WTA Post-Wimbledon Roundup
We’ve taken a look at the ATP tour, now it’s time to examine the WTA ranking moves. Who benefited from the two weeks on grass, and who suffered? Here’s a breakdown of the WTA tour position switch-ups.
- Serena Williams took home the Wimbledon trophy for the second year in a row to break away definitively from the pack. Serena deserves the top sport for a long time. Should she win the US Open crown, too, she’ll be unstoppable.
- While Serena is the strongest world number one in a while, the number two and three players are shaky. Both Jelena Jankovic and Caroline Wozniacki ascended to the spots, respectively. Do they deserve the positions? Certainly due to the fact that both play matches and win. Furthermore, both are Grand Slam finalists. But there’s no feeling that they really own those spots, or are likely to keep them for any significant amount of time. No one else really does.
- Venus Williams, meanwhile, the world number two before the tournament dropped as a result At number four, things are looking glum for the five-time Wimbledon champion. Let’s hope she picks up her Grand Slam game at the US Open.
- Finalist Vera Zvonareva battled herself and her opponents to make her way to the match against Serena. She’s also now back inside the top ten at the number nine spot. Let’s see if she can get her head back in the game and continue to surprise us with the poise that brought her to the finals, not the self doubt that she showed afterward.
- Victoria Azarenka and Nadia Petrova both got bumped a few spots. The two former top ten players now find themselves at number 18 and 19, respectively. Look familiar? Well, that’s the same as John Isner and Sam Querrey on the men’s side. The Americans’ stories, however, are ones of which to be proud.
- Petra Kvitova and Tsvetana Pironkova both had fairytale runs to the semifinals. With their success, they now enjoy career high rankings. I foresee both within the top twenty by the year’s end. They have the games to do it, albeit drastically different ones.
- Dinara Safina continues to sink. She dropped eleven spots to fall to number 33 in the world. Things aren’t going her way these days and probably won’t for quite some time. I don’t see an end-of-the-year turnaround for the Russian.
- The Italian qualifier Kaia Kanepi boosted her ranking 42 positions to number 38, while Klara Zakpalova, who made it to the fourth round, shot to 43.
- Melanie Oudin, Ana Ivanovic, and Sorana Cirstea all dropped, but yet look so promising to make good showings at the US Open. Ivanovic, of course, has the biggest potential to make it back to the final rounds if only she could find her game again. Oudin, on the other hand, proved she could do it last year when she made it to the quarterfinals. Cirstea has the game. Is the belief there? She did, after all, make it to the quarterfinals of the 2009 French Open. Thus, she knows what’s it takes to go far.
WTA Tour Slumps with Injuries, Sporadic Play
In the latest smattering of injuries, WTA players Dinara Safina, Caroline Wozniacki, and Sabine Lisicki are being hampered by a variety of physical problems. These ailments are widespread across the tennis world, including the ATP side, too. With these injuries come compromised tournaments and personal anguish.
Let’s look at the specifics.
For the world’s number three player, Safina, a three times Grand Slam finalist, her back is the cause of the pain. For instance, according to a short article on Tennis.com, Safina blogged about “the back injury that has plagued her since last August. Safina wrote that an MRI revealed two stress fractures on her L5-S1 disk and a ruptured muscle.” The seriousness of the injury cannot go unchecked. According to Safina, “That was the worst news I could ever hear from a doctor, but now finally I’m recovering, though not as fast as I would prefer.”
Safina is currently in Croatia doing her physical therapy, and there is “no timetable for her return.” Moreover, the article reports that Safina “hasn’t played a match since she retired from her fourth-rounder at the Australian Open in January.” This is an extreme pity for a player so hungry for that first Grand Slam title and comes at a time when, due to other injuries around her, if she can just improve her healthy quickly, she might just come out on top.
Along with Safina’s case is that of Wozniacki, the current number two player.
Also writing in her blog, Wozniacki reported that “that the ankle injury she sustained in the Family Circle Cup semifinals against Vera Zvonareva isn’t that serious.” And hopefully this self-diagnosis turns out correct. Wozniacki has been having a breakout time on the tour with her strong showings at the largest events. She wrote, “The doctor said that I might be ready soon. I just need to make sure the right treatment.”
The third player, Lisicki of Germany, also has an injury of her own. Specifically, a left ankle injury. Therefore, she was forced to pull out of the Family Circle Cup, the tournament that took out Wozniacki from playing. Together, these three young players represent the future of the WTA tour, especially the later two. We’ll certainly being seeing more from all three. The question is: when?
Indian Wells 2010: A Belgian Brawl?
The 2010 BNP Paribas Open is upon us and the competition looks fierce on the WTA side. That is, however fierce it can be without the Williams sisters present. With their absence comes the chance for new faces to emerge and take command of the draw. Regardless, two champions look ready to fight their way through the 128-player field, and they are certainly not new faces at all. Unless, of course, you consider their hiatus from the sport for a while.
Yes, that’s correct. The two women I see battling it out is none other than the Belgian comeback queens, Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters. The draw, although not overwhelmingly favorable, provides just enough levity to all but ensure the two make it comfortably into the quarterfinals of the event. Let’s break it down.
Henin, who appears in the bottom half of the draw will first face the lightweight and number five seed, Agnieszka Radwanska in the third round. Radwanska, although certainly technically talented simply lacks the raw power needed to push past Henin’s finesse. Basically, Henin plays Radwanska’s game, but stronger and better. Next up for Henin will probably be the up-and-coming German, Sabine Lisicki. Lisicki, although more talented will not be able to match-up to Henin’s cunning. I see Liscki going strong on her powerful serve, but succumbing in two close sets. If Henin should pass through that test, her next opponent will be the number four seed, Elena Dementieva. Dementieva has a lot to prove in this match-up, especially with her agonizingly close battle with Henin at the Australian Open. Look to see Dementieva fall under the pressure yet again after a three-set battle against Henin. If Henin reaches the semifinals, she will have a tough test in the other Russian, Maria Sharapova, who is looking to keep her winning streak going and show that she still has the fire and skill to take home the biggest titles.
Clijsters on the other hand appears in the top half of the draw as the fourteenth seed. Her first seed comes in the form of Alisa Kleybanova, who recently won her first title at the Malaysian Open against Dementieva. If Clijsters prevails against the confident Kleybanova, she’ll face the number one seed, Svetlana Kuznetsova. I see Clijsters winning in two sets against Kuznetsova, who is not used to being the first seed at an event, especially one as large as Indian Wells. Her head will get the best of her, and I see Clijsters winning in two. Also looming in Clijsters’ future are Jelena Jankovic, who’s been having a poor start to the year, the sensational Shahar Peer, who made a stunning semifinal run at Dubai, or Dominika Cibulkova, always a threat at the big events. If all works out for Clijsters, the semifinals will potentially mean a match with Victoria Azarenka. Look to see Clijster’s experience get the best of Azarenka, a player always prone to letting emotion get the best of her as was the case when she imploded at the semifinals of the Australian Open against Serena. If the match between Clijsters and Azarenka emerges, it should be a thrilling, three-setter with all sorts of ups-and-downs.
If the Belgians make it through to the final two, I predict Henin improving upon her runner-up title at the Sunny Slam and restoring her name at the top of the WTA tour.
Blackhorse picks include: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, a young Russian, who recently won her first title and is the event’s number twenty-five seed and Caroline Wozniacki, the quiet, number two seed, and 2009 US Open finalsit, that will probably meet Sharapova in the quarterfinals.
