeks and handing Swiatek her first loss in a final in two years with a home soil title run in Ostrava!!! before a crowd providing her with much vocal support.

In some ways, Dubai was a super-charged version of Ostrava!!!, as a strong Czech presence in the stands once again buoyed Krejcikova, who rode it to her first 1000 crown and biggest title since winning Roland Garros in 2021.

After a week-opening win over Irina-Camelia Begu, Krejcikova saved 4 MP vs. #8 Dasha Kasatkina to record her first Top 10 win of 2023, then allowed just five games to countrywoman Petra Kvitova in the next round. After dropping the 1st at love to #2 Aryna Sabalenka, Krejcikova rallied from 6-0/3-1 down to win in three sets, handing the AO champ her first loss of the season. Picking up steam, the Czech defeated #3 Jessie Pegula, presenting the Bannerette a 3rd set bagel as a parting birthday present (though Pegula ultimately chose nacho-flavored Doritos in preparation for her flight home) to reach her ninth career final, and then defeated #1 Swiatek 6-4/6-2 to claim her sixth tour singles crown.



The win not only returns Krejcikova to the Top 20 (#16), but sends her into the spring schedule (including Paris) with the gravitas and threat level worthy of a former slam champion, something she temporarily lost during her times of trouble last year.

After her win, as is Krejcikova's way, she threw compliments Swiatek's way like they were confetti on New Year's Eve, and once more (as she displays when she serves as something of an unofficial tour historian when speaking about former champions) flashed her unabashed fandom of the sport in which she thrives.


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RISER: Iga Swiatek/POL
...coming off her sterling, five-games-lost (a record for a tour title run, albeit thanks to a bye and walkover) in Doha, Swiatek breezed through the MD in Dubai, becoming the seventh different woman to reach the final of both ends of the "Desert Double," doing so by dropping just 9 games (another record, this time for a 1000 event, though again thanks to a bye and a walkover).

As she did last week, the world #1 ripped through the draw, handing out breadsticks (two to Leylah Fernandez in the 2nd Rd.) and a bagel (Liudmila Samsonova, w/ a breadstick thrown in for free), for the second straight week seeing an opponent bow out (Karolina Pliskova, who lost love & love to her in a final just two seasons ago) rather than face her while not 100%, and then maintaining her spotless career head-to-head vs. Coco Gauff (6-0) to reach her 15th career tour-level singles final.

But "Iga, Queen of the Desert" wasn't meant to be, as Barbora Krejcikova once again was not broken nor bowed by such results and/or odds seemingly against her, and handed the Pole just her second loss in a final since Swiatek won her first Roland Garros crown in 2020, dropping her to 12-2 in her last 14 championship matches, this time doing so in straight sets after having taken three last October in Ostrava!!! in Iga's *other* lost final.

The loss prevented Swiatek from becoming the third woman -- after Hingis in '01, and Henin in '07 -- to sweep the back-to-back Middle East events on the WTA calendar, as she'll have to settle for being the sixth different to reach consecutive finals in the two events.
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SURPRISE: Kimberly Birrell/AUS
...24-year old Aussie Birrell is currently enjoying arguably the best stretch of her career after having battled through multiple long injury absences in recent years.

In Merida, Birrell qualified with wins over Elli Mandlik and Varvara Gracheva, then posted MD victories over Anna Bondar and Wang Xiyu (the latter her third straight Top 100 win of the week) to reach her first career tour QF. She's also the first Australian woman in '23 to reach the stage in a WTA event due to the injury-ravaged Aussie women's contingent. Birrell lost to Caty McNally.



Birrell's success this season is long in coming, as after reaching the AO 3rd Round in '19 she would go on to miss 18 months following that year's Wimbledon (elbow), and then another 11 months after the '21 season-opening Australian swing. She ended the '21 season at #740.

Since last fall, though, Birrell has claimed two of her three career $60K crowns (her biggest wins), in October and earlier this month, recorded six Top 100 wins (including Kaia Kanepi at the AO, her first slam MD win in four years), cracked the Top 150 for the first time two weeks ago, and (now) reached her maiden WTA QF.

Birrell fell in the final round of Monterrey qualifying on Sunday, failing to serve out the 3rd set at 5-4 against Kamilla Rakhimova and losing a 7-5 decider. She's 15-6 on all levels this season, and will climb to another new career high of #116 on Monday.
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VETERANS: Camila Giorgi/ITA and Madison Keys/USA
...you never know what you're going to get with Giorgi. In Merida, it was almost exclusively "good" Camila all week long.

The 31-year old Italian (#68) didn't lose a set en route to her tenth career tour final, her first since claiming the biggest title of her life in Montreal in the summer of '21, a 1000-level crown she won while ranked #71 in the world. This week's run in Mexico was highlighted by a double-bagel win over #2-seeded Sloane Stephens and a tight 7-5/7-6 victory in the semis over #4 Katerina Siniakova.

In the final against qualifier Rebecca Peterson, Giorgi staged a late 1st set rally (the Swede served for the set) to get things back on serve before winning a 7-3 TB. After a drop in form in the 2nd, she rallied from an early break down to sweep the final six games of the match, winning her fourth career title and assuring her return to the Top 50 (#46).

Giorgi is usually hard to read during matches as, while often fiery, she's generally either expressionless or cranky/upset about the general direction of a particular match. But there was no mistaking the mood she was in late Sunday evening.



Meanwhile, Keys was playing like blockbusters in Dubai, until she suddenly didn't. You know, sort of like how so many of her other almost-but-no great runs all over the globe have ended.

