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Thursday, April 3, 2025

2025 1Q Awards: Mirra on the Edge of an Era







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The Player of the Year race through the 1st Quarter is a virtual dead heat between three players, with each one holding an advantage in *some* category.

Aryna Sabalenka, Madison Keys and Mirra Andreeva are tied with the most titles (2), while Sabalenka has reached the most finals (4, including the AO-IW-MIA trio). Keys claimed the biggest title (AO, along w/ a 500), but Andreeva has a pair of 1000 wins compared to Sabalenka's 1000/500 combination. Keys had the slightly higher win percentage (19-3, .864), but both Sabalenka (23-4, .852) and Andreeva (20-4, .833) won more matches.

Keys/Sabalenka split their two meetings, while Sabalenka was 2-1 vs. Andreeva. Andreeva and Keys didn't play in the 1Q.

Keys won 16 straight matches, while Andreeva had a run of 13 and Sabalenka 11. Andreeva & Keys tied with five Top 10 wins to Sabalenka's four, but Sabalenka leads the Points Race by significant margins over both Keys (-571) and Andreeva (-1015). Meanwhile, Andreeva added a pair of doubles titles (including a big one in Miami), as well.

So maybe it comes down to who is part of the bigger ongoing "story" of the first quarter of the season. So...



1. Mirra Andreeva, RUS
...Andreeva gained momentum through the first three months.

The Sunshine Swing often "creates" stars (see Osaka and Andreescu), and the 17-year old's Indian Wells run continued that tradition. The next logical step is for Andreeva to win a major, and the odds of that happening by the end of '25 are sure looking good right about now.

2. Madison Keys, USA
...Keys started on fire, winning consecutive titles, then disappeared for a stretch before returning to reach the Indian Wells SF.

The veteran's long quest for a major finally ended in Melbourne, and she didn't slip in through the back door to get it, either. Instead, she defeated both the world #1 *and* #2, and even saved a MP in the semifinals.

3. Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
...Sabalenka started strong, dipped mid-quarter, then finished with a dominant flourish.

She's greatly increased her lead at #1 (from around 1000 to 3000+ points), solidified her hard court standing (though she only won *one* of her three big event finals) and her Miami title put her post-AO hangover behind her after having come up a set short vs. Keys of a three-peat in Melbourne.

4. Siniakova/Townsend, CZE/USA
...the AO and Dubai 1000 champions started 12-0 on the season

5. M.Andreeva/Shnaider, RUS/RUS
...two doubles crowns, including a big one in Miami

6. Jessie Pegula, USA
...reached three finals (winning one), including her third at a hard court 1000 event (Miami) since last summer

7. Iga Swiatek, POL
...she hasn't won a title or reached a final since last year's RG, but played in her first AO semi since '22 and reached a pair of 1000 semis. She's 4-1 vs. the Top 10.

8. Clara Tauson, DEN
...won a title (Auckland), reached her biggest final (Dubai 1000) and recorded her first #1 win (over Sabalenka in Dubai)

9. Amanda Anisimova, USA
...her Doha title was her biggest ever (and first tour title in three years), then she ended Andreeva's winning streak in Miami

10. Jiang Xinyu/Wu Fang-hsien, CHN/TPE
...opened the season with back-to-back titles (Auckland/Hobart), then backed up their legitimacy with a 1000 final (Doha) and SF (Miami)

11. Yui Kamiji, JPN (WC)
...with Diede de Groot sidelined, Kamiji won her first AO wheelchair title since 2020 and reclaimed the #1 ranking

12. Belinda Bencic, SUI
...less than a year into her post-maternity leave comeback, Bencic reached the AO 4th Rd., won in Abu Dhabi and has recorded a pair of Top 5 wins (vs. Rybakina and Gauff)








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*EVA LYS' FOREVER-ON-THE-INTERNET MOMENT*







*ARYNA & JELENA*




Aryna Sabalenka and Jelena Dokic have already shared some lovely moments after Sabalenka's AO wins in the past, and we got another this year as Aussie player-turned-announced encouraged Sabalenka to do one of her regular pre-event TikTok dances (a routine usually performed with her team) right then and there during an on-court interview, only this time with the crowd *and* Dokic herself joining in.







*LOGO-WORTHY IGA*







*BEST TENNIS ALLITERATION*







*THE NEWEST TENNIS COMEDY DUO (with a special appearance by the world #1)*







*CoffeeGate, or CAFE FAUX PAUS?*







*KAROLINA MUCHOVA APPRECIATION CORNER*








*BEST HIGHLIGHT STYLE*

More of this, please. I don't think I've ever seen regular posts that simultaneously focus on both players on a single point...







*DADDY-DAUGHTER DAY DANCE*







*ALONA BEING ALONA: DOHA EDITION*




And then she beat Iga. Again.





