Wednesday, July 17, 2024

2024 Grass Court Awards


Another grass court season has come and gone.

The best of the best (and a bit of the rest)...








Grass Court Top Players list: HERE
Grass Court Top Players list: HERE









#1 - A JANA ON HER SHOULDER Three years after winning Roland Garros, Barbora Krejcikova wins major #2 at Wimbledon, where her late coach/mentor Jana Novotna had become the star of one of the sport's most heartwarming (and, in 1998, finally successful) slam quests. Naturally, though, it only came after the Czech had suffered through a poor '24 season thwarted by a back injury and illness. The second lowest-ranked (#32) Wimbledon winner ever (after Vondrousova last year), 28-year old Krejcikova is the oldest major singles champion of the 2020s so far. Her RG win three years ago at age 25 still makes her the third-oldest, as well. Now she's back in the Top 10.
#2 - THE BLOSSOMING OF JASMINE Jasmine Paolini continued to be the revelation (and breath of fresh air) of the 2024 season, as her overwhelming improvement in slam play (from 4-16 in her career to 15-3 this year, the best mark on tour, with another major yet to play) carried over into Wimbledon as she became the rare player to reach both the Roland Garros and SW19 finals in the same season (first since 2016, with the only others to do it in the past 25 years being one-name Hall-of-Famers-or-soon-to-be Steffi, Venus, Justine and Serena). Her run included an escape vs. Madison Keys in the 4th Round (Keys led 5-2 in the 3rd, but was injured after being unable to serve out the win, then retired at 5-5) and an epic SF victory over Donna Vekic (at 2:51, the longest SF/F ever at Wimbledon). She pushed Barbora Krejcikova deep into the 3rd set in the final, as well. Paolini is the first Italian woman to reach the Wimbledon final, the first to reach the final at two different majors, the first to reach two in the same season and the first to do it in consecutive events. Paolini is now the third Italian to reach the Top 5.
#3 - DIEDE ROLLS TO A 15th STRAIGHT Diede de Groot wins her 15th consecutive slam singles title (52-0 match streak in majors), her fourth straight (and sixth career) win at Wimbledon, tying Esther Vergeer for the most combined s/d slam titles (42) by a woman in wheelchair tennis history. She was denied the doubles crown, though, as well as a six-for-six sweep of all the 2024 slam trophies (the Paralympics replaces the U.S. Open WC even later this summer) with a loss in the doubles final.
#4 - A SUN ALSO RISES #123-ranked qualifier Lulu Sun put on an historic, winners-heavy Wimbledon QF run, the best in slam play by a New Zealander since 1989. The former Texas Longhorn player barely escaped qualifying, saving a MP in the second round, but then went on to notch her first Top 10 win (Zheng Qinwen in the 1st Rd.), upset Emma Raducanu on Centre Court in the Round of 16, and nearly topped Donna Vekic in straights in the QF before finally hitting the wall and losing in three.
#5 - OH DONNA Donna Vekic's promising career has often been sidetracked by injury, inconsistency and doubt. But it very nearly *all* came together at Wimbledon. After reaching her second straight final in Berlin, Vekic came to SW19 -- in her 43rd major MD -- and played into her maiden slam semifinal, taking Jasmine Paolini the distance in an epic semifinal encounter before finally being forced to leave the draw, both (hopefully) with her head held high, as well as after the tennis community (maybe) somewhat belatedly became more appreciative of what she does and can bring to the sport at its very top level.
#6 - A GOOD THING COMES TO A PEGULA WHO WAITED Jessie Pegula has spent much of '24 sidelined (w/ neck and rib injuries) and/or establishing a new coaching relationship (after her split w/ David Witt). Just a week removed from her first matches in two months, she went to Berlin and dealt with multiple weather delays that stretched both her QF and SF matches over two days. But the 30-year old Bannerette ultimately prevailed, taking home her first singles title on grass with wins over Donna Vekic ('23 Berlin finalist, '24 Wimbledon semifinalist), Katerina Siniakova (who'd soon win another SW19 doubles crown), Coco Gauff and Anna Kalinskaya, saving five MP in the final vs. the Russian.
#7 - TWICE AS NICE A year after emerging from a back injury to win her maiden tour title in Nottingham, Katie Boulter wins title #3 by successfully defending her first. After never facing a player ranked above #131 en route to her title last year, she knocked off both a former slam champion and former #1/slam finalist this time around. In 2023, Boulter took out Jodie Burrage in the final (the first all-GBR WTA final since 1977), and this year she outlasted countrywoman Harriet Dart in a 3-hour 1st Round match, recovered from a 15-13 1st set TB loss to fellow Brit Emma Raducanu (winning the 2nd/3rd sets the next day due to a rain suspension) to return the final, then rallied from a set down to defeat Karolina Pliskova to keep the title at home (losing just five games in the last two sets).
#8 - (FINALLY) CHEER THE KASATKINA At times in Eastbourne, Dasha Kasatkina was magical. She often seemed to have the answer to every question, and pulled them off with flair and precision worthy of an art museum. If she hadn't walked off with the title -- *finally* this season, and for the first time in almost two years -- it would have been sorely disappointing. After a QF win over Emma Raducanu, the Hordette rallied from a set down and an early break in the 3rd vs. Jasmine Paolini to collect her 23rd career Top 10 win and reach a final on a third different surface this season. In the final, Kasatkina brought it even better vs. Leylah Fernandez, though, winning 3 & 4 to grab her 7th tour title (first on grass, after being 0-2 in finals).
#9 - SINIAKOVA + (PLAYER TBD LATER) = TITLE Already playing with a new partner in '24, Katerina Siniakova was forced to team with *another* (Coco Gauff) at RG when her new partner was injured. The result? An eighth slam doubles title for Siniakova, and a first for Gauff. At Wimbledon, the Czech teamed with Taylor Townsend. The result? A ninth slam doubles title for Siniakova, and a first for Townsend. It's almost like she's pretty good or somethin'.
#10 - GETTIN' BETTER ALL THE TIME Diana Shnaider's Bad Homburg title run looks even better in retrospect, as in addition to former SW19 champ Angelique Kerber and AO semifinalist Dayana Yastremska, her second tour title of the season also included wins over Paula Badosa (who'd reach the WI 4r), Emma Navarro (WI QF) and Donna Vekic (WI SF).
#11 - O HSIEH CAN YOU SEE... Hsieh Su-wei continues to be the partner who keeps on giving. In doubles, she and Elise Mertens won in Birmingham to become the first duo this season to collect three WD titles. The win, her third at the tournmaent, improved Hsieh's career record in grass court doubles finals to 7-0. Hsieh failed to win a fifth Wimbledon doubles crown (she'd won the last three she played, and saw her 22-match winning streak snapped in the semis by eventual champs Siniakova/Townsend), so she simply "replaced" one major title with another by claiming her first Wimbledon MX crown (9th overall WD/MX major) with Jan Zielinski, the same Pole with whom she won the AO MX earlier this year. After entering the season without a MX slam win on her resume, Hsieh is now half-way to a Career MX Slam.
#12 - THE MID-SEASON BLOOMER ARRIVES Liudmila Samsonova has gotten into the habit of waiting until mid-to-late spring/early summer to kick things into gear, and with her appearance (and win) in the final at Rosmalen, seven of the Hordette's eight career tour finals have come from June forward on the schedule. She came into 's-Hertogenbosch at just 10-13 on the season, but found her form with a quick win over Surbiton champ Alison Van Uytvanck, then vs. compatriot and two-time defending champ Ekaterina Alexandrova in the SF on Saturday. Alexandrova won a 2nd set to force a 3rd to be played on Sunday morning. After winning the decider to advance to the final, Samsonova dropped the opening set vs. Bianca Andreescu, but gradually seized control of the match, at least until the very end when the Canadian got a late break to put things back on serve (and even led 5-4) before the Russian swept the final three games.
#13 - THE KAZAKH WHO WON A GRASS TITLE Yulia Putintseva caught a wave in Birmingham, dropping just one set to reach the final, where she handled Ajla Tomljanovic in straights to win her first grass court crown. She'd been 0-4 in QF in '24, and hadn't reached a final in eleven months. Putintseva's momentum carried over to Wimbledon, where she upset #1 Iga Swiatek in the 3rd Round.
14. BRITISH HOME COOKING The Brits performed unusually well in the women's singles at Wimbledon this year. Five of the seven in the MD reached the 2nd Round, the most since 1987, including Sonay Kartal, who was the first local qualifier to reach the 3rd Round since 1997. GBR #2 Harriet Dart upset GBR #1 Katie Boulter in the 2nd Round, while wild card Emma Raducanu reached the Round of 16, her best slam result since she won the U.S. Open in 2021.
15. AJLA ON THE REBOUND Ajla Tomljanovic's comeback from an injury/illness-plagued '23 season (she played just 10 matches) was sidelined once again for a few weeks early this year for surgery to remove several uterine tumors. In Birmingham, the 31-year old, #190-ranked Aussie (who'd been #32 sixteen months earlier) finally posted a result worthy of the player who reached consecutive slam QF in '22 at Wimbledon (w/ another QF in '21) and the U.S. Open (ending the career of Serena Williams in the latter run). Late week wins over Leylah Fernandez and Anastasia Potapova pushed Tomljanovic into her first WTA SF/F since 2019. The run stopped there, as Yulia Putintseva dropped Tomljanovic to 0-5 in career tour-level finals.



