Since we have entered the WTA and ATP off-season, with the exception of the ITF Women's Tour and ITF Future's tournaments, I thought this would be a good time to look to next season for my predictions of which men and women will win the four majors. Of course, this is completely speculative (especially because the players I have playing in the Final could be on the same side of the draw), and I will probably look foolish later, but here are my picks to win the majors next season.
Australian Open
Women's Final: Sloane Stephens defeats Aryna Sabalenka in three sets
There are so many players I feel that have a shot at the title. However, I was very impressed with what I saw from Sloane Stephens last year, for the most part, and feel like she, along with Serena, were the best players last year without a major. Sloane's game adapts very well to hard courts, and bigger hitters will have a hard time hitting through her and will be frustrated in the heat of Australia. Aryna Sabalenka has made huge strides in 2018, and given her performance to end the year, seems primed to have a spectacular 2018. At number 13 in the rankings, expect this Final appearance to push her into the Top 10. However, I think Stephens has a little too much defense for Sabalenka, and Sloane will win in three sets.
Men's Final: Novak Djokovic defeats Marin Cilic in four sets
Djokovic was so good to end the season. After his tight loss to Cecchinato at the French Open, Novak barely lost for the rest of the season. He had one of the wins of the season over Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon, which proved to the rest of the world that he is back, and he beat Kevin Anderson in the Final. His US Open victory was thoroughly dominant too, barely being threatened and getting another major. Djokovic beat Federer a couple times too, including the Paris Masters Semifinals in another fantastic. I expect Djokovic to use the momentum of 2018 to get him an Australian Open victory, where he has won the tournament six times and is ultra-comfortable at the tournament. In regards to Cilic, I think his Davis Cup Final wins will help alleviate the mental block that seemed to haunt him for much of 2018 when he was winning in a match. Marin will also have confidence from being a set away from the title this year, but Djokovic will force Cilic into too many errors, and Novak will win the title.
French Open
Women's Final: Simona Halep defeats Garbine Muguruza in three sets
For me, Halep is the clear favorite to win the French Open. Her pedigree on clay is extremely good, and she is able to defend very well, and put her opponents in uncomfortable positions on the court. She has made the Final twice, coming within a set of the title against Sharapova and Ostapenko, and last year she finally broke through for the win against Sloane Stephens. I know that Darren Cahill is not coaching Simona next season, but I still expect Halep to have a great season and to win the French Open. As I was trying to decide who to have Halep beat in the Final, I eventually decided upon Garbine Muguruza. For me, she showed some signs of her true level towards the end of the season, despite a mostly rough 2018, and she still is the 2015 champion at Roland Garros. Her ability to hit through the court is superb, and I expect her to face Halep in the Final, where Simona's endurance and ability to make Garbine play a lot of extra balls will be the difference.
Men's Final: Rafael Nadal defeats Dominic Thiem in four sets
I know this is not an exciting prediction, given that almost the exact same result happened last year, but I have to call it as I see it. Nadal is an absolutely incredible player on clay, having won the French Open 11 times, and it is extremely difficult for players to take a set off of him on clay, let alone beat him. Nadal, essentially, plays all aspects of tennis at a very high level on clay. However, he is getting older, and injuries are concerning for him, and because I also think Thiem is going to take a step forward next year by not hitting as many unforced errors as in the past, I believe that Thiem will take a set off of Rafa at the French Open last year. But Nadal's amazing defense, along with his ability to hit winners from ridiculous places around the court, are still going to be too strong for Dominic to handle.
Wimbledon
Women's Final: Serena Williams defeats Naomi Osaka in two sets
I think that Serena would have won Wimbledon last year, but her ground game was not at the level that her serve was at. Serena has a spectacular serve, and when he groundstrokes are firing, then it is nearly impossible to beat her. Serena plays great at Wimbledon, winning the title seven times. This year, unlike against Kerber last year, I think that Serena's groundstrokes won't be rusty and her groundstrokes will match her serve in its effectiveness. Osaka had an amazing 2018, winning Indian Wells and the US Open, but when Serena is serving well and hitting her groundstrokes cleanly on grass, she can take the racquet out of Osaka's hands. Osaka will be overpowered by Serena on the grass, and I have feeling Serena will be extra-motivated to beat Osaka given that she lost to her twice last year.
Men's Final: Roger Federer defeats Novak Djokovic in five sets
I think that Federer has one more major in him, and I think it will come this year at Wimbledon. Federer won the Australian Open last year, but struggled, relatively, throughout much of the season, starting with his loss to Juan Martin del Potro in the Final at Indian Wells. Federer, I believe, will structure his season around winning Wimbledon, and will serve well throughout the Final. I think that he will come to the net a lot, pressuring Djokovic to make extremely difficult passing shots, and so he isn't worn down by Djokovic. Djokovic, as he showed once again last year, and through his four Wimbledon titles total, is extremely good on grass. But, in a match that I think will be very tight, the crowd support and Federer's will to extend his major lead is going to will him to a very close win over Djokovic.