*FOREVER ON MESSAGE (AND BRAND)*

IASI (July 2024)




DUBAI (February 2025)




INDIAN WELLS (March 2025)










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VETERAN FRESH FACE
1. Madison Keys, USA 1. Clara Tauson, DEN
2. Jessie Pegula, USA 2. Linda Noskova, CZE
3. Taylor Townsend, USA (d) 3. Alex Eala, PHI
4. Magda Linette, POL 4. Polina Kudermetova, RUS
5. Elise Mertens, BEL 5. Eva Lys, GER
6. Hsieh Su-wei, TPE 6. Elina Avanesyan, ARM
7. Yulia Putintseva, KAZ 7. Emiliano Arango, COL
8. Sorana Cirstea, ROU 8. Wang Xinyu, CHN
HM- Elina Svitolina, UKR 9. Iva Jovic, USA
--- 10. Maya Joint, AUS
--- HM- Robin Montgomery, USA


MOST IMPROVED JUNIORS
1. Ashlyn Krueger, USA 1. Wakana Sonobe, JPN
2. Olga Danilovic, SRB 2. Kristina Penickova, USA
3. Polina Kudermetova, RUS 3. Emerson Jones, AUS
4. Alex Eala, PHI 4. Jana Kovackova, CZE
5. Eva Lys, GER 5. A.Penickova/K.Penickova, USA/USA
6. Emiliana Arango, COL 6. Laima Vladson, LTU
7. Anca Todoni, ROU 7. Thea Frodin, USA
8. Maja Chwalinska, POL 8. Lilli Tagger, AUT
9. Maya Joint, AUS 9. Mia Pohankova, SVK
10. Victoria Jimenez Kastintseva, AND 10. Julieta Pareja, USA


DOWN COMEBACK
1. Beatriz Haddad Maia, BRA 1. Belinda Bencic, SUI
2. Lulu Sun, NZL 2. Veronika Kudermetova, RUS
3. Anna Kalinskaya, RUS 3. Rebeka Masarova, SUI
4. Sloane Stephens, USA 4. Sofia Kenin, USA
5. Sara Sorribes Tormo, ESP 5. Ons Jabeur, TUN


SURPRISE ITF
1. Alex Eala, PHI 1. Victoria Mboko, CAN
2. Kimberly Birrell, AUS 2. Joanna Garland, TPE
3. Hailey Baptiste, USA 3. Tereza Valentova, CZE
4. Carson Branstine, CAN 4. F.Jorge/M.Jorge, POR/POR
5. Whitney Osuigwe, USA 5. Isabella Shinikova, BUL


WHEELCHAIR TEAM
1. Yui Kamiji, JPN 1. Gadecki/Peers, AUS/AUS (MX)
2. Li Xiaohui/Wang Ziying, CHN/CHN 2. USA United Cup
3. Aniek Van Koot, NED 3. Birrell/JP.Smith, AUS/AUS (MX)
4. Li Xiaohui, CHN 4. POL United Cup
5. Wang Ziying, CHN 5. Errani/Vavassori, ITA/ITA (MX)
HM- Lizzy de Greef, NED HM- Mattek-Sands/Pavic, USA/CRO (MX)


COACH [PLAYER]
1. Conchita Martinez [M.Andreeva]
2. Bjorn Fratangelo [Keys]
3. Iain Hughes [Bencic]
4. Michael Joyce [Krueger]
5. Anton Dubrov [Sabalenka]
6. Mark Gellard/Aga Radwanska [Linette]
7. Mark Knowles/Mark Merklein [Pegula]
8. Lars Christensen [Tauson]
9. Igor Andreev [Alexandrova]
10. Rick Vleeshouwers [Anisimova]






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1. Australian Open SF - Madison Keys def. Iga Swiatek
...5-7/6-1/7-6(10-8). In the second women's semifinal, #2 Swiatek found herself a lone match away from facing off with Sabalenka with the AO title *and* the #1 ranking on the line in what would be an immediately successful early '25 answer to an end-of-year and off-season stretch that included the news of a drug testing violation, a coaching change and the loss of her position atop the women's tennis pyramid.

Standing in her way was #19 Keys, who entered sporting a 1-5 career mark in slam semis. For the first time in her major career, Keys was *the* last U.S. woman standing in the draw, a distinction that highlighted what might be a "new" Keys, who since the end of the '24 season has gotten married (to Bjorn Fratangelo, who has served as her coach since 2023), installed a new service motion (which moves her more aggressively forward into the court), and changed her strings and racket (making it lighter). In the opening chapter of her "new reality series," Keys won a title in the final days before this AO, upset #6 Elena Rybakina in the Round of 16 in Melbourne, and on this day may have played the most significant (at least until the *next* one) match of her entire career.

The semifinal turned out to be the match of the tournament, as the two women faced off for three sets, all of which displayed the power (and maybe improved mindset) of Keys, as well as the resilience and quick hands/feet of Swiatek. But, in the end, it was the U.S. veteran's ability to turn around various potential slides toward defeat -- something which has often dogged her past slam runs (including a U.S. Open SF loss in '23 vs. Sabalanka in which Keys led 6-0/5-3, and 4-2 in the 3rd before dropping a deciding MTB) -- that denied Swiatek at the final turn.

