2015 preview: The road to the Australian Open - UBITENNIS
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2015 preview: The road to the Australian Open

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TENNIS 2015 PREVIEW – The 2015 season is about to start and our Diego Sampaolo looks at the build-up to the first Grand Slam of the year. Will Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams confirm at the top? Will Andy Murray be able to come back? Will Agnieszka Radwanska be able to win her first Grand Slam under the guidance of her new coach Martina Navratilova? Will Kei Nishikori become the first Asian player to win a Grand Slam?

 

The 2015 season will start next week-end with the traditional Mubadala World Tennis Exhibition in Abu Dhabi from 1 to 3 January. The ATP and the WTA Tour season will officially kick off next week with Brisbane and Doha. In the same week Perth will host the traditional Hopman Cup ITF competition and the ASB Classic in Auckland and Shenzhen. The build-up to the Australian Open starting on 19th January will continue the following week with Sydney and the Heineken Cup. In our preview we look to what we can expect in the next tournaments in January leading to the Australian Open and the players who will be in the spotlight in the first very busy month of the year. Will Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams confirm at the top? Will Andy Murray be able to come back? Will Agnieszka Radwanska be able to win her first Grand Slam under the guidance of her new coach Martina Navratilova? Will Kei Nishikori become the first Asian player to win a Grand Slam?

The time to celebrate the stars of the 2014 season is over. It’s now time to look to the 2015 season which kicks off on New Year’s Day in Abu Dhabi for the traditional season-opening Mubadala exhibition tournament which features a star-studded field featuring defending champion Novak Djokovic, nine-time Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal, 2014 Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka and 2013 Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, although Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfred Tsonga have pulled out and have been replaced by Nicholas Almagro and Feliciano Lopez. Djokovic won the last three editions of this tournament and will be bidding to win for the fourth time before moving to Doha next week.

Almagro, who finished runner-up to Djokovic in a thrilling 2-hour and 34-minute final two years ago, will open his Mubadala campaign against Wawrinka. The winner of this match will play against Djokovic.

The six players in this year’s line-up have collected a total of 24 titles. All the previous three Mubadala champions Andy Murray, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic will return to Abu Dhabi this year.

Nadal and Djokovic will make the trip to Doha where they headline a line-up which features Tomas Berdych, David Ferrer and Ernests Gulbis. Nadal will defend his Doha title twelve months after his triumph against Gael Monfils. The Spaniard will make his seventh appearance in Doha where he also finished runner-up in 2010 losing to Nikolay Davydenko. Djokovic, who won seven titles in 2014 and finished on a high winning Paris Bercy and the ATP Finals in London, will make his debut in the capital of Qatar. Berdych will play his first tournament since his coach change to Daniel Vallverdu. The Czech player will be looking to avenge his first-round defeat in Doha. Ferrer will be looking to make a good start to his season in Doha where he reached the semifinal in 2012.

The big question is whether Nadal will be able to return to his past form in the same way as 2013 when he clinched the Number 1 spot after a 2012 season ruined by a series of injury problems. In a recent interview to French television Nadal admitted that he is planning to organize his schedule carefully to stay healthy rather than focusing on recapturing World Number 1 position. He is planning to play in fewer tournaments in the future after a difficult 2014 season ruined by a series of injury problems.

“For me returning to World Number 1 spot will not be a goal in my career anymore. If I have become Number 1 because of the results I have, it’s great but I am not going to pursue this objective. I will follow my schedule. My big goal is to play as many years as possible. What I won’t do is to put the best years of my career to get Number 1 spot”, said Nadal

In the same week as Doha, the calender features the ATP/WTA Combined Tournament in Brisbane, the first Australian event leading up to the Australian Open. The ATP 250 in Brisbane will feature a star-studded line-up with Roger Federer (runner-up last year to Lleyton Hewitt), Grigor Dimitrov, US Open finalist Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic. Former US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro who was expected to make his come-back in Brisbane after a 2014 season plagued by a serious wrist injury, announced that he will not play in the Australian city. Unfortunately US Open champion Marin Cilic was forced to pull out of the Brisbane Tournament because of a shoulder injury which may put his participation at the Australian Open at risk. After losing all his three round-robin matches at the ATP Finals, Cilic decided to play the IPTL (International Tennis Premier League) but he eventually pulled out due to a right wrist injury.

“I need to take a break, but I don’t know if it is two weeks or four weeks and how long it is going to last. I am going to do my best to get to the Australian Open”, said Cilic.

Dimitrov, Raonic and Nishikori enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2014 and will be looking to continue their outstanding progress. Nishikori will be bidding to clinch his first Grand Slam at the Australian Open after finishing runner-up to Marin Cilic at last September’s US Open final.