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*BARBORA, JANA and VENUS*







*THE RAREST FLOWER*




Apparently, Alycia Parks is simply a brilliant flower that blooms just one week (or so) every year. At least that's how things have gone so far.

Last year, the Bannerette was fabulous in winning her maiden tour title in Lyon, but has mostly put up Gods awful results for the sixteen months since. She came into the Gaiba 125 grass event at 3-15 on the season, having gone 1-15 since her best result of the season, a 3rd Round AO run that included wins over Leylah Fernandez and Daria Snigur.

Ranked #148, after being #40 ten months ago, Parks didn't just win the singles title in Gaiba, she took home the doubles (w/ Hailey Baptiste) crown, too.

She made it out of qualfying with a 3rd set TB win over Anna Siskova, then ran off wins against Elvina Kalieva, Anca Todoni (a 125 winner two weeks earlier on clay, and a Wimbledon qualifier soon after), Robin Montgomery (from a set down) and fellow qualfier Susan Bandecchi (in three) to reach the final. She took out Bernarda Pera 3 & 1 to get her sixth win of the week, and her third career 125 crown.



Parks then extended her winning streak to nine matches as she made it through Wimbledon qualifying.

But then the rollercoaster took a big dip once again. In the 1st Round at SW19 vs. wild card Caroline Wozniacki, Parks scored just two games in a 6-2/6-0 defeat. It was Wozniacki's first Wimbledon win since her most recent tournament appearance in London in 2019.



The *next* big moment for Parks? Umm, something in 2025?





*BEST TROPHY NOMINEE (Berlin)*

He might look jolly, but don't let him near the Linz golden eagle...






*SHE'S WON A ZOO*


It hasn't escaped Bad Homburg champion Diana Shnaider's notice that she's been collecting a vast array of animal-related singles trophies this season.



Hua Hin (whale)...



Paris 125 (gorilla)...



Bad Homburg (elephant)...





*LIVE LIKE PAOLINI*







*THE DAY AFTER RAD DAY*

Eastbourne QF - Dasha Kasatkina def. Emma Raducanu 6-2/6-2
Eastbourne QF - Leylah Fernandez def. Harriet Dart 6-2/6-1
Eastbourne QF - Jasmine Paolini def. Katie Boulter 6-1/7-6(0)

...a British QF bloodbath on Eastbourne grass.

A day earlier, on the June 26 anniversary of the original Radwanskian Massacre at Wimbledon, Raducanu had saved a MP to upend world #5 Jessie Pegula, while her countrywoman (Boulter def. Alona Ostapenko, Dart def. Sofia Kenin) both took down a former slam champion.




*I SAID, "GET OFF," and you won't get a second warning*







*LATVIAN THUNDER BLUNDER WONDER*









*EQUALLY STARSTRUCK*







*ALWAYS WITH THE GIFTS*


Two-time Wimbledon finalist Ons Jabeur didn't make it back for a third straight title match on Centre Court, but she didn't leave the grass season without leaving behind a few gems.






*BARTY-PLUS-3*




Three years to the day after she won the Wimbledon singles title in 2021, the retired Ash Barty returned to Wimbledon (and Centre Court) for the first time since holding the Venus Rosewater Dish... for the Invitational Doubles competition. She immediately showed everyone what they've been missing.



