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TR rewind from 2018: the cool Naomi Osaka beats Serena

February 17, 2021 by Leave a Comment

naomi osaka
Naomi Osaka, the Japanese who lives in Florida, won the US Open, and  arrived as one of the best players this year. Yes, the 20-year-old wasn’t perfect, but slowly, she got better and better though the fortnight. At the US Open, she fought. Her big serve was unbelievably good, her forehand was powerful, and her backhand was vicious. She returned pretty well, too, and she hustled.

Even in the last game, when it was 5-4, and Osaka had to serve it out, she wasn’t very nervous and took her time. She won match point with a hard serve into the corner. Yes, she cried, because there were a lot of people who were booing, but at the end, she smiled, a few times.  The now No. 7 could win a number of majors over the next 15 years. Osaka is that good.     

The Others

Serena Williams
At the US Open, Serena played six matches, and she looked darn good, knocking off a bunch of strong players. But in the final, against Osaka, she was mediocre, half and half. She served OK, but it’s not like she needed to bring in her massive first serves, and her second serve was up and down. She rarely came into the net, which she should have. When she belted her backhand and forehand, they would fly out, and there were a number of errors.

Obviously, Serena was very angry during the match. She was very, very ticked off. She yelled, she screamed, she busted her racket, she was very frustrated. She argued with the chair umpire, asking for an apology, time and time again. The fans were surprised by the code violation. They didn’t really know why. But many people love her, so they booed with the the umpire.

Serena lost it, on court and off court, she argued some, and she defended herself. OK, yes, it’s all about tennis, and she really wanted to win. But, if she stopped yelling, after a few minutes, and played, it could have had a different outcome. She had to be super calm, but she couldn’t, and perhaps she would have overcome Osaka.

As Serena said, Osaka played great and she deserved it. Good for Serena for saying that. But she has to be honest, and should have said, “Sorry, I messed it up, apologies.” She hasn’t done that yet. We will see whether she dowa it during the fall— if she is going to play for the rest of the year. Everything is questionable now. Ugh.   

Anastasija Sevastova
The 29-year-old Sevastova showed off her incredible variety, upending Elena Svitolina and Sloane Stephens before going down versus Serena pretty quickly. But, her amazing drop shots, her very quick feet and variety were in full display. Yes, she needs to improve her serves, and her returns, but she will remain dangerous.  

Madison Keys
For the most part, Keys played well, even better, because from January through most of August, she was so-so. But at the USO, she was aggressive, more accurate and she focused, a lot. However, Osaka served huge, and Keys couldn’t break her. She has to find some consistency. Hopefully, during the fall, she will be healthy and move up the ladder.

Carla Suárez Navarro
The veteran Spaniard beat Caroline Garcia 5-7 6-4 7-6(4), then she beat Maria Sharapova in straight sets. She did lose against Keys in the quarters, but still, the-30 year-old decided to hit her shots hard and deep, spin it, slice it, and smack the ball when she had an opportunity. She has been around for a long time, and she has yet to win a major, and maybe she won’t. But, given that she has been better this year, the No. 22 has a long shot at a Slam.

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The top 5: the cool Naomi Osaka beats Serena

September 12, 2018 by Leave a Comment

naomi osaka
Naomi Osaka, the Japanese who lives in Florida, won the US Open, and  arrived as one of the best players this year. Yes, the 20-year-old wasn’t perfect, but slowly, she got better and better though the fortnight. At the US Open, she fought. Her big serve was unbelievably good, her forehand was powerful, and her backhand was vicious. She returned pretty well, too, and she hustled.

Even in the last game, when it was 5-4, and Osaka had to serve it out, she wasn’t very nervous and took her time. She won match point with a hard serve into the corner. Yes, she cried, because there were a lot of people who were booing, but at the end, she smiled, a few times.  The now No. 7 could win a number of majors over the next 15 years. Osaka is that good.     

The Others

Serena Williams
At the US Open, Serena played six matches, and she looked darn good, knocking off a bunch of strong players. But in the final, against Osaka, she was mediocre, half and half. She served OK, but it’s not like she needed to bring in her massive first serves, and her second serve was up and down. She rarely came into the net, which she should have. When she belted her backhand and forehand, they would fly out, and there were a number of errors.

Obviously, Serena was very angry during the match. She was very, very ticked off. She yelled, she screamed, she busted her racket, she was very frustrated. She argued with the chair umpire, asking for an apology, time and time again. The fans were surprised by the code violation. They didn’t really know why. But many people love her, so they booed with the the umpire.