In just her second appearance in Dubai, Keys allowed just two games to Jasmine Paolini, then 9 in a straight sets win over Caroline Garcia, her first Top 10 win since knocking off Iga Swiatek last summer in Cincinnati. The 3rd Round saw her demolish Victoria Azarenka 2 & 1. Suddenly the thought that a big Dubai run for Keys seemed truly legitimate.

Then her QF match-up with Coco Gauff saw Keys throw in 51 UE in 20 games vs. just 10 winners (Gauff wasn't much better). Over-and-out.
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COMEBACKS: Karolina Muchova/CZE and Rebecca Peterson/SWE
...Muchova's week in Dubai came with both good as well as bad.

On the good side, playing with a protected ranking due to so many issues with injuries (including a six month absence between the '21 U.S. Open and '22 Miami), Muchova ran off three straight wins over Bernarda Pera, Sorana Cirstea and Belinda Bencic to reach her first 1000 QF since Madrid two seasons ago. But then came the bad, as the Czech withdrew before that QF match with an abdominal injury.

The former slam semifinalist ('21 AO) had entered the week with an actual ranking of just #112, but will rise to #77 on Monday.



2022 started well for Peterson, as she posted her first career Top 5 win over #2 Aryna Sabalenka, got an AO 1st Round victory and reached her first slam doubles QF. But come the spring injury caused her to missed two months of action in the heart of the clay & grass seasons. As a result, her season-ending ranking fell all the way down to #144, her lowest since 2017.

On the comeback trail, the #140-ranked Swede had to make her way through qualifying in Merida. After wins over Diane Parry and Carol Zhao, she strung together nice conquests of Nadia Podoroska, Lyon champ Alycia Parks, AO semifinalist Magda Linette and Caty McNally (after trailing 4-0 in the 3rd) to reach her first tour singles final in three and a half years (in Tianjin, her second of two title runs in the fall of '19).

She went three sets vs. Camila Giorgi in the championship match, but couldn't hold back the Italian after taking an early 2-0 lead in the deciding set, dropping her first match in three career WTA final appearances.

A former Top 50 player, with a career high of #43 in October '19, Peterson will return to the Top 100 this week.
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FRESH FACES: Coco Gauff/USA and Caty McNally/USA
...even without "McCoco," it was a McCoco sort of week here as both fell short in semifinal matches an ocean apart.

In Dubai, Gauff got wins over Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Madison Keys, with a walkover from Elena Rybakina (back) in between, setting up her sixth career meeting with Iga Swiatek in the SF. Afterward, Gauff was still seeking her first win over the Pole, but her six games won in the match stands as the most she's gotten in their six meetings to date.

Gauff's 10th career tour SF makes her just the fourth U.S. women in 30 years to reach double-digits in WTA semis before turning 19.



In Merida, McNally was on the cusp of a career breakthrough, but stumbled just before the finish line.

After opening by posting her first Top 50 win since last summer with a victory over Hua Hin champ Zhu Lin, McNally followed by topping Katie Volynets and Kimberly Birrell to reach her second tour SF, her first since reaching the final four in Washington in 2019 in just her fourth career tour-level MD.

Against Rebecca Peterson, the 21-year old dropped the 1st set, but forced a 3rd by taking a 2nd set TB (after having lost a 4-0 lead in the set). Up 4-0 again in the 3rd, though, McNally wavered once more and never righted the ship, dropping the final six games to miss out on her maiden tour singles final appearance.

She'll still rise to a new career high, climbing from #92 to #75.



With her singles loss still fresh, McNally returned on Sunday for the doubles final with Diane Parry. The pair took the 1st set at love over Wu Fang-Hsien/Wang Xinyu, and held off the duo in the 2nd to win in straights, 6-0/7-5. It's McNally's 7th career WTA WD crown with a 5th different partner (it's Parry's maiden win).


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DOWN: Alize Cornet/FRA
...a little more than a year ago, Cornet was preparing for what she expected to be her final season on tour. Instead, she had a resurgent '22 campaign at age 32, reaching her maiden career slam QF in Melbourne (in her 63rd major, the longest wait ever), won 11 slam MD matches (the best season total of her career), posted her two biggest match wins (def. #3 Muguruza at the AO, #1 Iga at SW19) in seven years, climbed to her highest ranking (#31) since 2018 and had her best finish (#35) since 2014. It led to her re-thinking her plans to walk away.

To date, 2023 hasn't been kind.

While Cornet extended her record slam MD appearance streak to 64 in Australia, the Pastry has (so far) lived and breathed the difference a year can make. With her 1st Round loss to Dayana Yastremska in Dubai, Cornet is 1-5 on the season, with four consecutive losses and her only win coming in United Cup "exhibition" play vs. #147 Maria Carle. She's gone 1-8 since reaching the Monastir final in early October, and will be ranked in the mid-#60's on Monday.
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ITF PLAYER: Jessika Ponchet/FRA
...Ponchet, 26, picked up her third ITF crown since last summer, adding a $40K challenger title to $60K and $25K wins. On home soil in Macon (FRA), the Pastry got wins over Lily Miyazaki, Jaqueline Cristian, Kristina Dmitruk and, in the final, Yanina Wickmayer in a three-set contest. Wickmayer had been looking to follow up last week's ITF WD title with one in singles, which would have tied for her biggest crown since winning the tour-level Washington event in 2016.