US Open
Women's Final: Serena Williams defeats Aryna Sabalenka in three sets
Serena, as I have talked about before, is an incredible player. She has shown very often that her combination of power and accuracy is extremely hard to beat. The crowd support at the US Open is also very helpful for Serena. Serena does very well at the US Open, winning the title six times. As I mentioned previously, I am very high on Sabalenka. She hits the ball extremely hard, but has great margin on her shots too. However, I think that Serena has a little more power on her groundstrokes than Sabalenka and serves better, so she should win a tight title in three sets.
Men's Final: Karen Khachanov defeats Kevin Anderson in four sets
I have a feeling that the men's singles bracket at the US Open will provide a lot of surprises. Khachanov was so impressive in winning the Paris Masters event. His defeat of Djokovic in the Final showed that he can hit through amazing defending accurately and he showed very little signs of the moment being too big for him. Next year, I believe he will continue to work on his game, and will put everything together in winning the US Open.Anderson has continued to impress, since his breakthrough Final of the US Open in 2017. Anderson made the Final of Wimbledon this year, and proved he was going to be a top player for a long time. However, I think that Khachanov's game is less-prone to break down than Anderson's game, and I think he wins in four tight sets against Kevin.
So, what do y'all think of my predictions? Please let me know your thoughts on who is going to win the majors next year?
Showing posts with label Sloane Stephens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sloane Stephens. Show all posts
Monday, December 3, 2018
Thursday, May 21, 2015
What Has Happened To Madison Keys?
When a player is ready to be great, the breakthrough becomes the norm. When a player is ready to be great, the results meet the expectations When a player is ready to be great, surprise turns into a steady focus. Madison Keys is not quite ready to be great yet.
Madison looked spectacular in Australian Open run in January. She made the Semifinals, beating great players such Petra Kvitova (in straight sets) and Venus Williams along the way. In fact, Keys only lost two sets en-route to the Semifinals and was within a two point swing of taking the first set from Serena Williams in an extremely tight first set. I remember sitting on my couch watching Madison rocket aces past Serena and thinking to myself, "This girl is unbelievable". Even though she lost that semifinal match against Serena, the world now knew Madison Keys' name, the breakthrough was complete.
However, the next step of the process is turning the breakthrough into the norm, which entails dealing the new pressures to succeed, dealing with the increased media presence (and outside distractions) surrounding you, and trying to stay humble. Obviously, this step is extremely hard to take,and it seems like Madison is having a very hard time taking this next step.
Following her great run in Melbourne, Keys went on to lose in her second match to a struggling (at the time) Jelena Jankovic at Indian Wells, and in her first match to Sloane Stephens in Miami to go a measly 1-2 in the spring American hard court swing. Gone was the jubilation of the run in Melbourne, replaced instead by the realization that the WTA tour (and the ATP tour for that matter) moves on with or without you.
Perhaps this was a wake-up call for Madison, because she performed quite well on the green clay in Charleston. I suspect, however, that this was more due to weak competition than anything else, as the strongest player Madison faced was Lauren Davis before the Final. However, I'm sure that these easier matches boosted Keys' confidence and allowed her to forget about her failures in Indian Wells and Miami. In the Final, though, Madison was leading 4-1 in the third set before collapsing and losing the third set 7-5, thus giving Angelique Kerber the tournament win. It took a lot of mental strength to make the semis in Melbourne (especially her tough win over Venus in the Quarterfinals), but it seems as if that mental strength did not transfer over to Charleston.
And Madison has not seemed to recover from that Charleston loss, losing in her first match in Madrid, in straight sets to Kaia Kanepi, and losing in her second match at Rome to Bojana Jovanovski, for another 1-2 record at big tournaments on the European clay court swing. At the small event in Strasbourg (currently going on this week), Keys won her first two matches, including a TOUGH match over Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, before withdrawing with an injury, unable to gain any real momentum heading towards the French Open.
So, what do I think has happened to Madison Keys? I think she is overwhelmed right now. Overwhelmed by the pressure to succeed within the game and the new pressures around her outside of the game. Her confidence from the Australian Open also seems to be gone too, so Lindsey Davenport will really have to work with Madison regarding her confidence too. Lindsey will also have to try to get Madison to focus in on tennis itself, and not worry about what's going outside of the game.
At the end of the day, I still see a great future for Madison. It just might not come as soon as many predicted.
Madison looked spectacular in Australian Open run in January. She made the Semifinals, beating great players such Petra Kvitova (in straight sets) and Venus Williams along the way. In fact, Keys only lost two sets en-route to the Semifinals and was within a two point swing of taking the first set from Serena Williams in an extremely tight first set. I remember sitting on my couch watching Madison rocket aces past Serena and thinking to myself, "This girl is unbelievable". Even though she lost that semifinal match against Serena, the world now knew Madison Keys' name, the breakthrough was complete.