The opening set showed just what Keys brought into this match, as she quickly ended Iga's 31-game streak of service holds at AO25. Problem was, Keys didn't take advantage of it as it took her more than half the set to hold her own serve. After the match began with four straight breaks, the two got down to business.

With Swiatek leading 3-2, the Laver roof was closed, and almost immediately Keys' errors began to mount as she dropped serve again to fall behind 4-2. It wasn't until game 8 that Keys finally held serve, closing to 5-3 after saving a SP. The moment seemed to spark Keys, who began to hit bigger and more aggressively. She broke Swiatek as the Pole served for the 1st in the following game, then held serve for a second straight time. Swiatek ultimately put away the set on her second SP at 30/40 on Keys' serve in game 12 via a Keys error off a Swiatek return, but even after dropping the 7-5 opener the Bannerette had gotten a glimpse of what a potential path to victory would look like. In crunch time, she'd soon remember it.

Keys then went out and proved what she'd learned -- with flair -- in the 2nd. Breaking Swiatek in the opening game again wasn't enough for her, as she held from love/30 in game 2 and then broke Iga again in game 3. Unlike her inability to take advantage of her edge on the Pole's serve in the 1st set, Keys ran with it this time arond. Firing off bigger and more aggressive groundstrokes, she won 16 of 21 points as she took a 4-0 lead, pressured a frustrated Swiatek into going for too much (Iga started speaking in Polish to her box, i.e not to Belgian coach Wim Fissette), then broke her again with a big return to lead 5-0. And that was only after about 18 minutes.

Keys tied the match with yet *another* break in game 7 to close out a dominant 6-1 set. As expected, the dropped set sent Swiatek scurrying off court in its wake, looking to "reset" then return after a longer-than-normal time period, even as everyone stood around waiting (but not staring her down with an aggravated glare, ala Putintseva) for her to finally get ready to play after her late return to Laver.

Keys handled the situation in the sort of way that a soon-to-be-champion should... with an emphatic ace.



It was a 3rd that raised between-sets questions about how Swiatek would respond to being run over (again) by a big hitter and whether Keys could keep her game at such a high level long enough without something going haywire and, thus, pull off the upset. The truth turned out to be that both would respond quite well as the match became an instant classic.

With both women playing extremely high quality tennis, the break-fest that was two-sided for half of the 1st set, then one-sided in the 2nd, didn't occur in the third stanza. The first *ten* games featured holds of various stripe. Keys opened with an ace and quick game win at 15, while Swiatek staved off break chances in games 4 and 8. Keys saved BP in games 5 and 9 (four in the latter, after trailing love/40 at the end of a 7-pt. losing sttreak). It was Iga who finally broke the ice, taking a love/30 lead in game 11. A Keys DF put her down love/40 again. She saved two BP, but Swiatek reached a Keys drop shot and fired a winner down the line to take a 6-5 lead and served for the final.

But just when it looked as if Keys had tripped up in a big stage match once again, she had another table to (over)turn. At 6-5, Swiatek reached MP, but Keys' return down the center of the court tied up Swiatek, keeping her hopes alive.



A sharply-angled return got Keys a BP chance, and Swiatek DF'd as things went to a MTB (ala Keys' last major SF two seasons ago in New York).

Swiatek opened her serve in the breaker with a second straight DF that gave back a mini-break lead (1-1). It would be the first of four times in the MTB when Iga held a mini-break lead only to see Keys raise her game and take it back. Tied at 7-7, Swiatek pulled off a brilliant volley to lead (on serve) 8-7 and finally see the finish line again.



But as glorious as that shot was, it'd be the last that Swiatek would score on the night. Keys followed up wth an ace to tie the score again, then Iga fired a return long that gave Keys her first MP at 9-8. A Swiatek forehand error would end things, as Keys recorded quite possibly the biggest win of her career in a thriller that sent her into her second major final (the first since the 2017 U.S. Open more than seven years ago) and preceded her maiden slam crown.


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2. Doha 3rd Rd. - Iga Swiatek def. Linda Noskova
...6-7(1)/6-4/6-4. These Swiatek/Noskova match-ups are becoming Must-See WTA occasions. The Pole won here for a fourth straight time in six meetings, but four of the last five of those matches have gone three sets (w/ the Czech getting the upset at the AO last year), as Noskova is proving to be the most consistently nagging nuisance (so far) for Swiatek of all of the tour's new young contenders.

In this one, the two combined for zero breaks of serve in the 1st, with Noskova dominating a 7-1 TB. In the 2nd, they exchanged breaks over games 5-7 as Iga grabbed the lead. The Czech had a BP at 4-5 that would have tied the set for a fourth time, but Swiatek got the hold to knot the match.