The women’s Brisbane WTA Premier-level field will feature two of the most glamorous names on the circuit Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic, while Petra Kvitova and Simona Halep and 2014 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova will be the headline names in Shenzhen in the same week. Last year Sharapova reached the the semifinal stage where she lost to eventual winner Serena Williams. Ivanovic had a strong campaign in 2014 finishing the year at World Number 5 after winning in Auckland, Monterrey, Birmingham and Tokyo.

At the start of January Perth will play host the Hopman Cup, a team ITF exhibition tournament featuring national team mixed teams. Among the top teams playing in Perth there are the USA with Serena Williams and John Isner, Canada with Eugenie Bouchard and Vasek Pospisil, Poland with Agnieszka Radwanska and Jerzy Janowicz, Italy with Fabio Fognini and Flavia Pennetta, Great Britain with Andy Murray and Heather Watson.

Murray will play his first full year under the guidance of Amelie Mauresmo who has joined his team last March after the split from Ivan Lendl. Earlier this month Murray split from his friend and assistant coach Daniel Vallverdu who has joined the team of Tomas Berdych. Murray will try to return to his best form after a tough season in which he managed to qualify for the ATP Finals only after a strong final part of the year which saw him clinching three tournaments in Shenzhen, Vienna and Valencia. Murray deserves a lot of credit and cannot be written off especially because he performed well in the 2014 Grand Slam tournaments where he reached three semifinals at the Australian Open, at the US Open and at Wimbledon and the semifinal at the Roland Garros. A good performance at Melbourne could be a confidence-booster for the rest of the season.

It will be interesting to see if the advice of Martina Navratilova will help Radwanska clinch her first Grand Slam title. The Polish player reached the Wimbledon final in 2012 and two more Grand Slam semifinals at Wimbledon in 2013 and at the 2014 Australian Open. Aga won one title in 2014 in Toronto but she failed to reach the quarter finals in the three last Grand Slams in 2014 and was overtaken by two younger players Simona Halep and Eugenie Bouchard in the WTA Ranking.

Bouchard was the WTA Rising Star in 2014 and will have to confirm her brilliant results in 2015 in which she reached the semifinals at the Australian Open and at the Roland Garros and the final at Wimbledon.

In a very busy week from 4th to 10th January 2015 there are also two other WTA Tournaments, the Shenzhen Open and the ASB Classic in Auckland.

Shenzhen will feature Petra Kvitova and Simona Halep. Kvitova finished the year at Number 4 after a strong season in which she clinched her second Wimbledon title three years after her first triumph at the All England Cub. Halep started the year at the Number 11 in the WTA Ranking and finished it at Number 3 after reaching her first Grand Slam final at the Roland Garros and the WTA Final in Singapore.

Another superb field is expected in Auckland where 2014 US Open champion Caroline Wozniacki and Venus Williams who will start the 2015 season in New Zealand. Wozniacki enjoyed a strong come-back in the second half of 2014 in which she reached the US Open final and lost an epic semifinal against Serena Williams at the WTA Championships semifinal in Singapore. Wozniacki played in her second Grand Slam five years after her first Major Final in New York where she lost 7-5 6-3 against Kim Clijsters. The 2014 US Open marked Wozniacki’s best showing in a Grand Slam since the 2012 Australian Open. The next season could see the Danish player lift the elusive Grand Slam title if she maintains her outstanding form of 2014 shown especially in the WTA Championships seminal in Singapore where the Dane led 4-1 in the third-set tie-break before Williams fought back to prevail in a dramatic match. The Australian Open will be the first chance for Wozniacki to claim her first ever Grand Slam Trophy.

Venus will be looking to improve her result of 2014 when she finished runner-up to Ana Ivanovic. The ASB Classic will also feature 2012 Roland Garros finalist Sara Errani, 2014 Wimbledon quarter finalist and Birmingham and Luxembourg finalist Barbora Zahlavova Strycova, 2014 semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens, 2013 Australian Open semifinalist Sloane Stephens, Coco Wandeweghe, Monica Puig (winner of the WTA Rising Star Tournament in Singapore) and Ana Konjuh

The last week before the Australian Open will be the Sydney International which will feature David Goffin, Fabio Fognini and defending champion Juan Martin Del Potro. On the women’s side the field will feature a very strong line-up with Wozniacki, Radwanska, Kvitova and Halep who will provide a real preview to what could happen in the following two weeks at the Australian Open from 19th January to 1st February.

The Heineken Cup men’s tournament in Auckland will be the final warm-up for the Australian Open. David Ferrer, Ernests Gulbis, Gael Monfils and John Isner are expected to play in New Zealand.

