Archives for February 2023

Coco Gauff: ‘Definitely teach myself. I’m still not perfect’

Coco Gauff
Mal Taam/MaltPhoto

There will be times when Coco Gauff is on and she will smack her backhand near the lines for a winner. She is fast, she is also a very good volleyer, and she can also mix it when she has to. 

But the 18-year-old still has to mature on the court and re-think what she is doing. Yes, over the last year and a half, she started to rise and beat a number of the good players. But also, she has lost to some excellent competitors.

Last week Gauff was in the Dubai quarterfinals and she was striking the ball and her first serve was spot on. She beat her good friend Madison Keys 6-2, 7-5. In the semis, it looked like Gauff was plays wonderfully and she could upset No. 1 Iga Świątek. But that wasn’t to be as the Pole kept hitting to Gauff’s forehand, and the American kept pushing. Also, her forehand began to falter and she lost, 6-4, 6-2. While she did lose? Gauff said that she is more composed now. Is she really?

“Oh, definitely teach myself. I’m still not perfect,” she said. “There’s moments where I definitely get frantic. But I think it’s improving. I’m not trying to go on the court and not crack a reaction at all. Unless you’re like Roger [Federer], it’s quite impossible. There’s times I might get on myself. That’s just my personality. I think it’s more so not necessarily the reaction, it’s more so how fast you can reset from that reaction. I think that’s what I try to focus on, is letting my emotions happen, but resetting as quickly as possible.”

Gauff thinks a lot which why she will go up and down, depending on her mental focus. She is always pretty intense.

Last Sunday, Barbora Krejčíková did not look ready to win the title. But then she totally turned it around, winning Dubai, and knocking down Świątek 6-4, 6-2. Her variety was so solid. Plus, she took down three other top 10 players: Daria Kasatkina, Jessica Pegula and Aryna Sabalenka. Now, Krejčíková will attempt into rise into the top 10 this year or better:

“It’s a huge privilege. It’s a big achievement and I think it’s going to give me a lot of confidence that I can play with the best ones,” Krejčíková said.

The Czech plays a lot of doubles, too, but last year she couldn’t play for two months due to injury. Krejčíková was frustrated, and she couldn’t maintain her level. But in the fall the current No. 16 started to play much more consistently and aggressively. Almost two years ago, she won Roland Garros. She has been darn good, at times, but she also is hooked into her doubles, winning 15 titles.

“I definitely love doubles. I just love playing,” Krejčíková said. “I really enjoy it. I mean, so far I want to keep going in both categories, just try to do my best.”

Debut in Austin

There is a new tournament site this week in Austin, Texas. It will be interesting to see how many fans come out to watch. There aren’t many players in the top 20 in the field, but there are some thoughtful competitors, including Shuai Zhang, Danielle Collins, Sloane Stephens, Caty McNally and Katie Volynets, among others. 

Over the past 30 years there have been many different tournaments in California. Some are still there like Indian Wells. A number of cities watched as WTA tournaments came and eventually folded or moved, such as San Diego, Manhattan Beach, Carson, Carlsbad, Stanford and San Jose.

Always lurking: Taylor Fritz is moving up, again

Taylor Fritz

The ATP 250 Delray Beach has had some incredible matches over the decades

On the Florida hardcourts near the ocean, Taylor Fritz beat Miomir Kecmanovic 6-0, 5-7, 6-2 in the final. There were some wild shotswith some fine variety. Finally Fritz’ forehand and backhand were sailing deep and were more challenging. Yes, the No. 7 still can be up and down week to week. Whenhe is pushing himself, and he can mentally center and beat anyone. Well, most of them.

Kecmanovic lost but he really has improved a lot of the past year and a half. He is fit, his forehand is pretty darn good and his backhand is decent. In order to eventually reach into the top 10, he has mix it up more. Also, his second serve is marginal. The good thing for the 22-year-old is he has reached the top 30. If he can add to some new shots, then he can upset some of the very excellent players.