In the 3rd, Swiatek broke to open the set, but Noskova didn't let her run away, getting things back on serve three games later. It seemed as if another TB was looming, but Swiatek's Doha winning streak was extended when she broke to lead 5-4 and served out the hard-fought win.


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3. Indian Wells Final - Mirra Andreeva def. Aryna Sabalenka
...2-6/6-4/6-3. In the desert, Mirra was no mirage.

Sabalenka came into the match with a 4-1 head-to-head advantage, and 2-0 edge in '25 (via 6-3/6-2 and 6-1/6-2 wins in January) vs. Andreeva. Early on, she held her ground and swatted away the young Hordette's attempts to break her serve for the first time this year, holding from love/30 in game 1 and saving four BP in game 3. She broke Andreeva at love in game 4, and carried out her edge to a 1st set victory.

Things started similarly in the 2nd, as Sabalenka saved three more BP in the opening game, making Andreeva 0-for-7 on the day and 0-for-18 on the year in their trio of match-ups. But the teenager, bolstered by a heap of success since those previous early season defeats, never stopped challenging Sabalenka. Finally, in game 3, her maiden '25 break of Sabalenka's serve came. And it changed everything.

After an Andreeva hold for 3-1, she was the one in the position of saving BP (2 in game 6) to maintain her lead, finishing off Sabalenka's best chance to get back on serve on the BP #2 when she reached a ball in the doubles alley and flicked a crosscourt backhand passing shot that caught the sideline and put her in the driver's seat en route to the title.



Sabalenka saved a SP and held for 4-5, but Andreeva serve out the set a game later, then broke to take charge in the first game of the 3rd.

Sabalenka prevented Andreeva from a game 2 hold despite three GP chances, including one in which the world #1 framed her return, hit the baseline, then saw the teenager commit an error. Two points later the set was back on serve at 1-1, but Sabalenka dropped served again in the next game and Mirra's path was suddenly very clear.

Ultimately, Andreeva didn't need to serve things out. Up 5-3, her second serve return winner down the line gave her a 15/30 lead on Sabalenka's serve, then a great defensive get forced a made-to-hit-one-more-shot Sabalenka UE that handed the teenager her first MP. She wouldn't need a second.


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4. United Cup Final (WS) - Coco Gauff def. Iga Swiatek
...6-4/6-4. From start of finish, this one was filled with all sorts of memorable moments.

Things began with Danielle Collins stealing the show during the pre-match handshake line, with shades -- stress on the "shade" part -- of that Collins/Swiatek discussion in Paris.



After that, Gauff and Swiatek (in Edition XV in their, hmmm, could it *finally* be termed a "rivalry" now?) put on a show in what was just a two-set affair, but still a far, far better, big-time match-up (in a made-up event, alas) than anyone has any right to expect in Week 1.



Then it ended with an Iga off-court MTO when she was on the verge of a loss at 6-4/5-4, coming to a close with a Swiatek DF on MP to hand Gauff a second consecutive straight sets win in the series after she'd lost 23 of 25 sets (and was 1-12 in matches) before knocking off the Pole on her way to the WTAF title last fall. A "less-than-enthusiastic" handshake from the former #1 put the proverbial bow on a result that shows that the former #1 can now no longer take a "W" for granted when she faces off with current #3.


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5. Miami SF - Jessie Pegula def. Alex Eala
...7-6(3)/5-7/6-3. Finally, after wins ove three previous slam winners, the odds caught up to the Filipina in Miami. But Eala didn't slink away, defeated with her historic bubble burst.

Though she lost a 5-2 1st set lead, and played likely her worst game of the entire tournament (complete w/ 2 DF) after having a 5-3, 40/30 edge over Pegula, Eala still managed to push things into a TB. And after losing that by a 7-3 score, she rebounded to win the 2nd set and force a decider. Pegula finally put away the teenager there.

But while her run ended here, make no mistake, this year's Miami Open will be remembered for Eala...


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Australian Open Final - Madison Keys def. Aryna Sabalenka
...6-3/2-6/7-5. Time can be a wicked fiend, albeit a natural -- and necessary -- evil. In the end, it always wins. But once in a while, on what immediately becomes a special occasion, one of us mortals gets the better of it in a staredown. That's what Keys did in Melbourne.



With a long career littered with ill-timed injuries and squandered opportunities on the big stage, and with her tennis biological clock ticking down just weeks before her 30th birthday (and all that that often means for an athlete in her chosen sport), as long as *two* seasons ago Keys was wondering if her last best shot at the ultimate success in a major had slipped through her fingers for the last time. Then, she'd just lost a U.S. Open semifinal (at that point, her fifth defeat in six final four appearances at slam level) to Sabalenka in which she'd led 6-0/5-3, and 4-2 in the 3rd.

