32. Kaia Kanepi
She is 37 years old and she still is a darn good player. She has never gone too deep at the Slams. In at least in four of them, she has reached all the quarters. That is a fair accomplishment. However, even though she is very strong, a huge hitter, she does not have enough variety. Next year, if she wants to reach into the top 20, she has to be much more aggressive.
31. Karolina Pliskova
The Czech was so close to winning the US Open and Wimbledon,. But her mental game disappeared. When she is playing amazing, she can crush her first serve, her forehand and her backhand, but unfortunately, she is not very fast. That is too bad, but after she finished her match, when she talks to the press, she is so honest and real. Just turning 30, when she walks on the court, and she has to realize that pretty soon she will retire. In 2023, at the important tournaments, then she has to go for the lines. Maybe she can push herself at the net, as she has rarely done it. So, do it now.
30. Aliaksandra Sasnovich
She seems to really like clay, going somewhat deep at Rome and Roland Garros. She is even-keeled. There are other times when she loses early and she is upset. She has been around for 10 years. If she wants to knock down the excellent players, then she must attack very early and then try to clip the lines. Try to rip it.
29. Elise Mertens
She can really hustle. The Belgian plays all the time, and certain weeks, she is thoughtful, but other times, she loses her control. It is hard to know why she is doing. She can play great, or she can play mediocre, at best. Perhaps next year she can try to hit the ball harder, because when she does it, here and there, she can be very tough to beat her. That is up to her.
28. Martina Trevisan
Here is another young player who is rising now. The Czech is only 20 years old, and she started the year ranked No. 81. She took down a number of good players, like Jessica Pegula and Caroline Garcia. She actually won Prague this year and she wants to win when it is extremely important. She knows that, and next year she can meld it around. Finally, she can pop the ball.
27. Qinwen Zheng
Another 20-years-old who has reached the top 30, Zheng is certainly climbing up the later. Maybe she is not that powerful, but she is very quick, and steady. On court, her eyes are locked in. She started the year No. 108, and now when she starts in January, it is very possible that she can be seated at the Australian Open. If she wins a few matches, then the fans will go to watch her. She has some wonderful variety, and she has to use it all the time.
26. Victoria Azarenka
The so-called ‘Vika’ is one of the most powerful players over the past 12 years. Yes, when she started, she was very shy, and she realized that to grow, and she had to really listen, on court and off. Finally, she did, not only banging her forehand and backhand, but in some key moments, she locked in, winning two Grand Slams. However, that was a long time ago, so the 33-year-old has to find out what is working for her. She still needs a couple pieces so she can have one more shots at a huge event.
TennisReporters.net, the top 32, in 2022: women 32-26
Top 30s in 2018: Women 30-26
No. 30: Aliaksandra Sasnovich
The 24-year-old Belarussian didn’t play great at the Grand Slams, but she did reach the final of Brisbane, and at Wimbledon she upset Petra Kvitova and Daria Gavrilova before falling to Jelena Ostapenko. She can be forceful, and at times, she can be powerful, but at the US Open, she was double-bagled by champion Naomi Osaka. Ouch! Still, Sasnovich moved up, so in 2019, maybe she will be calmer on court and crack the top 20.
No. 29: Maria Sharapova
The five-time Grand Slam champion had a so-so year. When she was healthy, she looked pretty good — and very good at times — but once again, she was hurt a lot. Mentally, on court, she is up and down, being confident or confused. Hopefully, in 2019, Sharapova will be healthy, patient and a little bit faster. And how about this? Maybe she will come in more at the net and actually put away a few volleys. That would make her extremely happy, because over the past 17 years, she has backed off at the net. One way or another, when she is feeling good, she can beat just about everybody.
No. 28 : Su-Wei Hsieh
Another long-time veteran, the 32-years-old has won a number of big contests in doubles, but in singles, she was hesitant. Now, in singles, she is finally aggressive and steady. In September, she won Hiroshima, but without facing the best players. At the start of the year, she was ranked No. 103. She upended Garbine Muguruza and Aga Radwanska at the Aussie Open before losing to Angie Kerber. Perhaps Hsieh can reach the top 15 in singles? Hmmm.