Daniil Medvedev had an odd year in 2022, playing a few spectacular events. After lost the 2022 Australian Open final in a classic five-setter against Rafa Nadal, Medvedev began to slip. After that, he started to make a lot of errors, which is unusual for him. He could not take down Novak Djokovic at all.

All of a sudden, Medvedev is back into it. He was so solid, with his consistent forehand and his backhand that he hits pretty flat. He managed to win the Rotterdam title, beating Jannik Sinner 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.

The Italian Sinner can really pop the ball and can also mix it up. When the Russian Medvedev is locked in and goes for winners, he is again among the four best players in the world.

Even at the 2023 Aussie Open, American Sebastian Korda beat Medvedev, in just three sets. Korda was jumping on the ball while the Russian was so unfulfilled. And then, a month later, he not only beat Sinner, but he also took dwon Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semis. Then, the fans were almost stunned that he could move it all around the box.

Now, he is back into the top 10 at No. 8. Can Medvedev eventually go into No. 1 this season? Perhaps, but he is not ready yet.

Sinner has won six in the 250s, but in the 500s, he won it only one time, back in 2021 at Washington. A couple years ago, when he reached the final in Miami, it looked like that when he continued to rise, all the time. Now 21-year-old serves and returns better. His volleying is even improved. His forehand and backhand are very . Mentally he can be slips, which is his downfall. Sinner will attempt to mature on the court. Hopefully, he can go much further at the ATP 1000s and the Grand Slams. He really has to be totally honest with himself.

Carlos Alcaraz has not played since he became injured at the 2022 ATP Masters 1000 Paris in the beginning of November. He was happy to be back on the court in Buenos Aires. You’ve got to figure it will take a while to be very good again. Then, in the last couple matches, he was pretty darn good, sliding around on the clay. He was quick, and he swung very hard. In the final, he edged Cameron Norrie 6-3, 7-5.

He became No. 1 when he won last year’s US Open along with Miami on hardcourt and also grabbing five tiles on clay. His biggest title was on the dirt in Madrid.

Alcaraz is only 19 years old. Sometimes the Spaniard can forget exactly what he has to do. Yes, if he is healthy, he will win many titles, just like Rafa Nadal has. Alcaraz can follow Nadal’s career who played all the time when he was young. He also knew he had to improve with his backhand, second serve and net game. Then eventually, he did it.

Nadal has won 22 Grand Slams. Can Alcaraz do the same? Who knows, but if he can continue to Still Djokovic is No. 1 right now.

Maxime Cressy almost won, but Jannik Sinner grabbed it

Maxime Cressy, Jannik Sinner, Yibing Wu, John Isner, Belinda Bencic, Anastasia Potapova, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Montpellier, Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

The much improved Maxime Cressy almost won Montpellier. In the final, he could not grab the break, and the better player Jannik Sinner edged him 7-6(3) 6-3. The Italian had no problem when he served into the corners for a very tough service holds. They did had some fine rallies. But the American could not slam past him, so in the next few months, he has to return better.

Sinner is close to reach into the top 5 this year. Still, he can become damn angry on court. He is still young. Perhaps he will be more sound and thoughtful. He has beaten many top players in the ATP 250s, but if he is playing in the 1000s or a Grand Slam, he might be very good, but he is not yet to be nearly perfect. The 22-year-old is currently ranked No. 14. If he wants to chop down the excellent players, then he has to improve a lot.

Cressy has become more stable, mixing it up and pushing himself. He comes into the net a lot, and his first serve can be huge. In the semis, he upset Holger Rune 7-5 6-7(3) 7-6(4). That was a fantastic day.

Cressey, an American/Frenchman, has reached the top 40. Apparently, if he wants to reach into the top 32 at the Slams for the first time, then he has to be much more stable and consistent each week.

In Dallas, it was almost out of nowhere Yibing Wu beat John Isner 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 7-6(14-12) to win his first ATP title. Talk about the drama. The veteran Isner now has played more than 500 tiebreakers, which is remarkable. Sadly, he has never won a Grand Slam, and he probably won’t. But, at least the 37-year-old won in Miami, and he did reach in an ATP 1000s final four more times. Those were some crazy, terrific matches. But his return has never been good enough.
 