Barty & Casey Dellacqua reached the Invitational final, losing to Kim Clijsters & Martina Hingis, who won the title for a third straight year. In the past, both Clijsters and Hingis had used the Wimbledon Invitational event as a stepping stone to a return to the tour.




*26 YEARS LATER, JANA WAS SUDDENLY PART OF THE STORY AGAIN*



"I'm dreaming about her a lot. ...we talk in the dreams." - Barbora Krejcikova, on Jana Novotna



*BEST HAIKU COMMEMORATING A NEW WIMBLEDON CHAMPION (and the Jana on her shoulder)*









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MOST IMPROVED JUNIORS
1. Lulu Sun, NZL 1. Renata Jamrichova, SVK
2. Emma Navarro, USA 2. Emerson Jones, AUS
3. Anna Kalinskaya, RUS 3. Teodora Kostovic, SRB
4. Wang Xinyu, CHN 4. Tyra Caterina Grant & Iva Jovic, USA/USA
5. Viktoriya Tomova, BUL 5. Vendula Valdmannova, CZE
6. Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, ESP 6. Iva Jovic, USA
7. Anda Todoni, ROU 7. Jeline Vandromme, BEL
8. Robin Montgomery, USA 8. Monika Stankiewicz, POL
9. Zeynep Sonmez, TUR 9. Rositsa Dencheva, BUL
10. Yuliia Starodubtseva, UKR 10. Laura Samson, CZE
11. Eva Lys, GER HM- Flora Johnson, GBR
12. Erika Andreeva, RUS HM- Sonja Zhenikova, GER
HM- Sonay Kartal, GBR HM- Jana Kovackova, CZE






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1. Wimbledon SF - Jasmine Paolini def. Donna Vekic
...2-6/6-4/7-6(10-8) If you're gonna live, live like Jasmine Paolini.



As 2024 has gone along, it's become legitimate to wonder whether Paolini is for real, or if she's just a dream. We do know that the Italian is *living* her dream, even if she likely couldn't have even conceived of the possibility of having the sort of season she's put together.

A career-best slam Round of 16 (AO)? Great. A 1000 title? Stupendous. A slam final (RG)? Really? Well, okay then -- fabulous! A Top 10 ranking? Flavia, Francesca & Co. will be proud. *Another* slam final? On the grass at Wimbledon? It's like a fairly tale has jumped from page and screen and onto every court of every color all over the WTA world.

But, really, all you have to do is watch Paolini play for a little while... then you understand.

Just one of her characteristics as a player -- an air of positivity, the never-say-stop on-court engine, the ability to learn and adapt from surface to surface and situation to situation, and a competitive spirit that's imprinted "fight" into her DNA (well, all of the best Italian players have *that*, right?) -- would be enough to make her a threat, but for her to possess *all* of them simultaneously and assemble them in congruously working order for the first time in the season in which she turned 28 (no "spring chicken" by tennis standards)? THAT is the stuff of instant legend.

In the Wimbledon semifinals, Vekic became a big part of that story. The Croat took 43 slam MD attempts to reach her first slam SF, following a bevy of injuries, on-court disappointments, emotional rollercoasters, doubts and stunning reversals of fortune that normally would have made *her* the glorified storymaker of this match-up. If not for Paolini, that is.

But Vekic joined with Paolini is lifting the entire women's competition at this Wimbledon here, as they engaged in by far the best match of the tournament, a back-and-forth battle that wasn't decided until deep into a 3rd set that had already seen its own share of momentum-changing moments.

Vekic stated her case to be the lead actor in this drama during the opening set, overpowering Paolini off the ground while the Italian's low first serve percentage set her up for failure. Vekic dominated the action on Paolini's second serve. Paolini had managed to hold in her opening service game despite facing a BP, but by game 5 she could no longer keep the Croatian at bay. Vekic's half-volley winner knotted the score at 30/30, then back-to-back UE from Paolini gave the Croat a break lead at 3-2. After breaking to lead 5-2, Vekic served out the 1st, having lost just three points on serve in the set.



But it's not in Paolini's nature -- or her career blueprint to date -- to just give up because success was slow to develop. Through the 2nd set, she utilized different tactics to try to reverse the course of the match. Her first serve numbers improved, and while it was often a struggle she managed to hold serve. She got a 15/30 look on Vekic's serve in game 2, but the Croatian got the hold (after stumbling at the baseline, but not going down, in the next to last point of the game).

Paolini benefited from an early missed call on a Vekic lob, and latter saved a BP before holding for 2-1. A game later, Paolini continued to chip away, reaching BP for the first time in the match. Vekic saved it with a 115-mph serve and held. Staring down the barrel of Vekic's shots yet again, Paolini saved two more BP in the next game. At 30/30 in game 8, Vekic slammed shut whatever opening was there with an ace and big serve to tie the 2nd set again at 4-4.

Later in the set, with Paolini still sticking like glue on the scoreboard, the Italian fired off a big return to win the opening point of game 10, then saw Vekic DF to go down love/30. A blink later, Vekic's forehand error off a deep Paolini return put her double SP down at 15/40. After a deep shot off the baseline, Paolini moved in and put away the point at the net to take the set at 6-4 and extend the match into a 3rd. It would be Vekic's fifth three-setter in six matches at this Wimbledon.



Vekic opened the 3rd with the break of serve that had eluded her in the previous set, but Paolini was back at it two games later, saving a BP and holding for 1-2 to avoid falling into an early hole too deep to climb out of. Still, Vekic held for 3-1. Soon after, though, the Italian's resilience paid off, as a Vekic forehand error handed Paolini a pair of BP. On the second, a deep return of a second serve elicited another Vekic error and the set was back on serve at 3-3.

Vekic immediately got the break back a game later, but complained of forearm pain during the changeover (and was unsatisfied with the lack of ice and a bag to put on it, so she instead had to try to make due with the icy towels used to cool off players during hot conditions). In the next game, Paolini quickly reeled Vekic back in, breaking to knot the set again.

With Vekic seemingly physically faltering, Paolini put in four straight first serves and held at love for the first time, taking a 5-4 lead. After going up 30/15, Vekic, with parts virtually falling off the car as it neared the finish line, committed a forehand error that gave Paolini a MP. But Vekic wasn't finished fighting, either. She saved the MP, then retrieved a short ball and saw a net cord dribbler secure the match-extending hold.