However, the next step of the process is turning the breakthrough into the norm, which entails dealing the new pressures to succeed, dealing with the increased media presence (and outside distractions) surrounding you, and trying to stay humble. Obviously, this step is extremely hard to take,and it seems like Madison is having a very hard time taking this next step.
Following her great run in Melbourne, Keys went on to lose in her second match to a struggling (at the time) Jelena Jankovic at Indian Wells, and in her first match to Sloane Stephens in Miami to go a measly 1-2 in the spring American hard court swing. Gone was the jubilation of the run in Melbourne, replaced instead by the realization that the WTA tour (and the ATP tour for that matter) moves on with or without you.
Perhaps this was a wake-up call for Madison, because she performed quite well on the green clay in Charleston. I suspect, however, that this was more due to weak competition than anything else, as the strongest player Madison faced was Lauren Davis before the Final. However, I'm sure that these easier matches boosted Keys' confidence and allowed her to forget about her failures in Indian Wells and Miami. In the Final, though, Madison was leading 4-1 in the third set before collapsing and losing the third set 7-5, thus giving Angelique Kerber the tournament win. It took a lot of mental strength to make the semis in Melbourne (especially her tough win over Venus in the Quarterfinals), but it seems as if that mental strength did not transfer over to Charleston.
And Madison has not seemed to recover from that Charleston loss, losing in her first match in Madrid, in straight sets to Kaia Kanepi, and losing in her second match at Rome to Bojana Jovanovski, for another 1-2 record at big tournaments on the European clay court swing. At the small event in Strasbourg (currently going on this week), Keys won her first two matches, including a TOUGH match over Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, before withdrawing with an injury, unable to gain any real momentum heading towards the French Open.
So, what do I think has happened to Madison Keys? I think she is overwhelmed right now. Overwhelmed by the pressure to succeed within the game and the new pressures around her outside of the game. Her confidence from the Australian Open also seems to be gone too, so Lindsey Davenport will really have to work with Madison regarding her confidence too. Lindsey will also have to try to get Madison to focus in on tennis itself, and not worry about what's going outside of the game.
At the end of the day, I still see a great future for Madison. It just might not come as soon as many predicted.
Monday, January 21, 2013
Can Sloane Stephens Beat Serena Williams?
With Serena Williams' straight set victory over Maria Kirlenko, no slouch of an opponent, and Sloane Stephens' three set winner of Bojana Jovanovski, it set up an American duel for a spot in the Semifinals. The question is, now, can Stephens win?
I knew Sloane Stephens was going to be good, have good tournament, maybe the Third Round, Round of 16 if she was lucky, but I couldn't have imagined that she would be making a Quarterfinals appearance. Sloane Stephens is right now, in my opinion, the second best women's tennis player in the United States. Stephens has a lot of potential to be great. She has had a fantastic tournament, but so has Serena Williams.
Serena Williams, in her Round of 16 match, gave up two games, zero in the the second set. This is yet another set where Serena Williams hasn't gave up a game, four for the tournament. In fact, the most games Serena has given up in a game this tournament is three. These matches have not been close. Can Sloane Stephens make things a little more uncomfortable for Serena Williams? Can she, actually, win the match?
I just don't think Sloane can make this a match. Serena Williams is on another level right now. In fact, it really feels like there is Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, and Serena Williams just miles above the rest of the competition. Stephens has had a great tournament, she played Serena close at Brisbane, and she is set for the future, but in a major championship, Sloane doesn't stand a chance.
Prediction: Serena Williams wins 6-3, 6-1
I knew Sloane Stephens was going to be good, have good tournament, maybe the Third Round, Round of 16 if she was lucky, but I couldn't have imagined that she would be making a Quarterfinals appearance. Sloane Stephens is right now, in my opinion, the second best women's tennis player in the United States. Stephens has a lot of potential to be great. She has had a fantastic tournament, but so has Serena Williams.
Serena Williams, in her Round of 16 match, gave up two games, zero in the the second set. This is yet another set where Serena Williams hasn't gave up a game, four for the tournament. In fact, the most games Serena has given up in a game this tournament is three. These matches have not been close. Can Sloane Stephens make things a little more uncomfortable for Serena Williams? Can she, actually, win the match?
I just don't think Sloane can make this a match. Serena Williams is on another level right now. In fact, it really feels like there is Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, and Serena Williams just miles above the rest of the competition. Stephens has had a great tournament, she played Serena close at Brisbane, and she is set for the future, but in a major championship, Sloane doesn't stand a chance.
Prediction: Serena Williams wins 6-3, 6-1
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