Archives for December 2015

The top 32’s in 2015: Questions for Azarenka & JJ, Monfils & Fabio

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THE WTA WOMEN

No. 24

Andrea Petkovic

The delightful German loves to speak and she is very bright, but on court she slumped this season, getting hurt once again and she was over-playing. She is a big hitter and she can be steady at times, but she gets frustrated and needs to calm down if she is ever going to reach the top 10 every again.

No. 23

Ekaterina Makarova

The Russian has been very effective on the hard courts at the majors, reaching the semifinals at the Australian Open once again.

After that though, she began to slide, being frustrated when she wasn’t kissing the lines. She got hurt after the US Open and wasn’t able to play the rest of the season. She is under rated, and she can kick the heck out of the ball, but in 2016, the 27-year-old has to add more variety.

No. 22

Victoria Azarenka

In the first match of the year in Brisbane, the former No. 1 Azarenka lost a marathon against Katarina Pliskova, but it looked like she was thrilled to be back on court and ready to rumble. She has looked extremely effective at times, nearly knocking off Serena Williams and going down against Simona Halep in a classic quarterfinal at the US Open. She was right there and had she bested Halep, she could have won it all. The two-time champion has been hurt at times this year and she knows that if she wants to become No. 1 again, she has to reset her mindset. If she does not, she may be left out of the cold.

No. 21

Jelena Jankovic

The veteran Serbian has been around a very long time (15 years to be exact)and clearly she has been aging. However, once in a while, she will play great, rushing around, crushing her phenomenal backhand and smiling widely. She is ‘only’ 30 year old, so ‘JJ’ will stay around until she realizes that she isn’t strong enough to knock off the big girls anymore.

THE ATP MEN

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Monfils combines great athleticism and inconsistency. Mal Taam/MALTphoto

No. 24

Gael Monfils

When the Frenchman is on, he can be the most fun, delightful player around. But when he isn’t, well, he becomes pretty shaky. He did have a few good moments, like Marseille, Monte Carlo (he upset Roger Federer) and Roland Garros, when he won two dramatic five-setters but then he finally fell again … to Federer. After that, he did very little and once again, he was hurt frequently. When he is healthy and he is feeling right, he can go very deep. But can the 29-year-old ever win a major? Doubtful.

No. 23

Ivo Karlovic

The 36-year-old Croatian is still in the top 25 in singles, which is pretty darn good, considering that most of his contempories have already retired. The 6-foot-10 Karlovic hits a huge first serve, he can bang a forehand and he isn’t bad when he gets to the net. Clearly, he isn’t that fast and his backhand is nearly atrocious, but he plays almost every week and he doesn’t back off. Who knows, if he stays healthy, he could continue playing until 40. Not bad at all.

No. 22

Victor Troicki

After being in top form from July 2013-2104, he came back, starting from zero. That was very difficult, but in 2015, he was more calm and he was very respectable. Sure, he didn’t play particularly well after the grass season (he reached the final at Stuttgart), but the Serbian played a ton of tournaments and he didn’t quit. Given what occurred, he is back on court, pushing to the limits – that is good enough.

No. 21

Fabio Fognini

Without a doubt, the Italian had some spectacular moments, shocking Rafa Nadal at the US Open after being down two sets, and besting Rafa in Buenos Aires in three sets early this year. He was tricked by Grigor Dimitrov 7-5 in the third set in Madrid, but a week later at home in Italy, he blasted the Bulgarian 6-0 in the third. Yes, he can lose frequently, but he has gorgeous shots and, if he continues to improve, he could reach the top 10 in 2016.

The top 32’s in 2015: Will Dimitrov and Sock rise again, are Stosur & Kuznetsova ready to push

 

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THE ATP MEN

No. 28

Grigor Dimitrov: In 2014, it looked like the now 24-year-old was coming up rapidly. He has tremendous variety, he is fairly quick and driven. But in 2015, he was all over the place and he was admittedly confused. If he wants to return into the top 10, the Bulgarian has to be more patient and calm.

No. 27

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez: The veteran has played a ton of tournaments, and while he was unable to grab any big events, the Spaniard did snare Croatia (hard courts) and Romania (clay). He is a big hitter and while he will never win a major, he has improved and if he managed to avoid the so-called Big 4 plus 1 early on (Djokovic, Murray, Federer, Nadal and Wawrinka), he can reach a major semifinal. He will be very pleased indeed.