Paolini trailed love/30 in game 11. She saved a BP, and held three GP before Vekic responded by throwing herself into a shot that became a return winner into the corner. Paolini saved a second BP, then got the hold with a successful challenge of a Vekic ball that had been called in.

Between games, an emotional Vekic cried in her chair while she desperately tried to ice down her sore arm, then came out in the 6-5 game and saved another MP, reaching a short ball and sending back a winner down the line. She held behind a series of masterfully constructed points, forcing a MTB that would decide the Wimbledon finalist.

Vekic took an early 3-1 lead, but Paolini wouldn't go away. A wide Vekic forehand made it 3-3. Things remained tight, as they soon switched sides of the court at 6-6. A big Vekic forehand down the line gave her an 8-7 lead, but a wide shot handed Paolini a third MP chance at 9-8. Vekic pulled a forehand and it was over, with Paolini winning a 2:51 epic, the longest Wimbledon women's semi ever (no SW19 final has gone that long, either).


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2. Nottingham SF - Katie Boulter def. Emma Raducanu
...6-7(13)/6-3/6-4. A year ago, Boulter had to take down fellow Brit Jodie Burrage in the final to *win* her maiden tour title at Nottingham. This year, though also on a Sunday, she had to rally to defeat another in Raducanu just to return to the final.

The match had been carried over past Saturday due to the constant rain interruptions throughout the week. Saturday had seen Raducanu, though slipping and falling on the wet grass (including just before play was stopped), stage a comeback from 4-1 down (saving 3 SP) in the 1st set TB, winning 15-13 on her own sixth SP.

When they returned to finish things a day later, Raducanu had strapping on the knee she'd twisted the day before. She continued to fight, erasing Boulter's break lead of 4-2, then denying her when she served for the match at 5-4.

Boulter then broke Raducanu's serve to end the match, heading back to the final for what would be a successful WTA title defense.


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3. Rosmalen QF - Bianca Andreescu def. Naomi Osaka
...6-4/3-6/7-6(3). This was their first meeting since 2019, when Osaka got the win in the Beijing QF to end Andreescu's 16-match winning streak (which including the U.S. Open win, part of a *45-5* season mark on hard court that year).

Much like when Osaka faced Iga Swiatek in Paris, things came to a head in the 3rd. The Canadian led 5-2, but couldn't serve out the win a game later. Things went to a deciding TB, where Osaka held a mini-break lead at 3-2 before Andreescu ran off five straight points to end the match.


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4. Wimbledon 3rd Rd. - Paula Badosa def. Dasha Kasatkina
...7-6(6)/4-6/6-4. At Wimbledon, at long last, Badosa was back.

A year ago, the Spaniard retired from her 2nd Round match at SW19 due to a stress fracture in her back that had occurred earlier in the spring. She'd missed Roland Garros due to the injury, and after things proved to be a no-go at Wimbledon she missed the rest of the 2023 season. Badosa began this year at 6-9, retiring from three matches over the first four months. She was beginning to wonder if she was ever going to reclaim what had become a sterling tennis career.

Badosa fell in the 1st Round in Madrid to countrywoman Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in April, and little did anyone know that things would soon take a turn for the much better for her. Gradually showing herself to seemingly be over the lingering aspects that plagued her back, she began to get some of her old form back as she was able to put matches together. Badosa emerged from the Madrid loss and reached the Round of 16 in Rome, then the 3rd Round at RG. A QF last week in Bad Homburg was a good sign, and she continued her surge at the AELTC with wins over Czechs Karolina Muchova and Brenda Fruhvirtova. Then came Kasatkina.

The Russian entered the day having won a title on the grass in Eastbourne, was on a seven-match win streak and had swept her last nineteen games at SW19, including a double-bagel victory in the 2nd Round.

Kasatkina wasn't in the frame of mind to lose in this one, and it showed. After falling behind 5-2 in the 1st, saving three Badosa SP, the Hordette frustrated the Spaniard with her variety-filled game. Badosa came back with power, leading 15/30 at 6-5, but Kasatkina forced a TB. A 2-0 mini-break lead from Badosa became a 3-2 edge for Kasatkina. The Russian got within two points of the set at 5-4, but Badosa put on another push in the rollercoaster set. A forehand winner gave her a fourth SP at 6-5. Finally, on her fifth attempt, Badosa saw Kasatkina miss wide with a forehand to give the Spaniard an 8-6 win.

Having emerged from the fight with a win, Badosa dropped her racket and clenched both fists, then shook one in the air as she went to her chair. And that was after just the *1st* set.

Kasatkina wasn't going away. She took the 2nd set 6-4, then led 4-2 in the 3rd. But Badosa got the break back in game 7 (on her third BP), and the battle was back on. Firing back from 15/40 down, Badosa soon held for 4-4, then her big shots gave her a 15/40 lead on Kasatkina's serve in the following game. She broke on her third BP of the game when Kasatkina netted a volley.

Serving for the win at 5-4, Badosa reached MP when Kasatkina missed on a big shot attempt down the line. She put away the victory in the nearly three-hour contest at the net, as Kasatkina couldn't get her ball back, ending a match in which the Russian's3rd set lead wasn't so much squandered as Badosa *took* it away from her with more aggression and better big point moments.



The stats showed just how much Badosa's game pushed the action, as her 44 winners were combined with 57 UE. She had eight aces, and 24 net approaches (winning 16 points there).
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5. Wimbledon Q2 - Robin Montgomery def. Kamilla Rakhimova
...7-6(0)/6-7(4)/7-6(10-4). A true WTA unicorn of a match: there were zero breaks of serve over the 36 games, with only 5 BP faced.

Montgomery fired 20 aces, while the two combined for 132 winners (67/65). Montgomery ultimately made it through qualifying and recorded her maiden career slam MD win.
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HM- Wimbledon 2nd Rd. - Harriet Dart def. Katie Boulter
...4-6/6-1/7-6(10-8). With the winner joining countrywomen Emma Raducanu and Sonay Kartal in the 3rd Round, #32 Boulter and Harriet Dart, both 27, faced off on Thursday, with apparently a testy personal relationship serving as a footnote to the action.