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Roland Garros Daily Preview: Inspiring Stories Abound on Wednesday

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Stan Wawrinka on Monday in Paris (twitter.com/rolandgarros)

Second round singles action begins on Wednesday in Paris.

 

Top names like Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka, and Stefanos Tsitsipas will all be considerable favorites on Wednesday, so this preview will focus on what are likely to be Day 4’s more competitive matchups.  And they include some inspiring stories: a 38-year-old former champion fighting back from injury for one more deep run at a Major, the American No.1 playing while thinking about her seriously ill mother, and a former top 10 player from France who has battled his way back from depression and alcohol issues.

Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s four most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule.  Wednesday’s play begins at 11:00am local time.


Camila Giorgi vs. Jessica Pegula (3) – 11:45am on Court Philippe-Chatrier

Earlier this year in an essay for The Players’ Tribune, Pegula divulged the healthy crisis her family has been enduring.  Her mother, Kim, went into cardiac arrest last June and nearly died.  Kim’s has improved considerably, but she’s still battling significant health issues a year later.  Jess has spoken about how her mom’s fight has inspired her tennis in recent months.

Pegula sits at a career-high ranking of No.3 in singles, and is No.2 in doubles.  The 29-year-old American has advanced to the quarterfinals at four of the last five Majors, including this one a year ago.  Jess also claimed her first WTA 1000 title last October is Guadalajara.

Giorgi is also a WTA 1000 champion, having won at that level two years ago in Canada.  She is 14-9 on the year, and ousted France’s Alize Cornet in straight sets in the first round. 

They have met nine times at all levels, with Pegula leading 7-2, taking their last four encounters.  Giorgi’s last victory over Pegula came during that 2021 Montreal title run.  Jess is the superior clay court player, and should advance comfortably despite the always-dangerous power the Italian possesses.


Marketa Vondrousova vs. Daria Kasatkina (9) – Second on Court Suzanne-Lenglen

Vondrousova was a surprising runner-up here four years ago as a 19-year-old.  But multiple surgeries have disrupted her young career, with her only final since that 2019 French Open run coming at the Tokyo Olympics, when she took home a silver medal after losing to Belinda Bencic.  Yet Marketa is back in strong form, with a record of 20-8 this season, and recent clay court victories over the likes of Maria Sakkari and Bianca Andreescu.

Kasatkina may be a top 10 seed, but she is only 13-12 in 2023.  A semifinalist here a year ago, Daria would drop out of the top 10 with a loss on Wednesday, which puts a lot of pressure on her shoulders.

This should be a fun matchup, with both players possessing plenty of variety in their games.  And they have split four prior meetings, and are 1-1 on clay.  But based on recent form, Vondrousova is a slight favorite to take out the ninth seed.


Stan Wawrinka vs. Thanasi Kokkinakis (WC) – Second on Court Simonne-Mathieu

Wawrinka’s title run in Paris came eight years ago, with recent years filled with surgeries and a whole lot of rehab.  Yet that made his first-round five-set victory over Albert Ramos-Vinolas all the more satisfying.  Stan is looking to reach the third round of a Major since this tournament in 2020.

Kokkinakis’ career has been sabotaged by injuries from a very young age.  But the 27-year-old Australian has been enjoying the healthiest stretch of his career across the last few seasons.  Thanasi is 24-12 this year at all levels, and upset Dan Evans in straight sets in the first round.

Their first career meeting feels like it could go either way.  The much-younger Kokkinakis should be the fresher player on the day.  However, in the second round of the last Major, Thanasi suffered an excruciating loss to another aging Slam champ, in a near six-hour affair with Andy Murray.  That is the kind of loss that sticks with you for a long time, especially when it happens at your home Major.  With that in mind, I favor the Stanimal to pull out another tight victory on Wednesday.


Lucas Pouille (Q) vs. Cameron Norrie (14) – Last on Court Suzanne-Lenglen

Currently ranked 675th in the world, Pouille has won four matches since the start of qualifying, even defeating lucky loser Jurij Rodionov twice, once in qualifying and once in the main draw.  Both of his victories over Rodionov were emotional: one was spent shedding tears of joy while holding his young son, the other spent singing La Marseillaise along with the Parisian crowd.  After the demons Lucas has faced in recent years, each victory is as sweet as a French crepe.

Meanwhile, Norrie has become one of the sport’s most reliable performers since upping his physical fitness a few years ago.  The 27-year-old is 28-10 in 2023, and survived a five-setter in the opening round against another Frenchman, Benoit Paire.