No. 27: Lesia Tsurenko
There are so many veterans who keep trying to move up — way up. At the US Open, during an extremely hot day, in the fourth round, the Ukranian was collapsing. She could barely move. She was almost puking. Somehow, she stayed in there and, in the middle of the second set, she started feeling better. The 29-year-old won it, beating Marketa Vondrousova 6-7, 7-5, 6-2. “You need to survive,” she said. She sure did. However, Tsurenko did nothing during the fall; so next year, she has to be more solid.
No. 26: Camila Giorgi
The Italian did improve a good amount this year. She won 38 matches, and she lost 20. For her, that is pretty darn good. She won Linz, at the end of the fall, saying that, “I think it’s very important for the future.” Giorgi had a terrific and tough match against the great Serena Williams at Wimbledon, losing 6-4 in the third. The same thing occurred at Roland Garros; she was so confident in nearly upsetting Sloane Stephens, very deep in the third, but she went down 8-6. Close, but no cigar. Giorgi has always been super aggressive, but now, she is a little bit more patient, which is a good thing. In 2019, she has to go even further.
Vandeweghe soars, US women win the Fed Cup
Federer beats Sock in first ATP Finals match
American CoCo Vandeweghe is the Fed Cup MVP, winning three matches versus Belarus in the final tie to bring the USA its first Fed Cup since 2000.
Vandeweghe has had a terrific year, especially in Fed Cup where she won eight points. Facing Belarus in its capitol, Minsk, she pulled out two singles victories and then capped it off with a straight-set, clinching doubles win with Shelby Rogers.
The tie, which many predicted as a sure American victory, was a nail-biter, coming down to the doubles on Sunday.
Five years ago, Vandeweghe was out of it, mentally. Her sole strategy was just cracking her serve. This year the No. 10 was so effective, so driven. Even two years ago, she would become super angry, throw her racket and shake her head. Even now, she can become frustrated, but that is OK, because after a moment or two, the veteran will breath deep and go on to the next point.
It is one thing to win at home, but it’s another to grab it away. Venus Williams didn’t play (of course the new mom, Serena, was out of action) and the injured Madison Keys couldn’t come either. For the home team, Belarusian Victoria Azarenka couldn’t play either, as she is embroiled in a custody battle with her ex, Billy McKeague.
The 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens came to play. However, her losing streak since the US Open continued as she dropped both matches. She is hurt and exhausted.
Belarusians Aryna Sabalenka and Aliaksandra Sasnovich dug in deep and looked fantastic in their two singles victories over Stephens.
In doubles, the outcome was decidedly different. The Americans pushed forward, they returned very well at times, and when they had to, they put many shots at the net. In a sense, it does not matter who is playing, but when they get on court, you have to lock in, don’t become too nervous and hit the right way. At the end, the Americans did.
By the way, bow-down to the captain, Kathy Rinaldi, who is calm and cool and smart.
Federer v Sock at the ATP Finals in London
There you go, Roger Federer won again. This time, he edged American Jack Sock 6-4 7-6(4) in the first round-robin match at the ATP Finals.
Fed has won this tournament many, many times indoors. On the hard courts, whether it be inside or out, he is superior. He mixes it up all the time. His serve is strong and it is difficult to find out which way he is going. His forehand is phenomenal, and for the past 10 months, his backhand has become more powerful. He can lose at times — they all can — but there are only a few players who can legitimately beat Federer, like Rafa Nadal, who is on the other round-robin bracket. Hopefully, they can play each other towards the end of next week.
Sock was happy last week as he won Paris and qualified for the last ATP Finals singles slot. His rise to No. 9 is very surprising, given that from April through September, he did almost nothing. In France, he focused, moved inside the court and, believe it or not, was very effective at the net.
However, Sock needs to improve, obviously. His forehand is gigantic, and his backhand is OK, but he has to rip it crosscourt. Somehow, too, his legs need to be a little bit faster.
Federer should reach the semis, even with Alexander Zverev and Marin Cilic rounding out their bracket. It should be a lot of fun — we hope.