Serena Captures Number 19
Serena Williams had a lot of questions to answer about her
form entering the first major of the season. The world number one went 2-2 in her
Hopman Cup singes matches, looking sluggish and drained of energy. Through the
first four of the Aussie Open, it appeared Williams was still struggling to
find the form that has helped her capture five Australian Open titles. However,
if you have watched any of Williams’ major title runs in years past, you would
know that if she can get through the first week unscathed, she becomes
incredibly difficult to beat.
From the quarterfinals onward, Williams looked totally
dialed in, firing on all cylinders. In fact, her final three matches, Williams
struck 46 aces, four more than she hit in the previous four rounds. The most
intriguing match of the American’s fortnight was her semifinal match against
19-year-old Madison Keys. In the 84-minute encounter, it provided tennis fans a
look at the present and future of American tennis. Williams, clearly affected
by the pressure of the match, overcame the heavy artillery of her fellow
countrywomen using her top-notched defensive skills and her masterful serve.
In the final, Williams faced a familiar foe in world number
two, Maria Sharapova. Having won the previous 15 meetings against the Russian,
Williams was heavily favored to capture number 19. However, Sharapova came out
with a different game plan against Williams, which involved the use of drop
shots to draw Williams forward, and body serves to prohibit Williams from
attacking the serve. Even with the change in tactics, the huge discrepancy in
the movement and serve of the two players was too much for Sharapova to
overcome. Williams, striking 38 winners and 18 aces, defeated Sharapova for the
16th straight time, 6-3 7-6 (5).
With the victory over Maria Sharapova in the final, Williams
passes legends Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova into second place in the
Open Era for major titles won. Williams is now only three majors behind Steffi
Graf’s seemingly unreachable 22 major titles. At 33 years of age, almost 16
years after winning her first grand slam title at the U.S. Open, Serena
Williams is still capturing major titles, and is determined to make history.
Keys Unlocks Potential
Ever since Madison Keys made her tour debut back in 2009, tennis
fans knew they were witnessing a superstar in making. Fast forward to 2015, the
19-year-old American can now at grand slam semifinalist to her resume. Unseeded
at this year’s Aussie Open, Keys had to overcome steep obstacles to reach her
first career major semifinal. The first came from the native Aussie, Casey
Dellacqua. After quickly dropping the opening set 6-2 to the Aussie southpaw,
Keys showed great maturity in turning the match around. This newfound maturity
can be attributed to Keys’ new coach, Lindsay Davenport. In a short amount of
time, Davenport has taught Keys make mid-match adjustments, depending on how
well she is playing.
As impressive as the win over Dellacqua was, Keys’ victories
over Petra Kvitova and Venus Williams assured tennis fans the potential of the
young American. In these victories, Keys proved that she could go toe-to-toe,
and even out hit the biggest hitters on tour. The 19-year-old seemed unfazed by
the enormity of the moment, showing laser-like focus throughout the two
encounters. Even in her semifinal loss to Serena Williams, Keys was often times
the aggressor, bullying Williams with her relentless power off the serve and
the groundstrokes.
Interestingly, for the third straight Australian Open, a
19-year-old reached the semifinals (2013: Sloane Stephens; 2014: Eugenie
Bouchard). How Madison Keys follows up this breakthrough performance will
definitely be one to watch. If Keys can maintain the form she displayed during
the fortnight, the sky is the limit for the young American.
Venus’ Resurgence Continues
Venus Williams’
strong start to 2015 continued at the Australian Open. After capturing the
title at the warm-up tournament in Auckland, Williams looked poised to make the
second week of a major for the first time since 2011. Seeded 18th,
the 34-year-old American’s road to the round of 16 was a winnable one. However,
proceedings got tricky prematurely for the seven-time grand slam champion.
Following straightforward victories in the first two rounds,
Williams faced stiff competition in rising Italian, Camila Giorgi. Down a set
and a break, two points from elimination, Williams was able to limit the
unforced errors, and impose her game on Giorgi. After winning the second set in
a tiebreaker, Williams took control of the match, and ran away with the third
set.
In the round of 16, Williams gave another impressive
performance against sixth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska. Having lost the previous
three matches to Radwanska, Williams changed her game plan against the crafty
Pole. Williams made every attempt to move forward and take time away from her
opponent. Even though the strategy wasn’t always successful, the 34-year-old
was able to overcome Radwanska in three well-contested sets.
Now in her first grand slam quarterfinal since Wimbledon in 2010,
Williams’ opponent was 19-year-old
American, Madison Keys. There was a lot riding on this match for Williams. A
win would set up an all-Williams semifinal, as well as get Williams back into
the Top 10 for the first time in four years. The 1 hour and 55 minute match
definitely lived up to the hype of American tennis fans. It possessed all the
elements of a great tennis match: hard hitting; big serving; and loads of
drama. Unfortunately for Williams, she was unable to sustain her break lead in
the final set, falling to Keys 3-6 6-4 4-6.
Even with the loss, Williams rose to No. 11 in this week’s
rankings, which is a remarkable achievement given her age and health problems.
A little over three years ago, Williams was diagnosed with the autoimmune
disease, Sjögren’s syndrome. Many questioned whether Williams would ever play
tennis again. Now, after her quarterfinal showing at the Australian Open, the
American is on the cusp of breaking back into the Top 10.
Makarova’s Follows Up Major Breakthrough
Ekaterina Makarova’s impressive play at the Australian Open
continued in 2015. For the fourth straight year, the 26-year-old Russian
reached at least the quarterfinals. However, after falling in the quarterfinals
the previous three years, Makarova took it one step further this fortnight, reaching
the semifinals for the first time. As a result, the Russian has now made the
semifinals of the last two majors.
Makarova’s most notable match was her quarterfinal encounter
with world number three, Simona Halep. The Russian dominated with her tricky
lefty-serve, and signature down-the-line groundstrokes to easily dispatch the unmotivated
Romanian, 6-4 6-0. As surprising as Makarova’s quarterfinal victory was, the
most shocking part of the match was the performance of Halep.
From the very first point of the match, Halep looked as if she
had already lost the match. The Romanian, who already plays at a quicker pace
than most, displayed a heightened need to continue proceedings. Halep’s performance
can only be described as an unwillingness to make an effort, or in other words,
she tanked the match. However, all the credit should be given to Makarova, who
played with passion and the will to win.
Notable Upsets:
First Round: No. 142 Lucie
Hradecka def. No. 5 Ana Ivanovic
- Ivanovic was defending quarterfinal points from a year ago
- Loss was the third time in last four majors Ivanovic lost to a Czech player
- Became the first Top 5 player to lose in the opening round of the Aussie Open since Jennifer Capriati in 2003
- The biggest win of Keys’ career
- Keys reached the second week of a major for the first time
- Since making the semifinals in 2012, Kvitova has failed to reached the second week of the Aussie Open (2013: second round; 2014: first round; 2015: third round)
Fourth Round: No. 18
Venus Williams def. No. 6 Agnieszka Radwanska
- Win secured Williams’ first quarterfinal berth since 2010 Wimbledon
- Radwanska had won previous three matches (4-6 H2H vs. Williams)
- Radwanska was defending semifinal points from 2014
Quarterfinal: No. 10
Ekaterina Makarova def. No. 3 Simona Halep
- Win secured Makarova’s second grand slam semifinal in as many majors
- Halep was victorious in their only previous encounter (2013 New Haven)
- Makarova rose to No. 9 in Monday’s rankings
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