The Chinese Wu came up big and moving into the spotlight. His forehand and his backhand are now so rising and he is pretty quick. He was decent over the past few years, but now, the 23-year-old thinks that when he is on the line, he aims to bash the ball. He played so good in the semis when he edged Taylor Fritz. Wu will be there for a long time.

Seriously, Belinda Bencic looked mind blowing. At other times, she can blow her match. But last week, she won the title, in the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open and she beat Liudmila Samsonova 1-6, 7-6, 6-4. That was a long, long match, fighting off three match points. She is a warrior. When she is so intense, then she can continue to blend it up with many different styles. She has yet to win Slam, but she still does have a legitimate chance to win one, as long as she can serve better and improve her net play.

There are so many Russians who continue to play on the court, and some of them are very good. You could look at dozens of people over the past 20 years, and they just keep coming on.
 
In Linz, Anastasia Potapova crushed Petra Martic 6-3 6-1 in the final. The 21-year-old could eventually win a Slam, like the Russians did, such as Svetlana Kuznetsova or Anastasia Myskina. But Potapova will have to climbing into the mountain, and stay there.

Will the Americans go into the top 5?

Taylor Fritz
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

We can talk about Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal and then we will find out who has more Grand Slam winners. It is tied, 22 huge wins, but they cannot play until June, at Roland Garros. So that is months from now. Instead, it is more important to find out who can try to reach into the top 5 this year, and beat the those nearly untouchable players.

No. 8 Taylor Fritz does has a chance to repeat at Indian Wells in March and Frances Tiafoe have another opportunity to win his first ATP 1000. The No. 15 Tiafoe has been better over the past year and a half, but he also can be inconsistent.

Fritz looked very good going into the Australian Open, after he beat four good players. But in the second round in Melbourne, he went down against Alexei Popyrin. That was a big shocker. If he can re-set immediately, then he can start to turn on the jets. Coming up, he will play in the Dallas Open,

Tiafoe, who looked stellar in Melbourne until the third round, when he went down to the resurgent Karen Khachanov.

Another American, Tommy Paul, had a fantastic two weeks at the Australian Open, as he reached into a Grand Slam semi for the first time. He has so locked in, and his forehand and his backhand were more than muscular. However, in the last two sets, Djokovic wiped him out. For Paul, he finally made it into the top 20, and for sure, if he wants to leap into the top 10, then he will have to continue improving.

The American men have not won a Grand Slam since 2003 when Andy Roddick grabbed the US Open. That is almost 20 years ago. Eventually, someone will, but this year at RG, Wimbledon, and the US Open? That would be a somewhat astonishing, such as beating Djokovic, Nadal, and the teenager Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz. Or you can throw in Stefanos Tsitsipas who reached the Aussie Open final. In the two out of three, it is possible to play great and upset the opponent, but in the three out of five, then you have to sit there for hours. If you get tired, or you become nervous, then you can slip in the fifth set. It has happened so many times.

This week in Dallas, there are lots of players competing such as Brandon Nakashima, John Isner, J.J. Wolf, and Marcos Giron. Whomever wins can think that when he eventually goes to Indian Wells, he will be totally pumped up and ready to chop down everyone.

Breakthrough: Alycia Parks wins first title
Speaking of which, who would have thought that Alycia Parks won her first WTA singles title in Lyon, upsetting Caroline Garcia, 7-6(7), 7-5? Last year, the American was going up and down, winning and losing a lot. Yet in the fall, the 22-year-old kept going into the net, and putting away losts of volleys. Plus, she is fast, and her strokes go deep. Last year, she beat Karolina Pliskova and Maria Sakkari in Ostrava. After that, she knew that she could be much more daring on the court.

“I think the key was to stay focused and take my time,” Parks said. “Every time I passed myself, I kind of lost points, so I told myself to slow down. All this week I’ve been kind of chilled this week and just kept playing my game and getting into it.”