Things went to a 3rd set, with the tour's highest-ranked Brit racing to a 6-2 lead in the deciding MTB. But the #100-ranked Dart (GBR #2) would have the final say, turning things around in the closing moments and reaching MP at 9-8. Dart won 4-6/6-1/7-6(10-8) to match her best career slam result, a 3rd Round at SW19 in 2019. While Boulter has collected three tour-level singles titles since the start of last season, Dart just reached her maiden WTA semifinal earlier this year in the Cluj event.

Thankfully, they both had the sense to not produce an awkward scene afterwad at the net and let the competition speak and stand for itself (pity that can't always be the case).



After Wimbledon, Dart matched her career high ranking of #84.
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*THE ITALIAN JOB*

Contrexeville 125 Final - Lucia Bronzetti def. Mayar Sherif 6-4/6-7(4)/7-5
...on the same weekend that fellow Italian Jasmine Paolini lost in the Wimbledon final, and countrywoman Martina Trevisan won a 125 title in Bastad, Bronzetti had to go the extra mile to lift her own trophy, outlasting Sherif to drop the Egyptian to 0-5 in '24 finals (four of them at 125 events).

Bronzetti had led the match 6-4/5-2, and held a MP in the 2nd. Things went to a 3rd, where she held *8* more MP over a four-game stretch before finally converting on #10 of the day. In the video, you can see the release of that tension after she *finally* won the thing.







*DEJA VU... and not the good kind, either*

Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Cristina Bucsa def. Ana Bogdan 6-4/4-6/7-6(10-5)
...hey, remember this from last year?



In the 3rd Round at SW19 in 2023, Bogdan played and lost a remarkable MTB vs. Lesia Tsurenko that went a then-record 38-points (before the Blinkova/Rybakina 42-pointer at the AO). The Romanian had held five MP during the contest.

In the Romanian's Wimbledon return, Bogdan had to have some sense of deja vu vs. Bucsa. There were no records broken this time around, but Bogdan again came up on the short end of a match in a devastating way.

While last year's epic was on Court 14, this time around it was Court 5. In the 3rd set, with Bucsa serving down 5-4, Bogdan held a MP vs. the Spaniard. Bucsa saved it, and had reached GP when rain suspended play. When play resumed, Bogdan had a second MP in the game. Bucsa saved it again and got the hold.

Things went to another MTB, where Bucsa raced to a 6-1 lead. But the 10-point breaker leaves room for a comeback, and Bogdan did manage to cut the lead to 6-4. But that was as close as it got. Bucsa reached MP at 9-4, and won it on her second attempt when Bogdan pulled a shot wide.



You've got to wonder have many players over the years have lost *back-to-back* Wimbledon matches after having held MP. Well, Bogdan counts as (at least) one.





*THE COMPLICATED (and every-changing) RULES OF TENNIS ETIQUETTE*


Wimbledon 2nd Rd. - Dayana Yastremska def. Varvara Gracheva 3-6/6-4/7-6(10-5)
...the final women's 2nd Round match of Day 3 was a nice contest between #28 Yastremska, an AO semifinlaist this year, and Gracheva, who had just reached the Round of 16 in her first RG while representing France. It's a pity the match got a little muddied after the fact.

Everything came down to the 3rd set, where Gracheva fought to get the break to put herself in position to win. The Pastry broke on her fourth BP of game 9 and served for the win. She couldn't do it, and soon after the match went to a MTB. Yastremska got out to a 5-1 lead, Gracheva closed to 6-5. But the Ukrainian shut things down, taking the final four points to win the breaker 10-5 to advance (though Gracheva led 117-116 in total points in the match, out-winnered Yastremska 48-42, and had just 16 UE to her opponent's 41).

But then the meeting at the net happened. I admit, I'd forgotten what the Ukrainian protocol apparently is for the recently *former* Russians, which Gracheva is after officially making the switch just over a year ago (though it ended up happening after the start of the war, which apparently makes a difference). It seems as if Gracheva forgot the protocol, as well.

The two met in the 2nd Round at the Australian Open this year with the same UKR/FRA designations. I wondered aloud then what would happen, and got the answer. Yastremska didn't shake hands with Gracheva, but tapped rackets instead (which is still more than the current Hordettes receive after matches from the Ukrainian contingent).



But that was five months ago for Gracheva, and 31 matches back, and since then she'd climbed out of what turned out to be a seven-match losing streak that started with her AO loss to Yastremska, finally finding her footing in Paris (w/ a 125 SF and then 4th Round RG run) while being embraced by the French fans.

Here, Gracheva approached Yastremska like she would any other opponent, raising her hand to share a hearty grip or handshake. When Yastremska wasn't doing the same, Gracheva seemed to think that maybe they were going to hug after a well-fought battle instead. That was when she seemed to realize her error, as Yastremska was holding up her racket between them. Gracheva pulled back, then held her hands up and stepped away while it seemed that Yastremska was apologizing for what *wasn't* going to be happening, which Gracheva seemed to do, too.

Needless to say, it was clearly a moment of confusion, and more than a bit awkward. They ended up not even tapping rackets.






*MAKING EVERYONE MISS HER MORE JUST AS SHE OPENS THE DOOR TO LEAVE*







*KREJCIKOVA'S FINAL GAME: THE NOVOTNA WIMBLEDON JOURNEY (in microcosm)*

On the final Saturday of play at SW19, Barbora Krejcikova served for the Wimbledon title. The game turned out to be a version of her coach/mentor Jana Novotna's Wimbledon experience in microcosm.

Krejcikova opened the game like she did had 26 in the match, by winning the first point. Soon the title seemed close (ala Novotna in the '93 Wimbledon final vs. Steffi Graf). Up 30/love, she was on the doorstep, only to DF (Jana knew the feeling). A backhand error gave Paolini a BP at 30/40, as the Czech's fate suddenly seemed to waver. The BP was saved by Krejcikova with a volley (serve-and-volleyer Jana knew that feeling, too).

A big serve and first shot produced a Paolini error, giving Krejcikova a MP, only for her to miss a shot down the line (Jana would have knowingly cringed). A big groundstroke and passing shot from the Italian have the Czech another BP, which Krejcikova promptly saved with a forehand behind Paolini on the baseline. Krejcikova's ace gave her a second MP, but a backhand error delayed her triumph (you know the drill).