Serena lost it, on court and off court, she argued some, and she defended herself. OK, yes, it’s all about tennis, and she really wanted to win. But, if she stopped yelling, after a few minutes, and played, it could have had a different outcome. She had to be super calm, but she couldn’t, and perhaps she would have overcome Osaka.

As Serena said, Osaka played great and she deserved it. Good for Serena for saying that. But she has to be honest, and should have said, “Sorry, I messed it up, apologies.” She hasn’t done that yet. We will see whether she dowa it during the fall— if she is going to play for the rest of the year. Everything is questionable now. Ugh.   

Anastasija Sevastova
The 29-year-old Sevastova showed off her incredible variety, upending Elena Svitolina and Sloane Stephens before going down versus Serena pretty quickly. But, her amazing drop shots, her very quick feet and variety were in full display. Yes, she needs to improve her serves, and her returns, but she will remain dangerous.  

Madison Keys
For the most part, Keys played well, even better, because from January through most of August, she was so-so. But at the USO, she was aggressive, more accurate and she focused, a lot. However, Osaka served huge, and Keys couldn’t break her. She has to find some consistency. Hopefully, during the fall, she will be healthy and move up the ladder.

Carla Suárez Navarro
The veteran Spaniard beat Caroline Garcia 5-7 6-4 7-6(4), then she beat Maria Sharapova in straight sets. She did lose against Keys in the quarters, but still, the-30 year-old decided to hit her shots hard and deep, spin it, slice it, and smack the ball when she had an opportunity. She has been around for a long time, and she has yet to win a major, and maybe she won’t. But, given that she has been better this year, the No. 22 has a long shot at a Slam.

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US Open picks, day 9: Serena vs Sevastova, Keys vs. Osaka

September 6, 2018 by Leave a Comment



FROM THE US OPEN – Serena Williams is pretty locked in now. Over the past 10 days, she has been focused and moving well. She is concentrating, and her big serve and returns are very sharp. She has had some errors, here and there, over the first four matches. When she had to play extremely well, she has. That’s why she has won 23 Grand Slams. Serena focuses, takes a long, deep breath, and then raises it up, and punches until she knocks them down.

Anastasija Sevastova is having a blast, when she is in to it. She mixes it up, all the time, everywhere, especially her with her amazing drop shot. She might have the best one in the field. She can run, and she has a lot of creativity.  
She did upend Sloane Stephens, but the American was pretty ill. Still, Sevastova played a fine match. Can she out-hit Serena, or really bother her? Possibly, yes, if she is on track and she can confuse her, but Serena will knock on her early and win in two simple sets.
 
Keys vs. Osaka
Well, well, look at Madison Keys, who was up and down all year, but now, she is being assertive and thoughtful. That’s why last year at the USO, Keys reached the final, beating Elina Svitolina, Kaia Kanepi and Coco Vandeweghe, before she became super nervous and she was crushed by Sloane Stephens. But, this time around, she should be calmer.

The 23-year-old Keys has been doing it again over the past 10 days. Her huge first serve, as well as her forehand and backhand have all been reliable weapons. 

The same thing goes with Naomi Osaka, who is so forceful. The 20-year -old can hit her first serve around 115 mph, and she can bomb her flat forehand and backhand. Yes, all players can spin it, but still, when she want to pull off a winner, she can flat it out and smoke it.  

Keys and Osaka have played each other twice. Two years ago here, in the third round, Keys edged her 7-5 4-6 7-6(3). In 2017 at Indian Wells, Keys won in straight sets.

However, Osaka has become much better. This year, she won the title Indian Wells title.  

Is this a tossup? No, not yet. While I realize that Keys was hurt a lot this year and she was struggling mentally, right now, she is healthy and driven. Without a doubt, there will be many short, hard rallies. At the end of the third set, Keys will win, happy that she will go to the final once again.

 

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US Open picks, day 8: Stephens vs Sevastova, Nadal vs. Thiem

September 3, 2018 by Leave a Comment

FROM THE US OPEN – Can we call Tremendous Tuesday? Sure were can, with four fantastic matches.

Let’s start with the 2017 US Open champ Sloane Stephens, who will face Anastasija Sevastova. In her last two matches, Stephens was super steady, strong and fast. Mentally, she is focused. When she gets an opportunity, she runs forward. Sevastova has incredible variety, especially with her drop shots. She can be fairly quick, she can run ahead or back, and she is very emotional. They will split sets, they will have numerous rallies, and then it will be finished, with Stephens raising her arms and smiling. She will advance into the semis.