The title is the 9th on the challenger circuit for Ponchet, who'll rise to a new career high of #138.
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JUNIOR STARS: Federica Urgesi/ITA and Sara Saito/JPN
...Urgesi's post-AO (where she won the girls' doubles) success continued in the second of back-to-back events in Cairo, as she followed up her J300 win of a week ago in the city to her biggest junior singles title ever at a J500 (former JA) on the same courts. The 18-year old Italian defeated AO girls' finalist Mirra Andreeva 6-3/6-3 in the final, running her winning streak to 11 matches.

In Asuncion Bowl action Lima, Peru, 16-year old girls' #6 Saito followed up a SF win over defending champion Luciana Moyano (ARG) with a 2 & 4 victory over Bannerette Kaitlin Quevedo in the final. The win ties for the second biggest title of the Japanese teen's junior career, matching her College Park J1 (now J300) run last year and behind only her even bigger '22 crown in Osaka (JA, now J500).
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DOUBLES: Veronika Kudermetova/Liudmila Samsonova, RUS/RUS
...neither Kudermetova (1r loss vs. Kalinina, after being a finalist in '22) nor Samsonova (1 game vs. Iga in 3r) had the singles success they were hoping for in Dubai, but the Hordettes combined to end their week on a high note by taking the doubles.

Their week started by ending Sania Mirza's career (def. the Indian vet and Madison Keys), then included straight sets wins over #4-seeded Olmos/Zhang, Fernandez/Mattek-Sands and #2 L.Kichenok/Ostapenko ('22 RU). In the final against the Chan sisters, Kudermetova/Samsonova dominated a 10-1 MTB to take the crown. It's Samsonova's first tour-level WD title in her debut final, while Kudermetova successfully defends her '22 crown (won w/ Mertens) by claiming her third career 1000 title with her 6th overall WTA win.


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WHEELCHAIR: Dana Mathewson/USA
...so, who does Mathewson think she is, Diede the Great?

For the second week in a row in Bolton (ENG), Dana the Dominant took a singles title, first in a Series 3 event and then this weekend in the upgraded Series 2. Her 6-3/6-0 win in the final over Brit Lucy Shuker gives the 32-year old Mathewson, who last year at Wimbledon became the first U.S. woman to win a wheelchair slam crown (WD), 8 straight match wins (w/ just one lost set).


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1. Dubai Final - Barbora Krejcikova def. Iga Swiatek
...6-4/6-2. For the second time in less than five months, Krejcikova proves that Swiatak is most definitely *not* unbeatable when all the money in on the table, defeating her in a second singles final to level their head-to-head at two wins each, and preventing Iga from rushing into her "Sunshine Double" defense with a "Desert Double" in her back pocket.



Krejcikova thus becomes the fifth woman to defeat the top three ranked players in one event, but the second in a matter of months after Aryna Sabalenka did it in the WTAF last November (only to then lose in the final). The Czech is also the first with two wins over the Pole since she climbed to #1, and remains the only woman (doing it twice, w/ Ostrava!!!) to defeat Swiatek in a singles final in the last 28 months.

You say the tour needs more consistent rivalries? Well, maybe this is one to build on.

The result hands Swiatek her third loss of the season, with all coming in straight sets. She lost in two just four times *all* of 2022, and just twice (w/ one coming on grass) after becoming #1.

At the close of the match, in one of the few moments that Tennis Channel saw fit to let its viewers watch, the day's studio announcer (Geoff Chizever?) called Krejcikova's title run "one of the more improbable runs to a title you'll ever see."

Umm, no. It really wasn't. An amazing feat? Yes. Improbable? Not really. At least not when it comes to what we know Krejcikova is capable of. The toughest part was having the #1-#2-#3 combo become a possibility in a 56-player field.



Of course, this match, along with the men's final that took place simultaneously in the ATP 250 Doha event between Andy Murray and Daniil Medvedev, is a prime example of why tennis needs (but will never have) some sort of central governing body, or at least have something set up in which the tour(s) are given sway on occasion when it comes to scheduling.

With two competing men's and women's events in Doha and Dubai both scheduling their noteworthy Saturday finals at essentially the same time, one (guess which) was always going to draw the short straw when it comes to coverage on channels (in the U.S., Tennis Channel's over-the-air main network) that chose to show just one match, even when they had the ability to toggle back and forth between both as situations developed. A coordinated schedule that separated the start times by about 90 minutes -- surely not an impossibility on a concluding Saturday -- would have served to allow *both* matches to get the desired attention.

The Doha and Dubai sites annually share this part of the schedule, with both holding events for both tours, and with the women's events alternating 500/1000 designations. You'd think some coordinated effort would be a natural fit. But apparently not.

As it was, the U.S. Tennis Channel outlet aired the *entire* men's 250 final, while ignoring the women's 1000 featuring an "unbeatable" #1 vs. the last player to defeat her in a final for the entire 1st set (until Krejickova's SP), and then -- obviously only after fielding many complaints, as the TC announcer went on about "not everyone is going to be happy" about covering competing matches -- in the 2nd sets whilte trying to do the "double-box" set-up which only serves to show *both* matches in a lesser light, while never really offering *any* commentary on the women's match.

After Krejickova pulled off the biggest result of the day, it was stated that it'd be talked about on TC "at some point." Meanwhile, after the men's match was over, just a few minutes after the women's (haha), TC didn't offer a delayed replay of the Dubai final (either w/ world feed commentary or otherwise) and instead showed the previous day's men's QF featuring Carlos Alcaraz.