Paolini's error on a return of a deep second serve gave Krejcikova her third MP. As her third Wimbledon final was for Novotna, so was THIS Czech's third MP attempt the charm. Paolini was unable to get back Krejcikova's wide serve and it was all over. A 6-2/2-6/6-4 winner, Krejcikova raised her arms in victory (as Jana eventually did), and after hugging the Italian at the net, she looked to the skies and blew a kiss to her mentor, coach, friend, and now predecessor as a Wimbledon champion.



While Novotna's grasp of the Venus Rosewater Dish was a long awaited moment at the end of a battle-scarred journey, Krejcikova's first experience felt like one of wonder and disbelief. A few months ago, a second major singles title seemed a distant dream (if not a fantasy), but as the grass season was Novotna's savior, so it was for Krejcikova.



In her post-match interview, Krejcikova called today "the best day of my tennis careeer, and the best day of my life," and continued to be astonished about the course of a '24 season that saw her come to SW19 with seven wins on the season after battling injury and illness that saw her not win a match for four months, then proceed win seven straight at the All-England Club.



Attributing her ability to be brave in the final game for finally getting her to the finish, and after being asked by Annabel Croft about how as a young player she'd delivered a letter in person to Novotna at her door at a time when she didn't know if she'd pursue a tennis career, she called the moment in which Jana expressed belief in her chances and encouraged her to pursue the sport as having changed her life.



Though a triumphant Krejcikova had walked around the Centre Court grass with something of a dazed smile on her face, the enormity of her achievement finally caught up to her when she saw hew newly-added name on the Club's champions board... along with that of Novotna. She broke down in tears, and had to collect herself before meeting the assembled champions (Navratilova, King, Bartoli, Martinez and Sharapova) and then parading the Venus Rosewater around along with her still-beaming smile on the balcony above the gathered fans below.









1. Berlin Final - Jessie Pegula def. Anna Kalinskaya
...6-7(0)/6-4/7-6(3). In Steffi Graf Stadium, Pegula squandered a 5-3 1st set lead, with Kalinskaya sweeping all seven points in the eventual TB. Come the 3rd, though, Pegula got her revenge.

Kalinskaya led 4-1, and the Russian saved four BP from love/40 down to hold for 5-4. She then took a 40/15 lead on Pegula's serve a game later, but couldn't convert any of four MP. She got a fifth shot (also on Pegula's serve) at 6-5, but again came up empty.

It was Pegula who stormed through the deciding TB, finally getting on the board with a title in '24, the first of her career on grass. The five MP saved tie for the most saved on tour en route to a singles title this decade.


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2. Wimbledon 2nd Rd. - Marta Kostyuk def. Dasha Saville
...4-6/7-6(2)/6-4. Against Saville, Kostyuk saw her Aussie opponent seemingly have her right where she wanted her. Saville led 5-2 in the 2nd set, and served for the match victory. Saville couldn't close Kostyuk out. She got another chance at 5-4, and another at 6-5.

In her third attempt, Saville finally reached MP only to see Kostyuk get another break of serve by converting her eighth BP opportunity of the game to force a do-or-die TB. Kostyuk quickly grabbed a 5-1 lead, and won it 7-2. She went up an early break in the 3rd set, and put away a the victory on her fifth MP (after having had one at 5-3, then after leading 40/love in the final game).



Thing is, this sort of scenario is becoming a common one for the Ukrainian, as she's quickly earning the reputation as the biggest "Houdini" in women's tennis.

At this year's Australian Open, she saved two MP vs. Elise Mertens in the 2nd Round en route to that QF. At Roland Garros, Kostyuk trailed Laura Pigossi 4-0 in the 3rd set (w/ 2 GP for 5-0), then got a reprieve with a suspension due to rain with the Brazilian up 4-2. When play resumed, Kostyuk raced to a 6-4 final set win.
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3. Wimbledon Q2 - Lulu Sun def. Gabriela Knutson
...4-6/6-4/7-6(10-6). Sun squanders a 5-1 3rd set lead, saving a Knutson MP at 5-6 to force and win a 10-6 MTB.

Wimbledon - Lulu Sun def. Alex Eala 7-6(3)/7-5
...Sun then overcame a 4-2 1st set deficit vs. Eala to win in straights, once again delaying the former U.S. Open girls' champs' MD slam debut (Eala also lost in the Roland Garros Q3).



Sun went on to put on an historic run to the Wimbledon QF.

For her part, Knutson managed to ride her good play to a challenger title run during the second week of play at Wimbledon.
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4. Eastbourne 2nd Rd. - Emma Raducanu def. Jessie Pegula
...4-6/7-6(6)/7-5. Nearly three years after winning the U.S. Open, Raducanu finally records her first career Top 10 win. It wasn't easy.

Pegula, who won in Berlin the previous week after saving five MP, led 6-4/3-1 here, then was up 3-0 in the 2nd set TB. She held a MP at 6-5, but the Brit forced a 3rd.

There, it was Raducanu who raced out to a 5-2 edge before nearly squandering it all. Twice she served for the win, and twice she fell behind love/40. Broken on both occasions, she threw in a DF and several UE as she lost serve at love as Pegula got things back on serve at 5-5. But Raducanu got the break for 6-5, and a third chance to serve it out.

Down love/30, Raducanu seemingly fired a clean winner, only to have Pegula challenge the mark and get the call reversed and take a love/40 lead once again. But Raducanu held on, saving four BP before finally converting on her first MP to get the win.

The following week at Wimbledon, Radacanu picked up her *second* Top 10 win with a 3rd Round victory over Maria Sakkari (yeah, it's *Sakkari* "Top 10" win, but it still counts).
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5. Bad Homburg QF - Viktoriya Tomova def. Anna Blinkova
...2-6/6-1/7-6(9). Blinkova posted two wins (over Andreescu and Haddad Maia) in Bad Homberg, her first multi-win event since Indian Wells, but couldn't come through in her favored 3rd set TB (in which she'd been 5-1 since 2022).

The Russian held five MP in the deciding TB, starting at 6-4 and with the last at 9-8, but Tomova surged last to sweep the final three points to reach her first career grass semifinal.


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6. Nottingham 1st Rd. - Tatjana Maria def. Emiliana Arango
...4-6/7-6(7)/7-6(6). In 3:24, Maria wins after trailing 3-1 in both the 2nd and 3rd sets, saving six total MP to avenge a loss to the Colombian earlier this year in Miami.