At some point during a frustrating '24 season, Keys and coach/then-fiancé-and-now-husband Bjorn Fratangelo looked at the numbers and realized that they needed to do something to have a chance in that ongoing battle with the aforementioned time. While players' careers last longer on average now than in years past (Angie Kerber's three-major title career saw her win her first at age 28), it remained clear that Keys had far more opportunities for big wins behind her than she had ahead. Her power would seem to serve her well when it comes to being able to carry her contention into her thirties, but the service motion and equipment changes the pair enacted late last year (and stuck with into '25) were made, in part, to help her work smarter, not harder.

After a Week 2 title run in Adelaide, Keys picked up still more steam in Melbourne. After escaping a 7-5 3rd set early on vs. qualifier Gabriela Ruse, she went on to extend her winning streak to 11 matches as she took down the likes of Danielle Collins, Elena Rybakina and Elina Svitolina. Against #2 Iga Swiatek in the semis, Keys produced likely her biggest win to date, saving a MP and winning a MTB in which she'd trailed throughout (and as late as 8-7) before a final spurt finally shot her into her first major final since the 2017 U.S. Open, where she had a disappointing showing vs. her good friend Sloane Stephens.

Of course, there was still *much* work to do.

#1 seeded, two-time defending champ Sabalenka was 11-0 on the season, had won 20 straight AO matches (28-1 in sets), was 33-1 in hard court majors since AO23 (and 38-2 since US22) and was appearing in her fifth consecutive slam final on the surface, looking for a third straight major hard court crown and to complete the first three-peat in Melbourne since Martina Hingis won her third straight AO in 1999. Sabalenka had lost just one set (to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the QF) through six rounds en route, and had proved steely when challenged by young players (Jessica Bouzas Maneiro led 5-2 in a set in the 2nd Rd., while Clara Tauson had chances to put away *both* sets she played against her in the 3rd Rd.) looking to knock her off her throne (secured for now due to Swiatek's loss to Keys, which had prevented a battle-for-#1 square-off in this final).

Over the past two-plus seasons, Sabalenka has proven to be in her element under such circumstances. But on this night she was facing a different sort of Madi than the one she came back to defeat two years ago in New York, as this one has started, maybe for the first time ever, to Believe, with a capital "B."



Keys burst out of gate, as she had in her 2nd set domination over Swiatek. Of course, Sabalenka contributed to Keys' run with her serve getting away from her. She DF'd on her first serve of the match, then again moments later to give Keys an early BP chance. Keys' big forehand got the break and a 1-0 lead, which she consolidated with a quick hold. Sabalenka had trailed Paula Badosa 0-2 in the 1st in the SF, and was a point from 0-3, before assuming control when Badosa couldn't put away the biggest points. Here Sabalenka held from 30/30, but Keys didn't waver or even slow down.

Up 3-1, Keys' forehand crosscourt pass made it 30-all, and another Sabalenka DF gave her still another BP. Sabalenka couldn't get to a short ball and Keys led 4-1. Chasing down shots around the court, Keys fired a backhand off the net cord that jumped over onto Sabalenka's side and gave her a 30/love lead on serve. An ace secured a love hold and a 5-1 bulge on the scoreboard.

Keys continued to charge. A backhand pass gave her double SP at 15/40. Sabalenka battled back to stay alive in the set with a hold, then took advantage of Keys' lone wobble as she served for the 1st. A break made it 5-3, but Sabalenka couldn't carry it over into the next game, falling behind love/30. She badly missed on a wide serve to give Keys another BP/SP opportunity. This time Keys closed things out with a backhand down the line, breaking the defending champ for a third time in the set to win 6-3.



With her first serve not firing in the opening game of the 2nd, Keys opened a door for Sabalenka, as she reached BP at 30/40 but netted a passing shot as Keys approached down the center of the court. Keys failed to put away a GP, and Sabalenka got another BP chance. Keys hit an ace. A backhand down the line gave Keys a second GP, secured when Sabalenka failed to get back a backhand return as Keys wiggled off the hook and escaped to take a 1-0 lead.

Two games later, though, Keys couldn't do it again. With Sabalenka changing up her game (a drop shot off a return?) and starting to fire herself up ("Come on!"), the Belarusian took a love/30 lead. Keys pulled out big serves to avoid a deeper hole (an ace got it to 30/30) and saved a pair of BP (one w/ another ace, then a deep serve). But on her third BP chance, Sabalenka blasted a backhand return down the line into the corner for a break to take her first lead at 2-1.

With an opening at 30/30 a game later, Keys missed long on a return shot, and Sabalenka got her hold to lead 3-1. The #1 seed's deep return and drop shot combo gave her a 15/30 edge in game 5, and on her first BP opportunity she smacked a forehand passing shot by Keys to take a double-break lead at 4-1. Sabalenka extended her lead to 5-1, but only after falling behind love/30, 15/40, wiping away three BP and twice using drop shots to take advantage of groundstrokes that had pushed Keys behind the baseline. Keys ended Sabalenka's five-game run with a hold, but Sabalenka served out the set a game later, using two more drop shots on her way to a 40/love lead before winning the 2nd at 6-2 on her third GP, moving to within just one set of the first AO three-peat in a quarter century of play in Melbourne.