They have split their two prior meetings, both of which took place at Majors, and both of which were close.  Five years ago at this tournament, Pouille prevailed in a fourth set tiebreak.  Two years ago at Wimbledon, Norrie prevailed 7-5 in the fourth.  In the rubber match on Wednesday, Cam must be favored despite what any French heartstrings may say.


Other Notable Matches on Wednesday:

Roberto Carballes Baena vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas (5) – Tsitsipas required four sets, and was nearly pushed to a fifth, against Jiri Vesely on Sunday.  Carballes Baena won in straights, and won at ATP title on clay last month in Marrakech.  When they met five years ago on clay in Estoril, Stefanos narrowly prevailed in a third-set tiebreak.

Carlos Alcaraz (1) vs. Taro Daniel – Alcaraz dropped just seven games on Monday, in his first match at a Major as a Slam champion and World No.1.  Daniel also prevailed in straight sets, and is now 8-6 this year at tour level.  At a clay court Challenger tournament two years ago, Carlitos defeated Taro in three sets.

Iryna Shymanovich (Q) vs. Aryna Sabalenka (2) – Sabalenka easily won her opener on Sunday, while 25-year-old qualifier Shymanovich claimed her first victory at a Major in her debut at this level.  Aryna could become the new World No.1 this fortnight depending on how far she and Iga Swiatek advance.

Novak Djokovic (3) vs. Marton Fucsovics – Djokovic claimed his 86th French Open victory on Monday in straight sets.  Fucsovics claimed his seventh, and is 0-4 against Novak, though he’s taken a set in three of their four meetings.


Wednesday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Roland Garros Daily Preview: Swiatek, Krejcikova, Azarenka, Andreescu Play on Tuesday

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A look at the grounds of the French Open (twitter.com/rolandgarros)

Day 3 in Paris sees the conclusion of first round singles play.

 

Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka plays US Open champ Bianca Andreescu in a matchup that headlines Tuesday’s Order of Play.  Day 3 also features the 2023 Roland Garros debuts of the two most recent women’s singles champions: Iga Swiatek and Barbora Krejcikova.  Other action includes standouts from this season such as Daniil Medvedev, Elena Rybakina, and Holger Rune.  Plus, last year’s singles finalists, Coco Gauff and Casper Ruud, will both play their opening matches.

Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s four most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule.  Tuesday’s play begins at 11:00am local time.


Lesia Tsurenko vs. Barbora Krejcikova (13) – Second on Court 7

Krejcikova was the champion here two years ago in both singles and doubles.  An elbow injury derailed her career last season, but she’s 20-10 in 2023, having won a WTA 1000 title in Dubai.  However, she’s only 5-4 this year on clay, so she does not arrive in Paris with much momentum.

Tsurenko celebrates her 34th birthday on Tuesday, and was a US Open quarterfinalist in 2018.  She is an impressive 25-8 this season at all levels (including qualifying matches, which don’t officially count).  At Indian Wells, the Ukrainian withdrew from her match with Belarussian Aryna Sabalenka, citing a panic attack after what she described as shocking comments regarding the war in Ukraine from WTA CEO Steve Simon.

Their first career meeting is a tricky first round draw for the 2021 champion.  Yet Krejcikova remains the favorite to advance, and is a potential fourth round draw for the 2020 and 2022 champion, Iga Swiatek.


Iga Swiatek (1) vs. Cristina Bucsa – Third on Court Philippe-Chatrier

Swiatek is 28-6 on the year, and 12-2 on clay.  She’s 21-2 lifetime at Roland Garros, having won 42 of 48 sets contested.  But is Iga 100% healthy?  Just over a week ago in Rome, she retired during the third set of her quarterfinal against Elena Rybakina, citing a thigh injury.  However, she’s indicated it is not a considerable injury.

Bucsa is a 25-year-old from Spain who upset Bianca Andreescu at the last Major in Melbourne, coming from a set down to win 6-4 in the third, after saving a match point in the second.  But in the very next round, she only managed one game against her opponent on this day, Swiatek.

On Tuesday, a similarly-comfortable victory should be expected from Iga.


Holger Rune (6) vs. Christopher Eubanks – Third on Court Simonne-Mathieu

Rune made his big breakthrough at this tournament a year ago, achieving his first Major quarterfinal thanks to upsets over Denis Shapovalov and Stefanos Tsitsipas.  And the recently-turned-20-year-old has continued to make strong strides ever since, winning the Masters 1000 event in Bercy by outlasting Novak Djokovic in the final, and reaching two Masters finals on clay this season.  Holger is now 27-10 in 2023.