Arango led 6-5 with two MP chances in the 2nd, then took a 6-4 lead in the TB and held three more in the breaker. She didn't fall away in the 3rd once the German veteran rallied again, and held her 6th MP at 6-5 in the deciding TB but saw Maria sweep the final three points to get the win.
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7. Wimbledon Q3 - Daria Snigur def. Zeynep Sonmez
...1-6/7-5/7-5. Sonmez led 7-6/4-0, then was up 5-3 in the 3rd. Snigur rallied to win both sets to prevent the Turk was playing in a second straight slam MD. Countrywoman Cagla Buyukakcay played in five straight MD from the 2016 RG through the '17 RG.
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8. Wimbledon Q2 - Marina Stakusic def. Chloe Paquet
...4-6/7-6(5)/6-2. From 6-4/5-3 back (w/ Paquet serving at 5-4), the Canadian teenager battles back to win here and then reach her first slam MD.


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*TRY, TRY, TRY AND YOU MIGHT FINALLY SUCCEED*

Valencia 125 2nd Rd. - Laura Pigossi def. Rebecca Sramkova 7-6(5)/6-7(6)/7-6(10)
...during the clay season, Pigossi lost a pair of matches (including vs. Kostyuk at RG) after leading or being in good position when rain stopped play. She faced a similar situation here, again on clay, but managed to slip through the trap this time around.

Sramkova led 5-1 in 1st, held two SP, and twice served for the set before Pigossi stole it in a 7-5 TB. Sramkova led 3-0 in the 2nd when rain stopped play. When play picked up again, the Brazilian surged ahead and twice serve for the match. She also led 4-2 in the TB, but couldn't get it done as Sramkova won 8-6 to take things to a 3rd.

Another TB came in the decider, and Sramkova held five MP -- at 6-4, 6-5, 7-6, 8-7 and 10-9 -- while Pigossi held her own at 9-8 with things still undecided.

Pigossi's final surge proved to be the differnce, as she took the final three points from 10-9 down, winning on MP #2 at 12-10.








1. British WC Open Final - Yui Kamiji def. Diede de Groot
...7-5/6-3. At one point this spring de Groot had won 145 straight matches dating back to January 2021. That streak ended (albeit in a team event, to Li Xiaohui in the World Team Cup) a bit before Roland Garros. After Roehamption, the world #1 had *two* losses on the season, after Kamiji -- yes, YUI KAMIJI -- finally took down her Dutch rival after losing to her 28 straight times (as well as 35 times in their last 36 meetings). The straight sets win in the pre-Wimbledon grass event is Kamiji's third win in the tournament, but first since 2017. Thus, de Groot's run of 40 consecutive singles event titles came to an end.



It's not as if Kamiji's hasn't been *close* to finally getting another win over de Groot. Since she defeated her in a January '21 tournament in Australia (before that year's AO) just before the start of the 145-match winning streak, Kamiji took de Groot to three sets in three straight matches in '23, and earlier this season in the Melbourne Open led 5-1 in the 3rd set and held a MP before de Groot's stunning comeback to get the victory. She then went on to win a fourth straight AO title.

Same as in Melbourne, de Groot rebounded to win yet another major title at SW19, while Kamiji lost in the semifinals. Kamiji has only reached the Wimbledon final once (2022), while she's played in eight or more at each of the other three slams.
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2. Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Jessica Bouzas Maneiro def. Marketa Vondrousova
...6-4/6-2. A year ago, Vondrousova came to Wimbledon in full-on comeback mode following wrist surgery and became the first unseeded women's champion at the All-England Club in the Open era. A year later, in her appearance in the traditional Centre Court Day 2-opening slot headlined by the defending women's champ, the Czech experienced the other side of the question by becoming the first DC since 1994 (Steffi Graf's loss to Lori McNeil), and just the second in the Open era, to lose in the 1st Round the following year.

A hip injury suffered in a fall during her first grass event of the season left Vondrousova's readiness for her title defense in London up in the air. Vondrousova made the date, but so did #83-ranked Spaniard Bouzas Maneiro.

As it turned out, the #6-seeded Vondrousova's movement was indeed hampered, and Bouzas Maneiro was prepared to -- and did -- take advantage of that fact.


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3. Wimbledon 3rd Rd. - Yulia Putintseva def. Iga Swiatek
...3-6/6-1/6-2. The bigger they are, the harder they fall.



Though she didn't play a grass tune-up event before this Wimbledon, world #1 Iga Swiatek -- the top seed at a tenth straight major, the longest women's run since Serena Williams sat atop sixteen consecutive MD from 2013-16 -- *seemed* better suited for a deeper SW19 run this time around. She'd greatly improved the power behind her serve, and seemed cognizant and committed to playing with the more aggressive mindset necessary to win on what has been the surface that has given her the most trouble.

Well, then again.

With her second 3rd Round loss at Wimbledon in three years, this time to #35 Yulia Putintseva, Swiatek again left London chagrined, shown up in two dominant, match-closing sets by a foe who, until a week before the start of Wimbledon also hadn't posted a significant grass result. Putintseva had just two grass wins since 2019 before a few weeks earlier, but had come into the day on a surprising seven-match surface and title run in Birmingham.

In truth, Swiatek started well taking the 1st set 6-3 and seemingly being on her way to a 22nd straight win (19 of which came on clay). But just when it seemed as if Swiatek's career-long hegemony over Putintseva would continue, the Kazakh struck back in the 2nd set. Rediscovering the light-on-errors form that helped her win her first grass title, while Swiatek began to total up UE, Putintseva claimed a clear victory to knot the match, winning the 2nd at 6-1. It was the first set she'd ever won from Swiatek, having dropped all nine they'd previously played, including in two straight sets defeats on hard court and clay earlier this season.

It was then that Swiatek escaped the confines of Court 1 for an off-court bathroom break. She was gone for what seemed like an irregularly long time. The crowd grew restless, while Putintseva asked chair umpire Kader Nouni where her opponent was (he shrugged and seemed to wonder himself). Finally, Swiatek returned to some light, distant boos and audible grumbling. While she got things set back in place and prepared her racket for play in the changeover area, Putintseva stood at the baseline with crossed legs and leaned on her stick. If there was a desk nearby for her to commence finger tapping, she surely would have done so.



