For a multitude of reasons, this year's French Open women's tournament is one of the most wide open in years. Throughout this week, the editors of TENNIS.com will each write about three possible contenders?un, deux, trois?for the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen.
Un: Victoria Azarenka 
Azarenka's stock has soared and sank over the past three years. Currently, it's on the rise. (AP Photo)
It?s hard to hit the reset button in tennis. Age catches up with you, as does the competition. But when Azarenka won Miami for the second time in three years this April, she seemingly entered a time machine. She?s still very young?19 in 2009; 21 now?and her competition has, at best, remained constant. (While new threats in Kim Clijsters and Caroline Wozniacki have emerged, the powerful Williams sisters have vanished.) It?s a wide-open WTA these days, they say, which is promising for someone looking for a major breakthrough.
Two years ago, after pasting Serena Williams in the Miami final, 6-3, 6-1, Azarenka made inroads on the subsequent natural-surface seasons, reaching the semis of Rome, the quarters of the French and the quarters of Wimbledon. She made just one more quarterfinal in 2009, but nonetheless, it was a very good year.
We had greater hopes for Azarenka in 2010, but what we got was inconsistency. After a furious start, she went 7-8 from Indian Wells through Roland Garros, including a first-round loss in Paris?as the No. 10 seed?to Gisela Dulko, 6-1, 6-2. Come the hard-court summer, the Belarusian found her stride. But three pre-fourth round losses at Slams defined her season, and in many observers? eyes, Azarenka herself: flashes of brilliance, rather than a brilliant player.
It came as somewhat of a surprise, then, that Azarenka won Miami this April, despite her previous success. Her play afterward was another pleasant development. She sustained her momentum, winning a clay-court tournament in Marbella the very next week without dropping a set. A few weeks later, Azarenka rebounded from a retirement in Stuttgart (right shoulder) with a run to the final of Madrid, one of the most important French Open tune-ups. Suddenly, Azarenka became a chic pick at Roland Garros, and for good reason.
Still, in the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately nature of tennis, we head into the French Open with worry about Azarenka: in her last tournament, Rome, she was forced to retire with an elbow injury. So there?s that. There?s also her serve, which can still go Sharapova on her and become a liability. The two Top 10?ers share more than just blood-curdling screams.
But Azarenka also shares Maria Sharapova?s intensity, powerful shotmaking and killer instinct?qualities that make Vika, despite her bruises, a favorite at the French. She can hit past Wozniacki, and most of the WTA, on her good days?can she have seven of them in a row? Her backhand is not a weakness; it?s often more potent than her forehand?how many players can we say that about? She?s currently ranked at a career-high No. 4?can she climb even higher?
There are plenty of questions surrounding Azarenka, some encouraging, some concerning. But that statement holds true for the entire women?s field. Azarenka has given us the right answers before; now she has a chance to learn from her mistakes. Anything less than a quarterfinal?the stage she reached in 2009, when she first won Miami?would be a disappointment at this year?s French Open. She?s set the bar high, but only because we know she has the ability to clear it.
 |
| Stosur knows what it takes to reach a Grand Slam final, but has she already peaked? (AP Photo) |
Deux: Samantha Stosur
As I watched Stosur make her way through last year?s Charleston draw and obliterate Vera Zvonareva in the final (6-0, 6-3), I was pretty certain the WTA had a new player to reckon with. I was right. Stosur was the Queen of Clay in 2010, up until Francesca Schiavone?s coup de grace in the French Open final.
Things haven?t come as easily for Stosur since that slip-up; not until last week in Rome did she reach another final. Her return to the Sunday spotlight was sub-par: After taking anti-nausea medication before the final, Stosur?s error-filled performance in a 6-2, 6-4 loss to Sharapova left fans wondering where the cool and focused Aussie?the one who beat Justine Henin, Serena and Jelena Jankovic in consecutive matches last year at Roland Garros?had gone.
Stosur?s true form probably lies somewhere between these extremes, but any player who can post that trio of victories on the biggest clay-court stage cannot be overlooked.
Trois: Svetlana Kuznetsova
Writing off any Grand Slam champion is dangerous; writing off a two-time major winner?who, despite her struggles, won Roland Garros two years ago?is comical.
Ed McGrogan is the online editor for TENNIS.com.
Source: http://feeds.tennis.com/~r/tenniscom-features/~3/sget25KwvI8/
No comments:
Post a Comment