The only saving grace of the entire situation was that it all blew up in TC's collective face, as while it would have been nice to see Murray end his dramatic, fairy tale warrior-like week with a title, it was (chef's kiss) perfect when the opposite occurred. So, Tennis Channel sent its WTA fans out into the cold in favor of a desired result that didn't really stand a chance of becoming reality, causing the network to willingly fail to broadcast one of (if not *the*) most significant matches of the entire season.

And one wonders why it's really more the Pickleball Channel than Tennis Channel? Speaking of, a new Washington Post article on Sunday was all about how popular pickleball is in prisons.. (Oh, sometimes these things just write themselves, you know?)

This get-out-of-my-way-so-that-I-can-get-in-my-OWN-way sort of thinking is why tennis is perennially stuck in neutral, no matter the quality of its product on one or both tours.
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2. Dubai 2nd Rd. - Barbora Krejcikova def. Dasha Kasatkina
...6-4/4-6/7-5. Tennis results often dance on the head of a pin, and Krejcikova's huge week very nearly went the other way just a few days in.

After leading 5-0 in the 1st, Krejcikova held off a charge from Kasatkina, but then dropped the 2nd and saw the Hordette hold four MP at 5-4 in the 3rd. Kasatkina gave away two of her opportunities via DF before Krejcikova got the break on her 4th BP of the game. She then had to save a BP in the following game. In the lead on the scoreboard in the deciding set for the first time at 6-5, the Czech broke Kasatkina to claim the match.

The rest would soon become history.
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3. Dubai 1st Rd. - Liudmila Samsonova def. Paula Badosa
...6-7(3)/7-6(5)/6-4. Dubai had more than its fair share of early round battles, including this 3:22 tussle that was only the *third* longest match of the tournament (after briefly having held the title as the longest match of the year).

Badosa staged a comeback from 0-3 down in the 1st set TB to take the early lead, and held a 7-6/4-3 edge with a break in the 2nd, as well as an early break lead in the 3rd. But Samsonova hit her way out of the 1st Round with 57 winners (to Badosa's 46, though the Spaniard led 127-125 in total points).

After getting a seeming break with a walkover from Zheng Qinwen in the 2nd Round, Samsonova recorded just 1 game vs. Swiatek in their first meeting since their classic SF encounter in Stuttgart last spring. The Hordette rebounded by ending the week with her maiden tour WD title.


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4. Dubai 1st Rd. - Sorana Cirstea def. Beatriz Haddad Maia
...4-6/7-6(7)/7-5. Neither Cirstea nor Haddad stuck around long enough to make a real dent in the tournament storyline, but both starred in the opening moments in the longest match (3:29) on tour so far this season.

Haddad had a pair of MP at 6-4 in the 2nd set TB, only to see Cirstea stay alive with a 9-7 win. The Brazilian twice held break leads in the 3rd, including at 4-1, but the Romanian won six of the final seven games to get the win. Both fired off 49 winners on the day, while Haddad ended with a slight edge (125-123) in total points in the loss.


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5. Merida Final - Camila Giorgi def. Rebecca Peterson
...7-6(3)/1-6/6-2. In a match, even while Peterson was steady throughout, that was essentially dictated by Giorgi's level of play, the Italian surged at all the right times in picking up her fourth career title.

Peterson served at 5-4 in the 1st, but Giorgi got the break. The Italian failed to convert a SP at 6-5, but took the TB.

After falling off in the 2nd, Giorgi rallied from 2-0 down in the 3rd. Up 3-2, after Peterson saved a BP with a beautiful running forehand down the line, Giorgi got the break moments later anyway. She then held at love.

It was here that some potential danger entered the equation, as twice in Giorgi's past six lost tour finals she'd held MP (vs. Cornet in Katowice, as well as against Pliskova in Linz, both in '14), but she converted on her first chance here via a Peterson netted forehand.



This unseeded-vs.-qualifier match-up was the third tour final sans a seeded player this season. There have been 13 such finals the last two years, vs. 10 which have featured a pair of Top 10 players.
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6. Dubai QF - Barbora Krejcikova def. Aryna Sabalenka
...0-6/7-6(2)/6-1. Another moment that might have led to Swiatek completing a "Desert Double," or at least facing off with an undefeated Sabalenka in a blockbuster final that likely *still* would have been shunted aside by Tennis Channel in favor of an ATP 250 final in hopes of a "fairy tale finish" that didn't become reality.

Sabalenka, 13-0 on the season after having knocked off defending champ Alona Ostapenko, led Krejcikova 6-0/3-1. The Belarusian fell behind 15/40 in game 5, though, then DF'd to hand the Czech the break. From there, the rush to a different conclusion was on.

Krejcikova's secret weapon? "Funny words" shouted out by Czech fans in support of her efforts, of course.


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7. Merida 1st Rd. - Wang Xiyu def. Alison Riske-Amritraj
...7-5/4-6/7-6(1). Wang gets her first win of '23 in her fourth match of the season, but only after saving two MP at 5-4 in the 3rd.

Wang broke on her 5th BP of game 9, but saw Riske break back and serve for the match for a second time. Again, she couldn't end it, and Wang took the match in an easy TB.


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8. Dubai 2nd Rd. - Belinda Bencic def. Marta Kostyuk
...6-7(7)/7-6(5)/6-4. Another Dubai marathon (3:27), with Kostyuk coming back from 5-3 down in the 1st (w/ Bencic serving at 5-4) to nip the Swiss in a TB in which she also trailed 5-3.