When Swiatek finally (!) ran onto the court, the boos that greeted her were no longer quite so distant. Putintseva broke her at love to start the 3rd, and then never really let her up for air. She broke Iga again for 3-0, and held for 4-0. Swiatek broke Putintseva's nine-game run with a hold in game 5, but couldn't stop the errors from coming off her own racket. Serving for the win at 5-2, Putintseva went up 40/15. On her third MP, Swiatek netted a backhand return (UE #38, to her opponent's 15) as the Kazakh reached her first Wimbledon Round of 16, with her second career #1 win.


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4. Wimbledon 4th Rd. - Lulu Sun def. Emma Raducanu
...6-2/5-7/6-2. Stealing the spotlight from a Brit on Centre Court, in just her second career slam MD, qualifier Sun's used 52 winners to knock off Raducanu and become the first New Zealander to reach a slam singles QF since 1989.



Despite her inexperience, Sun broke out of the gate the quickest, taking a two-break lead at 3-0 and storming to a 6-2 1st set win. Holding easily, while pushing Raducanu on the Brit's service games, Sun was mostly in control while freely hitting big and racking up winners, forcing Raducanu to adjust her game plan to go for more and look for an opening should the Kiwi stumble. Raducanu saved break points and held for 4-3, but continued to dance on the proverbial ledge through the end of the set, ultimately knotting the match.

In the opening game of the 3rd, Raducanu's left foot skidded across the grass behind the baseline, slipping out from under her and hyperextending her knee. She sat up on the ground for a while, then was treated by a trainer before going on. She lost her opening serve game, though.

Sun played with the lead throughout the set, and never blinked as the pressue (should have) mounted, holding from 15/30 down at 3-2, breaking the Brit a game later, then saved a pair of BP as she served for the win, finally putting away her second MP.


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5. Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Brenda Fruhvirtova def. Mirra Andreeva
...1-6/6-3/6-2. Day 1 at SW19 saw a 1st Round match-up of the two youngest players in the women's draw. It ended up being a good "starter's kit" to the sort of all-teen slam clashes the *used* to populate the slam stage (when there were matches likes Seles/Capriati, or Venus/Martina).



Andreeva came into London on a recent high. A month earlier, the Hordette continued to add to her "youngest to (fill in the blank) since..." records with a Roland Garros semifinal run. A year ago, at just 16, she'd reached the Round of 16 in her Wimbledon debut. She arrived at SW19 as a seed at a major (#24) for the first time, and was taking photos with none other than countrywoman Maria Sharapova as it was noted that the latter's age -- the *exact* age, to the day -- when she won her first slam in London back in 2004 was the same that Andreeva would be when the women's final was set to be contested at the end of the fortnight.

But the age-related stats that were being ignored turned out to be the most important. In a match-up of 17-year olds, both the younger siblings in a pair of tennis-playing sisters, it was the Czech -- born just 27 days before the Russian back in 2007 -- who proved to be the player better built for the occasion.

It didn't look that way early on, as Fruhvirtova seemed overwhelmed by the whole deal. She fell behind 6-1/3-0, Andreeva ran off nine straight games, and (at 3-2, after finally getting on the board with a hold of serve and backed it up with a break) Fruhvirtova went through the whole leave-the-court and "check-her-blood-pressure" (see Maria) steps during an MTO that carried on off-court. When she returned, though, everything changed.

Crusher gonna crush (or something), after all.

Fruhvirtova, playing with more intent behind her shots than Andreeva, swept the remaining six games of the 2nd to knot the match, then extended her run to eight games into the 3rd. The Czech led 3-1. Andreeva got the break to get back on serve, giving herself a chance to turn the match back in her favor. But that didn't happen. Instead, she never won another game. Fruhvirtova treated the moment as just a minor blip on her radar, while Andreeva's error totals climbed.

Serving down 5-2, Andreeva fell behind love/40, and saw Fruhvirtova break at love with a crosscourt forehand winner to match, claiming 12 of the final 14 games.
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6. Rosmalen 2nd Rd. - Aleksandra Krunic def. Jessie Pegula
...7-6(3)/6-7(3)/6-4. Krunic's comeback from knee surgery gets its first big win, as the Serb takes down the #1 seed to get her first Top 10 win in six years.

In her first event since BJK Cup play in April, Pegula had led here 4-2 in the 1st, but lost in a TB. The world #5 led 5-3 in the 2nd, only to see Krunic force another TB. Pegula survived, but saw Krunic take a break lead at 3-1 in the 3rd and never face another BP.


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7. Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Lulu Sun def. Zheng Qinwen
...4-6/6-2/6-4. *Officially* (though not technically), #8 Zheng was the First Seed Out at Wimbledon, suffering a loss to Kiwi qualifier Sun, who picked up her first career Top 10 win (and her maiden MD win at any major) in what turn out to be a QF run for the world #123.

Since reaching the Australian Open final (after a U.S. Open QF last summer), Zheng has posted 3rd and 1st Round results in her next two slams.


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8. Wimbledon 1st Rd. - Sonay Kartal def. Sorana Cirstea
...3-6/6-2/6-0. British qualifier Kartal rode the firstr week British wave late at SW19, knocking off the #29-seeded veteran Romanian by sweeping the final ten games of the match (from 6-3/2-0 down) to hand Cirstea her fourth straight loss.


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9. Wimbledon Q2 - Hannah Klugman def. Linda Fruhvirtova
...6-2/0-6/6-4. The 15-year old British qualifying wild card eliminates the last teen Czech Crusher remaining in Wimbledon qualifying.



Klugman came up a bit short in the Q3 and failed to reach her maiden slam MD.
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10. Wimbledon 2nd Rd. - Caroline Wozniacki def. Leylah Fernandez
...6-3/2-6/7-5. In a late-in-the-day match resumed after a stoppage due to rain at 3-3 in the 3rd, wild card Wozniacki earned one of the best wins of her comeback, saving a pair of MP on serve down 5-4 and then breaking #30 Fernandez on her sixth BP of game 11. The Dane then served out the over the previous weekend's Eastbourne finalist.


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HM- Wimbledon Q1 - Armani Banks def. Kristina Mladenovic 4-6/6-4/6-2
...4-6/6-4/6-2. Mladenovic got an undeserved freebie WC into the RG draw, but that wasn't the case at Wimbledon.

21-year old British wild card banks handed Mladenovic her seventh straight loss (and 9th in 10 matches) in a contest in which Banks (#258) was only *barely* the ranking underdog against the former Top 10er (#215).


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All for now.

posted by Todd.Spiker @ 6:04 PM 

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