Both women opened the decider with quick holds of serve, then in game 3 of the 3rd set Sabalenka took a love/30 lead with another drop shot winner. But she netted a forehand passing shot down the line that would have given her double break point. With Keys back to hitting effective first serves, she pulled the game back and held to lead 2-1. Two more back-to-back easy holds were followed by another (at love) by Sabalenka, as any potential match-turning moment was delayed, then delayed again.

At 30/30 in game 7, Keys fired consecutive winners to take a 4-3 lead. It was a good sign for Keys, akin to her winning finish vs. Swiatek in the semis; but then Sabalenka did her one better with a love hold to knot the score again. With both players firing from both sides of the court, another solid Keys hold put the pressure on Sabalenka's shoulders to hold to stay in the match at 5-4. Up love/15 on Sabalenka's serve, Keys went for a big forehand that just missed wide of the far line. A tricky deficit avoided, Sabalenka knotted the score at 5-5 with a service winner on her second GP.

A Sabalenka second serve return winner gave her a 15/30 lead in game 11, and it was then up to Keys to swat back the challenge. A big serve up the T made it 30-all, then Keys redirected a huge Sabalenka return into the corner to reach GP, which she put away with a forehand sent behind Sabalenka to lead 6-5.



What came next was what makes this sport capable of IYKYK gems, as Sabalenka tried to send the match to a deciding MTB in her attempt to win her third straight title, while Keys tried to put away for good nearly two decades worth of frustrations between the lines.

Keys jumped to a love/30 lead with a backhand return winner. With both woman blasting shots in an extended rally, Sabalenka finally netted a forehand that gave Keys double MP at 15/40. A wide Keys return extended the dramatic tension before Keys claimed what was finally hers. She *took* it, really, as she *had* to -- to both put away Sabalenka, but to also carry out her own newly-constructed hit-to-win philosophy to its rightful conclusion -- with a forehand winner that made her (three weeks from turning 30) the third-oldest first-time slam winner ever, in her 46th career major MD (the third-longest wait).



Keys is the 16th woman in the Open era to win a major title after having saved a MP (nine of which won the AO), and the first woman in fifteen years to claim a slam while knocking off both the world #1 and #2 (w/ Rybakina, as well, that's quite the trifecta).

As Sabalenka's tears flowed beneath a towel from her seat (after she'd angrily smashed her racket and flung it across the changeover area bench), her three-peat dreams crashed on the shores by her opponent's oncoming tide of confidence, Keys celebrated her victory with her team and husband/coach in the players box positioned in the corner of the court (closer than at any other major).

Keys became the fourth U.S. woman in the Top 10 the following Monday, but is the only one of the group who is a reigning major champion.



Later, Keys admitted that her belated slam success has some after she'd finally come to terms with the notion that even if she *didn't* win a major title she'd still be proud of herself, the effort she'd given and what she *had* accomplished. She'd be fine. And, just like that -- poof -- away went much of the potentially debilitating internalized pressure that so often dragged her down in the past.

Of course, she still *wanted* that big title. And now she has it.

A phenom with great promise as a teenager, then an achieving-but-still-oddly-underachieving twentysomething after that, Keys will now get the chance to experience what it's like to be 30 with a new outlook on life, both on and off court, as well as the belief that, yes, anything is possible after having headed the nemesis of time off at the pass by changing the conversation so that it'd be more on *her* terms.

It's an instructional moment, for any and everyone.





*SI-MO-NA FOREVER (and ever), AMEN*




Cluj-Napoca 1st Rd. - Lucia Bronzetti def. Simona Halep
...6-1/6-1. The day began as the one in which Halep would play her first singles match since October, after going just 1-4 (and suffering through multiple injuries) in her '24 return after a year and a half out spent fighting the Alphabets to clear her name after a positive drug test at the 2022 U.S. Open.

It turned out to be the day that Halep played her final match, as she effectively announced her retirement to the crowd afterward (she'd previously talked of considering such a move, with a bad knee injury that required surgery that she didn't want to have, as well as a lingering shoulder issue).



We'll one day see Simo in Newport (and Winterfest, of course!), but hopefully she won't be a stranger between now and then.



ALSO:
Backspin Flashback: Halep Wins Roland Garros (2018)
Backspin Flashback: Halep's Wimbledon Dream (2019)
Simona Forever (and ever), Amen




*HOW DO KUDERMETOVAS SAY "BAGELS" IN RUSSIAN?*




Abu Dhabi 2nd Rd. - Belinda Bencic def. Veronika Kudermetova
...6-0/6-0. Umm, we needn't talk about this match, other than to note that just saying "straight sets" seems a little lacking in description, WTA social media.

I mean, the regular panning back-and-forth and obscuring the names/scores in highlights is bad enough, but now we're trying to hide (at downplay, at least) actual *final* scores, as well?