No. 26

Jack Sock: Slowly but surely, the American is rising up. He is ‘only’ 23 years old, and while he has been unable go very deep at the Grand Slams or the ATP 1000s, he did win Houston on clay, and he reached the final at Stockholm (upending Gilles Simon and Richard Gasquet). Outside the top 10, he has beaten a number of fine players, but inside the top 10, he has shocked the top competitors such as Djokovic, Federer and Nadal. Will he be ready to take down the big boys in 2016?

No. 25

Robert Bautista Agut: There are so many good, solid Spaniards. Last year, Bautista reached No. 14 and looked like he was prepared to jump into the top 10 and pound the opponents. In 2015, he was pretty close, but when push came to shove, he went backwards. Try, try, try again – in 2016.

THE WTA WOMEN

No. 28

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova: Let’s be positive about the Russian: She did win a tournament at Linz and then reached the final at Moscow, which was terrific. But, when she went to the Fed Cup Final against the Czech, she lost all three matches and they went down. Now, she has won eight titles since she began on the tour in 2005, which is admirable, but is she consistent enough to go very deep at the Slams? Doubtful, but give her another chance in 2016.

No. 27

Samantha Stosur: The veteran may have slipped downward, but the Aussie keeps working and she has improved her so-so backhand. She says that someday, she could win another major (she won the 2011 US Open), and perhaps she can, but first and foremost, she cast off any nervousness in Australia. She has lost to numerous average players over the years at the Aussie Open, Sydney and Brisbane. If she goes deep in Melbourne, the entire world will stand up and cheer.

No. 26

Anna Karolina Schmiedlova: Slovakia has had a decent amount of solid players over the years, but few expected that the 21-year-old Schmiedlova would crack the top 30 and make heads turn. She won two small events in Poland and Romania, which is commendable, but she didn’t do much at all during the Slams. She is pretty young though, so in 2016 if she continues to get better, she might threaten the big girls.

No. 25

Svetlana Kuznetsova: If Serena Williams won three Slams this year when she was 33 years old, then maybe ‘Sveta’ can do the same thing — revive. The Russian is 30 years old now and while she isn’t quite as fast as she did when she won the 2004 US Open and 2009 Roland Garros, she does mix it up now and she is very bright. If she wants to move back into the top 10 in 2016, she has to improve her backhand and her volley.

The top 32’s in 2015: Who did what, and who will rise in 2016

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THE WTA WOMEN

No. 32

Sabine Lisicki

It is nearly impossible to figure out which way she is going. The German can bomb her first serves, and she loves the grass, but even though she can rake it near the baseline, she can totally disappear. Its hard to believe that such a talent is stuck at the bottom of this list.

No. 31

Irina-Camelia Begu: The Romanian was pretty quiet this season, but she didn’t back off, winning Seoul. She did manage to stun Angie Kerber in the first round of the Aussie, perhaps her best win in 2015.

No. 30

Sloane Stephens: Beginning this year, the 22-year-old said that she was ready to crack the top 10. She did play a little better than in 2014, but this year, she was a bit shaky, especially in the fall. Sloane has all the tools; the question is whether she really wants to commit to her sport.

No. 29

Kristina Mladenovic: The fairly young Frenchwoman has been a pretty decent year, in the singles, doubles and mixed. She is pretty muscular, she likes the net and she can move forward. If she can improve mentally, she can certainly crack the top 20.

THE ATP MEN

No. 32

Steve Johnson: The American keeps grinding and now he is very close to crack the top 30. Can the former USC undefeated star reach a quarterfinal at a Slam in 2016? Sure he can.

No. 31

Jeremy Chardy: The veteran Frenchman can hit the heck out of the ball, and he can be super aggressive, but he isn’t fast enough or have enough variety. He is streaky.

No. 30

Nick Kyrgios: The 20-year-old has been up and down this season, as he is thrilling on court, but he has been lost control and shows off his angry side way too often. The Aussie can smoke his first serves, his forehand and backhand. He can be patient, too. If he matures in 2016, he can go very deep.

No. 29

Andrea Seppi: The Italian shocked Roger Federer during the Australian Open with a lot of variety. The 31-year-old will never win a major, but he can mix it up and he is over due to win a title for the first time – any title.