But, again, Bencic staged a comeback to emerge on top, rallying from an early break to win the 2nd set, and then opening up a 4-0 lead in the 3rd. Kostyuk got close, but it wasn't enough.

Going the distance all over the desert in recent weeks, Bencic lost in straights to Karolina Muchova a round later.


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9. Merida 1st Rd. - Alycia Parks def. Fernanda Contreras
...7-6(7)/3-6/7-5. Things haven't been easy for Parks since her title run in Lyon, as she had to fight mightily to just get a win in a match vs. Contreras that was *far* more difficult than it should have been.

Parks controlled the action with her serve, but a series of easy UE perpetually put the victory at risk. Parks saved 4 BP at 3-3, then two more at 4-4, in the 3rd as the Mexican player finished 1-for-9 on BP chances. Parks didn't see her first BP on Contreras' serve until reaching double MP at 15/40 in what would be the final game of the match. She converted on her second attempt.



Parks' luck didn't last, as she lost in straights a round later to Rebecca Peterson.
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10. Merida SF - Rebecca Peterson def. Caty McNally
...6-2/6-7(4)/6-4. After squandering a 4-0 2nd set lead, but pulling her hopes back from the edge by winning a TB to force a 3rd, McNally took another 4-0 lead in the decider, with her maiden tour singles final achingly within reach.

But it remained so, as McNally never won another game, dropping six straight to end the match.
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11. Dubai 2nd Rd. - Victoria Azarenka def. Amanda Anisimova
...4-6/6-4/7-6(5). Last year in Madrid, Anisimova nearly had a meltdown vs. Azarenka after serving up 6-1/5-1, 40/love, only to see her lead nearly slip entirely away. A missed easy volley at 40/15 started an avalanche that saw Azarenka close to 5-4. Finally, Anisimova put the win away with an ace on her sixth MP.

Here Azarenka dropped the 1st after twice holding break advantages. Vika then won the 2nd from 0-2 back. In the 3rd, Anisimova led 3-1 and 5-3, serving for the match at 5-4. She couldn't close the door, and this time Azarenka caught her and took the win.

As is often the case, the final images of so many Anisimova defeats look messy and/or troubling. This one was no different.


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12. Merida QF - Camila Giorgi def. Sloane Stephens
...6-0/6-0. Really, Stephens' first double-bagel defeat was a result that finally became reality after years of waiting for it to happen. Tennis Channel's Brett Haber and Monica Puig termed Sloane's play as "disinterested" and "flat."

And? In truth, both descriptions could have been used to describe her "efforts" in numerous matches over the years. This just so happened to be the first match in which she didn't have one scoreline-rehabbing spurt, and thus the first time she paid for such a period of sleepwalking by being on the wrong end of the sport's most embarrassing scoreline.

That said, Giorgi has always had big-fish-in-a-small-pond abilities, capable of taking over even in *big* events for stretches, but they've only consistently shown themselves on occasion throughout her career (see Montreal in '21, where the Italian proved that she could take on and take out a big, strong field if she could just keep her wits about her until the not-so-bitter end).


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13. Dubai 3rd Rd. - Barbora Krejcikova def. Petra Kvitova
...6-3/6-2. From 2012-17, Kvitova won 24 straight matches vs. fellow Czechs, and coming into this match was 32-4 since 2012.

Her loss to Krejcikova drops her to 2-3 vs. her countrywomen since the summer of 2020, with two consecutive losses (w/ Pliskova in Stuttgart last year).
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14. Dubai QF - Coco Gauff def. Madison Keys
...6-2/7-5. Gauff wins, but in what wasn't exactly a masterpiece, as the two Bannerettes combined for 14 winners vs. 82 UE.

Gauff's numbers were 4-to-31, just few enough giveaway points to pull away from Keys (10-to-51).
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15. Dubai SF - Iga Swiatek def. Coco Gauff
...6-4/6-2. Coco falls to 0-6 vs. Iga, but recovered from 4-0 down in the 2nd to get two games to win a total of six, the most she's taken off the Pole in a match.

Later, Swiatek finally committed an uncorrectable unforced error in the sign-the-camera-lens portion of the match.


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16. Merida Q1 - Rebecca Peterson def. Diane Parry
...6-1/7-6(5). Parry drops to 1-6 in her last 7, and 7-16 since her maiden tour SF in Granby in August. After ending '22 at #76, the Pastry will be #112 on Monday.

Perhaps Parry will find additional match play and confidence with doubles success, as she stuck around all week to play doubles with Caty McNally, reaching her first tour final and winning her maiden title.
===============================================
17. Merida 1st Rd. - Caty McNally def. Zhu Lin
...7-6(3)/6-7(5)/6-1. McNally picks up her first Top 50 win since upsetting Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the opening round of her hometown event in Cincinnati last summer.


===============================================
18. Merida 1st Rd. - Magda Linette def. Camila Osorio
...6-7(2)/7-5/6-2. Osorio led 7-6/5-2 and twice served for the match, holding two MP. But after not being able to close out the win, the Colombian fell away, dropping ten straight games (to 5-0 in the 3rd) before avoiding the 3rd set bagel.