Bencic deserves credit as much as Kudermetova deserves to be shielded from recognition of a bad day.

Doha 1st Rd. - Dasha Kasatkina def. Polina Kudermetova
...6-0/6-0. A week after Veronika was double-bageled by Belinda Bencic in Abu Dhabi, Polina suffered the same fate vs. Kasatkina in Doha.




*WELCOME TO IGA'S NIGHTMARE*


Doha SF - Alona Ostapenko def. Iga Swiatek
...6-3/6-1. In Doha, Swiatek handled her nuisance (Noskova), then her nemesis (Rybakina). As for her bully. Well...



In a phrase, Ostapenko kicked her a**. Again. And she relished it, too, as the smirk/smile rarely ever left her face, and certainly not after being renewed by Swiatek's growing frustration.



Ostapenko's easy win ended Swiatek's three-year title run and 15-match winning streak in Doha, improving her career mark in the series to an astounding 5-0. Over the years, the Lavtian has posted wins over Iga when the Pole was ranked #65, #4, #9, #1 and now #2.



Perhaps the worst take on the match came on Tennis Channel *before* it began, as all in the assembled studio group who chose a side picked Swiatek to win, saying "she'll figure it out" and "she'll make it (h2h) 4-1," as the odd, collective amnesia regarding how Iga approaches (or doesn't approach) fireballing opponents such as Ostapenko and her general inability to handle adversity in such situations once again persisted.

None of those present mentioned that it wasn't likely to even be about Iga "figuring it out," but rather about Ostapenko -- who you *knew* would be supremely confident coming into the match, which was not a good thing for Swiatek -- keeping the ball inside the lines. If she did, it wouldn't likely be close. And it wasn't.










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1. Brisbane 3rd Rd. - Polina Kudermetova def. Dasha Kasatkina
...1-6/6-2/7-5. After winning a long 2nd Round match over Peyton Stearns in 3:21, Kasatkina seemed on her way here, as well.

After dropping the 1st set, the veteran Hordette led 4-0 in the 3rd and had a pair of GP on serve for a 5-0 bulge. She never won another game, serving for the match once (at 5-3) before becoming the younger Kudermetova sister's first career Top 10 victim.
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2. Dubai 3rd Rd. - Elena Rybakina def. Paula Badosa
...4-6/7-6(8)/7-6(2). Rybakina's season has been a work in progress, both off and on-court.

Badosa claimed the 1st set after trailing 0-3, and nearly took out Rybakina in straights. The Kazakh served at 5-3, and held two SP at 5-4 before Badosa pushed the set to a TB, where she led 6-3. The Spaniard had four MP in the breaker, but couldn't convert any as Rybakina knotted the set with a 10-8 win converted on her fourth SP.



Rybakina again served, this time for the match, in the 3rd (at 5-4), but couldn't put away the win. Instead, Badosa eventually had two *more* MP at 6-5 (bringing her total to six) before Rybakina took things to a deciding TB, which she won 7-2.


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3. Dubai SF - Mirra Andreeva def. Elena Rybakina
...6-4/4-6/6-3. Down 3-1 to Rybakina in the 3rd set, with the Kazakh holding a GP for 4-1, Andreeva (as she noted later) seemed to have accepted that this was not her day, but was proud of her fight all week. But she didn't give up, and that proved to be the difference.

On her third BP of the three-deuce game, the teenager got the break to get back on serve. Rather than pull away to the final, Rybakina didn't win another game.

Rybakina fell behind on serve love/40 two games later and was broken, but had four BP chances in game 8 to get back to even in the set. Andreeva saved them all and held for 5-3. The Hordette went up love/30 on return in the next game, and never had to deal with serving out the win, getting the break of Rybakina to advance to her first career 1000 final.


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4. Auckland 2nd Rd. - Clara Tauson def. Sofia Kenin
...4-6/7-6(7)/7-6(3). Kenin would likely be just fine never seeing Tauson on the other side of the net again. In October, she was aced 22 times by the Dane in a 2nd Round loss in Tokyo. This time Tauson threw in 26 aces (fifth-most all time in a WTA MD match, the most ever in a hard court victory) and won again, staging a successful comeback from a set and 5-3 down, saving a MP in the 2nd set TB and winning consecutive breakers to advance.

26 aces is a career high for Tauson, but it's worth noting that she had a another 25-ace performance *last* year, though it was in a qualifying match (Miami vs. Dodin) and doesn't count when it comes to all-time tour records.
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5. Dubai 1st Rd. - Victoria Azarenka def. Anhelina Kalinina
...2-6/7-6(4)/6-4. Azarenka, without a win since her season-opening victory on New Year's Day, looked doomed to another early exit, with thoughts wandering to whether or not she's reaching *that* stage (you know the one, and any former great champion *never* wants to exist there) in her career.

