Venus Williams vs. Angie Kerber
Venus is always happy these days, and why not? She is 36 years old and she loves to play. Even when she loses, she will go to the next tournament and forget about how she messed it up on court.
Someday, she will retire. Perhaps when she is 40 years old, right after the 2020 Olympics, she will wave goodbye. Or not … she may play until she is 50 years old. Even if she couldn’t run very fast, she will always nail her backhand down the line, so sweet!
Can she beat the No. 1 Kerber? Angie hasn’t played well this year, but in the last week, she started her rise again.
She is 4-2 vs Venus, beating her 6-4 6-4 at ’16 Wimbledon in the semis. Kerber was so quick and powerful and, of course, so steady.
The only way that Venus can win it if she is super patient. Moreover, she has to come into the net very frequently.
It will be very close, but in the third set, Kerber will step up. Angie will win in three long sets.
Simona Halep vs Johanna Konta
Here is another very close contest. They have only played once, in Wuhan in 2015, when the Brit beat Halep 7-5 in third. Right then, we all knew that Konta was going to zoom up the rankings and crack into the top 10. Eventually, she did.
They are both 25 years old. It has taken Konta a solid five years to be reach the spot where she is a threat now: fast, strong, steady and hitting with depth. Now, she can attack her foes immediately.
Halep is very emotional, but when she is very calm, she can knock off anyone. And she has.
This year, the former No. 2 has been mediocre at times. But, like Kerber, she is showing signs of the abilities that got her to be a dominant player. Once again, she is rising. However, it’s one thing to beat the players outside of the top 15, and it’s another to out-last excellent competitors.
While Halep can run around forever, it’s different to have to force yourself when it is super close. She won’t be able to. Konta wins in three sets.
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