Before this loss, Osorio had been 21-6 in tour-level Q/MD three-set matches.
===============================================
19. Cairo J500 Final - Alena Kovackova/Laura Samsonova def. Malak El Allami/Aya El Aouni
...6-4/6-3. The Crushers, who helped lead the Czech team to the ITF World 14s title last year on home soil in Prostjevov, defeat the all-Moroccan duo to take home the J500 crown.
===============================================
20. $25K Tucuman ARG Final - Solana Sierra def. Rosa Vicens Mas
...6-2/6-2. The 18-year old Argentine claims career ITF crown #4 (her biggest so far) on home clay.
===============================================






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1. Dubai 1st Rd. - Veronika Kudermetova/Liudmila Samsonova def. Madison Keys/Sania Mirza
...6-4/6-0. Mirza's career ends, but in rather quiet fashion on Court 3 before relatively few fans in the UAE in an event the Indian tennis legend never won.

Mirza's decision to end her career in a Muslim country (w/ no tour events in India) was understandable, but a more deserving send-off surely could have come in the recent Australian Open MX final, or in either of the upcoming Indian Wells or Miami events on the eighth anniversary of her "Sunshine Double" feat with Martina Hingis in 2015.

At one time, Mirza seemed to have a great chance at Hall of Fame enshrinement. But after the most recent HoF process saw a slew of doubles players with even greater numbers than hers fail to make the cut, you have to wonder if she's done enough. Still, maybe her 6 majors, #1 WD ranking, two WTAF, 12 slam finals, 43 WD crowns *combined with* her historical importance (ala Li Na) will tip the odds in her favor.


===============================================
2. Dubai Final - Veronika Kudermetova/Liudmila Samsonova def. Chan Hao-ching/Latisha Chan
...6-4/6-7(4) [10-1]. The Hordettes win their first title as a duo, denying the Chan sisters their first together since 2019 in their fourth 1000 final (the other three were in 2015-16).

This was Hao-ching's third straight final (1-2) this month, with a third different partner. The sisters dropped to 14-9 in WTA finals.


===============================================
3. Dubai 1st Rd. - Anhelina Kalinina def. Veronika Kudermetova
...6-3/5-7/7-5. Kudermetova rallied from 6-3/5-2 to force a 3rd after Kalinina twice served for the match.

In the deciding set, it was Kudermetova who twice squandered a break lead before Kalinina (w/ 44 winners) hit her way to her biggest career hard court win. The Ukrainian will enter the Top 30 for the first time on Monday.


===============================================
4. Dubai 2nd Rd. - Karolina Pliskova def. Maria Sakkari
...6-1/6-2. After opening with a win over Marketa Vondrousova, Pliskova posted her second Top 10 win of the last two seasons with a victory over Sakkari. The other came over Sakkari last summer in Toronto.



After suffering through viral illness/cramps, Pliskova pulled out of her 3rd Rounder against Iga Swiatek, averting her first meeting with the Pole since losing to her 6-0/6-0 in the Rome final in 2021.
===============================================
5. Dubai 1st Rd. - Leylah Fernandez/Bethanie Mattek-Sands def. Anna Danilina/Luisa Stefani
...1-6/6-3 [11-9]. After having a 17-match WD/MX winning streak following her Abu Dhabi title run, Stefani has now dropped two straight (both w/ Danilina).
===============================================
HM- $25K Swan Hill AUS Final - Arina Rodionova def. Maddison Inglis
...6-4/6-3. Rodionova -- ooh, on late summer Australian grass courts -- wins her first singles title since 2018.


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*DEFEATED #1, #2 and #3-RANKED PLAYERS IN EVENT*
1999 #6 Graf = RG (#2 Davenport, #3 Seles, #1 Hingis)
2002 #9 S.Williams = Mia. (#3 Hingis, #2 V.Williams, #1 Capriati)
2008 #8 V.Williams = WTA Chsp. (#2 Safina, #3 S.Williams, #1 Jankovic)
2022 #7 Sabalenka = WTAF (#2 Jabeur, #3 Pegula, #1 Swiatek)
2023 #30 Krejcikova = Dubai (#3 Sabalenka, #2 Pegula, #1 Swiatek)
--
NOTE: all by Sablenka won event title

*2020s WTA WS TITLES*
12 - 1/2/8/1 - Iga Swiatek, POL
7 - 1/5/1/- - Ash Barty, AUS (ret.)
7 - 3/2/0/2 - Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
6 - 0/3/2/1 - BARBORA KREJCIKOVA, CZE
5 - 3/0/2/0 - Simona Halep, ROU
5 - 0/4/1/0 - Anett Kontaveit, EST

*2023 TITLES FROM MATCH POINT DOWN*
Abu Dhabi - Belinda Bencic (3 MP vs. Samsonova, F)
Dubai - BARBORA KREJCIKOVA (4 MP vs. Kasatkina, 2r)

*IN DOHA/DUBAI FINALS*
[since 2001]
2001 Martina Hingis - Doha W, Dubai W
2004 Svetlana Kuznetsova - Dubai RU, Doha RU
2007 Justine Henin - Dubai W, Doha W
2009 Venus Williams# - Dubai W, Doha (WTA Chsp.) RU
2011 Caroline Wozniacki - Dubai W, Doha RU
2017 Caroline Wozniacki - Doha RU, Dubai RU
2021 Garbine Muguruza - Doha RU, Dubai W
2023 IGA SWIATEK - Doha W, Dubai RU
--
NOTE: 2008 two Doha-Feb. & Nov.(WTA Chsp.)
# - 2009-10 Doha only as Oct. WTA Chsp.