Eubanks made a breakthrough of his own two months ago in Miami, where he came through qualifying and advanced all the way to the round of 16, achieving a career goal of cracking the top 100.  The 27-year-old is now ranked 74th, but has still spent the majority of the past year on the Challenger circuit.  The tall American has a big serve, and is not the easiest of opening round draws.

In their first career meeting, Rune is a clear favorite.  However, I am curious to see how Holger handles this moment, as this is the first time in his young career that he is defending a result quite as big as his quarterfinal appearance from 2022.


Victoria Azarenka (18) vs. Bianca Andreescu – Last on Court Simonne-Mathieu

This is a marquee first-round encounter, though neither player comes into this tournament with much form, nor would either refer to clay as their favorite surface.  Azarenka is 13-9 on the year, and just 2-2 on clay, after withdrawing from Rome due to a right leg injury.  Andreescu is just 9-9 on the year, and 0-2 on clay, coming off a 6-0, 6-1 loss to Marketa Vondrousova in Rome.

Vika is 28-15 lifetime in Paris, having reached a semifinal 10 years ago.  Bibi is only 2-2 in Paris, and is yet to advance beyond the second round at any Major outside of New York.  So in another first-time meeting on the day, Azarenka must be favored to advance.


Other Notable Matches on Tuesday:

Elias Ymer (Q) vs. Casper Ruud (4) – Ruud reached two Major finals last season, but is just 16-11 in 2023, and would fall out of the top five with an early loss in Paris.  Elias is the elder brother of another tennis pro, Mikael, and his only career win at a Slam came at this event.  When they met four years ago at a hard court Challenger in Phoenix, Casper prevailed in three sets.

Thiago Seyboth Wild (Q) vs. Daniil Medvedev (2) – Medvedev is a stellar 39-5 on the year, and coming off a surprising Masters 1000 title on clay in Rome.  Seyboth Wild has accumulated 36 match wins at all levels this year, all on clay.

Rebeka Masarova vs. Coco Gauff (6) – Gauff is 19-8 this year, yet is yet to win back-to-back matches in 2023 on clay.  But Coco did win a hard court title to begin this season, defeating 23-year-old Masarova in the final of Auckland by a score of 6-1, 6-1. 

Elena Rybakina (4) vs. Brenda Fruhvirtova (Q) – Rybakina is 30-7 this season, and just a week ago claimed the WTA 1000 title in Rome.  Brenda and her sister Linda are two teenage Czech teenagers making strong strides in the sport at a very early age.


Tuesday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Novak Djokovic Cruises Past Kovacevic To Keep History Bid Alive

Novak Djokovic began his bid for a 23rd Grand Slam title with a straight sets win over Aleksandar Kovacevic.

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Novak Djokovic’s historic bid for a 23rd Grand Slam title is alive after a 6-3 6-2 7-6(1) victory over Aleksandar Kovacevic.

 

The Serb broke on five occasions as he produced a clinical performance over the American, who idolised Djokovic as a kid.

Djokovic will now face tricky Hungarian Marton Fucsovics in the second round as he looks to send a statement of intent in the opening rounds.

The world number three had a tricky start to the match as Kovacevic more than held his own, using his backhand to effectively power past Djokovic’s defence.

However Djokovic did find a way through in the sixth game as he took his second break point of the set to seal a 4-2 lead.

Despite only winning five matches leading up to Roland Garros, Djokovic started the contest in confident fashion as the one break of serve was enough to seal the opening set.

The two-time champion only conceded three points on serve in the opening set and that dominance continued in the second set as he worked harder to break Kovacevic.

Although the American was resilient, the pressure was too much as Djokovic found a way through in a long opening game.

Djokovic continued to be consistent on return, using depth and power to force unforced errors from Kovacevic.

In this set, it was only four points dropped on serve as the Serb sealed another break, taking a 4-1 lead.

That was all Djokovic needed a two set lead was established after 1 hour and 18 minutes.

It was a more complicated third set for Djokovic even if he did break to love in the opening game.

Djokovic allowed his opponent back into the match after taking his foot after the gas with Kovacevic creating some break points in the third ste.

The American’s determination was rewarded with a break in the sixth game before Djokovic broke for a fifth time in the match to take a 4-3 lead.

Just as when Djokovic was cruising to victory, a poor service game saw Kovacevic break back for 5-5 as the world number 114 would eventually force a third set tiebreak.

However Djokovic raised his level when he needed to as he won seven of the eight points played to seal his place in the second round.

A dominant performance to start his bid for a 23rd Grand Slam title, which would put him ahead of Rafael Nadal on Grand Slam titles won.

Tougher tests await including Marton Fucsovics who awaits on Wednesday.

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