Who knew that John Isner was able to take down Milos Raonic in five sets? The American is playing so much better than he did last year. Currently, he is analyzing his options and he is going for it, with his huge serve. At the net when he is on top of the ball. However, he has to play against Juan Martin del Potro, who is on fire, and his backhand is substantially better than he was a couple years ago. His serve is massive, as is his gigantic forehand. Like Isner, del Potro is pretty clean at the net. He bends down to put it away. This has to be a five-setter, and both of them want it very badly. There won’t be a lot of rallies, but here and there, they will go side-to-side and hope they can strike winner. To me, the former US Open champ del Potro has been better over the years — when he wasn’t injured — and this week, the Argentine is playing amazing ball. He will win 7-6 in the fifth set. 
 
Serena Williams is playing better than she has since she returned in March. Her serves are very hard, her first serve and the second serve are bombs, her backhand down the lines is very clean, and her forehand is deep. Almost out of nowhere, Karolina Pliskova is confident again and she is cracking the ball. Pliskova has had a mediocre year, but when she feels good, she will put together her first serves, ace after ace, and she will immediately go for the lines. Two years ago, the Czech beat Serena 6-2, 7-6(5) in the semis. That was then, that is now. They have changed, both of them got married last year, and Serena had a baby. Times change, and off court, they are very happy. Pliskova will immediately attempt to out-hit Serena, but the American is steady now, and she is returning very well. Serena will win 7-6, 7-6, but it will be a tough contest. 

Rafa Nadal is the No. 1. In the last two matches, he looked very good at times, and so-so at other times, too. The thing is though, even when he is not serving the right way, his backhand is too short, and he isn’t attacking enough when he was returning, still, he is so smart and he readjusts. The key is that he wins. 

Can he best Dominic Thiem on Tuesday night? I would think so, because Nadal has beaten him seven times against three losses — all on clay, especially at the 2018 Roland Garros final, when the Spaniard won 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. Nadal is just better than he is. However, Thiem played well last week, he likes to hit heavy spin, he has a terrific first serve, and he is fast, too. But on the hard courts, I just can’t see a Thiem victory. Nadal has won Flushing Meadows three times, while Thiem has never reached the semis. It should be a fun match, with some wonderful rallies, but Nadal will win in straight sets.

 

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2017 top players: women’s 16-20

December 6, 2017 by Leave a Comment

TennisReporters.net will review 2017’s top 30 women and men, our annual feature.

No. 16: Anastasija Sevastova
I was pretty surprised that the Latvian finally broke into the top 20. After all, she is 27 years old. Four years ago, she quit because she was depressed and her body was very sore all the time. But she returned and at the US Open, she hung in there, stunned Maria Sharapova, and she nearly upended Sloane Stephens. Could she crack the top 10 for the first time? Sure, why not; she loves tennis once again.

No. 17: Ashleigh Barty
The Aussie has improved so much this season. In 2016, she just returned after taking off almost two years, quitting because she was emotionally exhausted and tired of tennis. But she wanted to come back. Now, not only is Ash so strong, but she added consistency to her strokes and she is no longer being shaky. Without a doubt, she can reach  the top 10, and possibly, go very deep at the Grand Slams.

No. 18: Elena Vesnina
The Russian has been around for a long time, and she also loves playing the doubles and, with Ekaterina Makarova is one of the best. In singles, she finally understood that she needs to be aggressive to win. Obviously, she is fast, and at the net, she can bend down and she softly puts it just over the baseline. She rarely gives up winners. Can she win a major? I would be very surprised.   

No. 19: Madison Keys
This American had some excellent matches, but overall, she gets bruised, frequently. Yes, she has a huge first serve, and she can crush her forehand and her backhand. Downsides are: she isn’t incredibly fast, she doesn’t love the net, and she can get very angry emotionally when she isn’t playing well. Look, she has reached the Grand Slam semis and clearly, she is still young and very talented. However, in 2018, she has to stay healthy and be soothing — on court, that is.

No. 20: Magdalena Rybarikova
The Slovakian is 29 years old. Over time, she found out that she has to be more patient. She is a big hitter, especially with her forehand. She did reach the semis at Wimbledon, which is fantastic, but after that, she slid. In 2018, maybe she should stop playing almost every week? I would say, yes.

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