*#1 WINS OVER SWIATEK*
[2022]
Wimbledon 3rd Rd. - #37 Alize Cornet/FRA
Warsaw QF - #45 Caroline Garcia/FRA (W)
Toronto 3rd Rd. - #24 Beatriz Haddad Maia/BRA
Cincinnati 3rd Rd. - #24 Madison Keys/USA
Ostrava!!! F - #23 Barbora Krejcikova/CZE (W)
WTA Finals SF - #7 Aryna Sabalenka/BLR
[2023]
United Cup SF - #3 Jessie Pegula/USA (W-USA)
Australian Open 4r - #25 Elena Rybakina/KAZ
Dubai F - #30 Barbora Krejcikova/CZE (W)
=
(W) - won title

*2023 WTA QUALIFIERS IN FINAL*
Adelaide 1: Linda Noskova (#102) - lost to Sabalenka
Auckland: Rebeka Masarova (#130) - lost to Gauff
Hobart: Lauren Davis (#84) - def. Cocciaretto
Merida: REBECCA PETERSON (#140) - lost to Giorgi

*2023 WTA WD FINALS*
3 (1-2) = CHAN HAO-CHING, TPE
2 (2-0) = Luisa Stefani, BRA
2 (2-0) = Taylor Townsend, USA
2 (1-1) = Katerina Siniakova, CZE
2 (1-0) = WU FANG-HSIEN, TPE (1-1)
2 (0-2) = Shuko Aoyama, JPN
2 (0-2) = WANG XINYU, CHN

*2023 FIRST-TIME WTA WD FINALISTS*
Leylah Fernandez, CAN (Auckland)
Wu Fang-hsien, TPE (Hua Hin)-W
LIUDMILA SAMSONOVA, RUS (Dubai)-W
DIANE PARRY, FRA (Merida)-W
[mixed]
Luisa Stefani, BRA (Australian)-W

*CAREER WTA WS TITLES - active CZE*
29 - Petra Kvitova (2009-22)
16 - Karolina Pliskova (2013-20)
6 - BARBORA KREJCIKOVA (2021-23)
3 - Katerina Siniakova (2017-22)

*WTA MEXICAN SWING (February/March)*
[WON MULTIPLE EVENTS]
Timea Bacsinszky - 2015 Monterrey, 2015 Acapulco
Sloane Stephens - 2016 Acapulco, 2022 Monterrey
Heather Watson - 2016 Monterrey, 2020 Acapulco
[2+ TOURNAMENT TITLES]
4 - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Monterrey 2010-11, 2013-14)
2 - Sara Errani (Acapulco 2012-13)
2 - Leylah Fernandez (Monterrey 2021-22)
2 - Garbine Muguruza (Monterrey 2018-19)
2 - Lesia Tsurenko (Acapulco 2017-18)
2 - Venus Williams (Acapulco 2009-10)

*"QUEEN OF MEXICO" PODIUM - WTA+125 events*
[1st place]
2015 Timea Bacsinszky, SUI (won Acap/Mont singles)
2016 A.Medina-Garrigues/A.Parra-Santonja, ESP (won Acap/Mont WD)
2017 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS (4-time Mont.WS)
2018 Lesia Tsurenko, UKR (2 con. Acapulco WS)
2019 Garbine Muguruza, ESP (2 con. Monterrey WS)
2020 Heather Watson, GBR (Acap W; 2nd to win both Acap/Mont WS)
2021 Sara Sorribes Tormo, ESP (Guad 250 W & Mont SF)
2022 Sloane Stephens, USA (Guad 250 W, 3rd to win 2+ MEX events)
[2nd place]
2015 Caroline Garcia, FRA (RU Acap/Mont singles)
2016 Sloane Stephens, USA (Acap) & Heather Watson, GBR (Mont)
2017 Lesia Tsurenko, UKR (Acapulco WS)
2018 Giuliana Olmos, MEX (first MEX player in MONT.WD final)
2019 Maria Sanchez, USA (Guad/Mont WD W)
2020 Renata Zarazua, MEX (Acapulco SF, first MEX WTA SF since '93)
2021 Leylah Fernandez, CAN (Mont.W - 1st WTA title; '20 Acap RU)
2022 Leylah Fernandez, CAN (defends Monterrey title as teen)
[HM]
2021 D.Krawczyk/G.Olmos (Guad 250 RU: in F of all 3 WTA MEX 2018-21)
2022 K.Christian, C.Harrison/S.Santamaria (ex-NCAA 1st WD titles)
[Guadalajara]
2021 Garbine Muguruza, ESP (WTA Finals W at Guadalajara)
2022 Jessie Pegula, USA (Guad.1000 title)
--
2023 nominating events: Merida & Monterrey
Not included: San Luis Potosi 125, Guadalajara

*2023 TOP JUNIOR GIRLS' TITLES*
[Grand Slam]
Alina Korneeva, RUS
[J500]
Federica Urgesi, ITA
[J300]
2 - Iva Jovic, USA
2 - Lucciana Perez Alarcon, PER
1 - Melisa Ercan, TUN
1 - Sara Saito, JPN
1 - Federica Urgesi, ITA






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Of note, longtime DC newscaster Renee Poussaint sadly died last year, but she's forever linked in Washington sports lore for ruining the shock of the U.S. hockey team's win over the Soviets...



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Aka the song that Washington D.C. sports radio stations will play "the morning after" if -- and I repeat *if* -- the petty and vindictive Dan Snyder sells his Washington NFL football franchise this offseason after two-plus decades of disastrous ownership.


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All for now.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 1:01 AM 

4 Comments:

Blogger colt13 said...

Krejcikova has been cagey about the tactics she uses against Swiatek, but it is evident that she goes crosscourt and short repeatedly against her. It is a high risk game that few can pull off. But with Swiatek being so good at coming to net, going with a sharper angle and getting the ball to go off court after hitting in the service box is a good play.

Speaking of the head of a pin, Parrizas Diaz was up a break on Giorgi, served for the 1st set, then had chances in the tiebreak. She disappeared in the 2nd set.

I forgot that Birrell was born in Germany to Aussie parents. Even with her good week, her forehand is a huge liability. With Kontaveit and Uvardy out of IW, Birrell is now in Q.

Remember when Bascinszky played doubles in Rabat(2018), then got injured and pulled out of singles before playing a match? Due to illness, Alexandrova did the same in Dubai.

Always pick a first time winner at a new event, so Kostyuk or Stearns in Austin. Doubles partners Kostyuk/Yastremska could meet in QF.

Monterrey seems like Garcia(Lyon 250 RU) or Bouzkova.

Belgium's BJK Cup captain is Wim Fissette.

Stat of the Week- 5- Number of slams played by Brazil's Suzana Petersen.

With Haddad Maia poised to enter the Top 10 after Miami, statistically at the expense of Sakkari, there will be more focus on the career of Maria Bueno.

But did you ever wonder- Who was the Brazilian #2 behind Bueno?

That is not an easy question to answer. I view it as a 3 way tie, though you may see it differently.

Let's start with Fed Cup. Even though the event started in 1963, Brazil did not enter until 1965. Bueno played on that team, along with candidate #1, Maureen Schwartz. Bueno won, but Schwartz lost in singles and doubles, never to play another tie.

Brazil's next opportunity was not until 1968. Again they lost, but due to Bueno's injury, Borba-Dias and Petersen were the team. Borba-Dias went 0-2, never to play another tie.

After losing by walkover in 1969, Brazil finally won a tie in 1972. Petersen skipped it, returning in 1973, finishing with a record of 0-5.

So what about the slams? Schwartz lost 1965 RG by walkover, which means that the only match she played was in Australia in 1965, right after Fed Cup. She lost.

Borba-Dias almost has the same story. Her 1968 RG appearance was a week after her Fed Cup play in France. Also a loss.

Peterson played 5 slams between 1968-70. She went 1-5, with her only win being against Sweden's Eva Lundqvist.

Her claim to fame was winning 3 medals at the 1968 Olympic exhibition, which was different than the demonstration. The oddity of having slightly different fields with different rules meant that her mixed bronze medal was won with Teimuraz Kakulia from USSR. Singles and doubles medals were also bronze.

Petersen played unitl 1975, playing her last match in Austin.

Quiz Time!

Eva Lundquist won 1 title. Where was it?

A.Nice
B.Madrid
C.Roland Garros
D.Mexico City

Interlude- Texas girl plays tennis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFjmkgf6nJk&themeRefresh=1


Answer!

Why would I make a quiz about the player Suzana Petersen beat for her only slam win? Six degrees, that's why.

You see, Eva's daughter, Nina Wennerstrom, is a former ITF player. CH 738. She became an agent, with famous ones like Simona Halep, and countrywomen like Rebecca Peterson.

(D)Mexico City was used because of the tour being in Mexico this week. It is wrong, as it is the only one of these events where she never reached the final. She reached the SF in 1966, returning the next year to be knocked out earlier by Alice Tym.

(C)Roland Garros seems obviously wrong. It is, but back in 1966, when they still had the consolation event, she reached the final, losing to Helen Gourlay.

(A)Nice is also wrong. This was Lundqvist's last final, a loss to Robin Lloyd in 1969. Another six degrees thing- Lloyd is the player who received walkover from Schwartz in 1965.

(B)Madrid is correct. After losing the 1966 final, she came back in 1967, getting her revenge win over Alice Tym.




Mon Feb 27, 12:44:00 PM EST  
Blogger Diane said...

Thanks, as always, for the shout-outs!

And--great minds really do think alike. :)

Mon Feb 27, 02:23:00 PM EST  
Blogger Todd.Spiker said...

C-

Hmmm, I like the Stearns pick. She's already got her first WTA MD win (in 3:22 vs. Boulter).

Fernandez isn't playing in Monterrey after winning the last two years. Factoid: Of the 12 returning events played so far this year (including a few that haven't been held since 2020/21), only 2 have seen the last player who won the most recent event (Doha/Iga and Dubai/Ostapenko) return.

Three had been won by Barty and Serena. Meanwhile, two of the champions (Adelaide 2/Keys, Hua Hin/Linette '20) *were* in the draw, but withdrew before the start of play.

With her 1r loss this week to Bjorklund, Alycia Parks has pulled the rare feat of losing back to back tour MD matches to Swedes (after Peterson last week). I can't imagine how long it's been since that happened (well, outside of one of the Q/LL rematches).

Ah, the recently late Burt Bacharach.

Quiz: RG felt like a trap with a good story (and I thought the events during Nazi occupation were out of the equation), but I didn't think about the consolation competition. I was down between Nice and Madrid... and went with Madrid!!! (Ostrava!!! style.)


D-

Thankfully, I didn't have Kryptonite/Krejcikonite in my title, so I didn't change anything. :)

Tue Feb 28, 11:25:00 PM EST  
Blogger Diane said...

It's not the first time that we've come up with the same (very smart) phrase, and I doubt it will be the last!

Tue Feb 28, 11:43:00 PM EST  

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