But then the former #1 and two-time slam champ flipped a switch after falling down 6-2/5-2, with Kalinina serving for the win at 5-3 and then leading 4-2 in the 2nd set TB. In a flash, Vika had doubled her '25 win total.
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6. Indian Wells 2nd Rd. - Emma Navarro def. Sorana Cirstea
...3-6/6-1/7-6(3). Navarro's North American heater continues, as she escapes what would have been a second loss to Cirstea in three weeks (w/ a title run in Merida sandwiched in between), overcoming 3-0, 4-1 and 5-3 final set deficits (w/ 2 MP on the Romanian's serve) to get her fifth straight victory.
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7. Cluj-Napoca 1st Rd. - Aliaksandra Sasnovich def. Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
...6-7(0)/7-5/6-4. For all her obvious promise, Bouzas Maneiro has also shown a penchant for being unable to hold leads (see her 5-2 edge in the 2nd set vs. Aryna Sabalenka at the AO amongst her *least* egregious blown leads).

Against lucky loser Sasnovich, the Spaniard failed to serve out the 1st set, but survived (with flair) with a 7-0 TB win. But then the rest happened.

Bouzas Maneiro had five MP opportunities at 5-4 in the 2nd, only to then lose seven of the final eight points in the set. Still, she got another chance when she took an early 2-0 lead in the decider, *and* saw Sasnovich take a MTO down 1-2. Still, though, Bouzas Maneiro couldn't come out on top.


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8. Cluj-Napoca 1st Rd. - Viktorija Golubic def. Arantxa Rus
...7-5/4-6/7-6(10). We've had a few three-set matches in '25 where breaks of serve were scarce. Meanwhile, this one had sixteen in the longest MD match of the 1st Quarter.

In 3:30, Golubic saved a Rus MP down 6-5 in the 3rd, then another at 7-6 in the TB, before finally winning on her fifth MP in a 12-10 escape.


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9. Australian Open 1st Rd. - Harriet Dart def. Jana Fett
...7-5/2-6/7-6(7). There were a handful of women who saved MP on their way to the 2nd Round in Melbourne. Unfortunately, one of them was Fett. Again.



Seven years ago, Fett held two MP vs. Caroline Wozniacki in a 2nd Round Australian Open encounter. The Dane battled back to win, then the following week won her lone slam title. Since then, the Croatian had failed to return to the AO MD, losing four times in qualifying before finally sweeping through a trio of straight sets wins this year. She was set to face Marketa Vondrousova, who'd retired from her 2nd Round match in Adelaide in her last outing. The Czech pulled out of the MD on Monday, leaving lucky loser Dart to face off with Fett. Then it happened all over again.

Fett fell behind 3-1 to the Brit in the 1st set, but came back to lead 5-3 and served at 5-4. Dart took the set, though. No matter, as the Croatian won the 2nd and, again after falling behind 3-1, ultimately twice served for the win in the 3rd. At 6-5, Fett held two MP (for a second straight AO MD match), but Dart saved both and forced a final MTB.

Likely suffering from a case of severe flashback, Fett fell behind 6-0. She tightened things on the scoreboard to put pressure on Dart, but the Brit won 10-7 to once again send Fett packing from Melbourne with a case of "what-coulda-been" ringing in her ears.
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10. Miami 3rd Rd. - Naomi Osaka def. Hailey Baptiste
...7-6(6)/3-6/6-4. Osaka trails 4-2 in the 3rd, but sweeps the final four games to reach the Round of 16 in Miami for the first time since reaching the final in 2022.


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HM- Indian Wells 2nd Rd. - Jaqueline Cristian def. Leylah Fernandez
...5-7/7-6(5)/6-3. A masterful 1st Round win over Veronika Kudermetova (6-2/6-3) was followed up on Saturday night with a come-from-behind, 3:16 marathon in which the Romanian overcame a 7-5/3-1 deficit to defeat Leylah Fernandez to chants of "Jack-ie! Jack-ie!" (she was named after Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, after all).

Last season, Cristian reached the 3rd Round at 1000 Madrid, Rome and Beijing, and at the latter recorded her first career Top 10 win (def. Krejcikova).


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#WTARallytheWorld


NOTE: The key to understanding the WTA's new "Tennis, There's No Tennis Being Played Around Here" logo change and the latest, retread of a rebrand is to recognize that there is nothing that the women's tennis tour (WTA) is more afraid of than being seen as the home of women's tennis.



So, is this the logo for the Women's Tennis Association, or the Western Textile Alliance? You'd really never know. Well, I mean, unless you're in on the "coy" touches pointed out by Sarah Swanson, Chief Brand Officer for WTA Ventures, who notes that the green rectangle acts as "the portions of a (tennis) court" and the little slash under the "A" gives "the hint of a bouncing ball." Umm, allll right.

Meanwhile, just to give some examples of the trio of the most recent WTA cut-and-paste "campaigns" -- from #ItTakes (2019) to #FortheGame (2020) to the current #RallytheWorld, which were all preceded by the oh-so-different (or not) "Power to Inspire" push in 2015 -- here are some semi-random examples of the campaigns' social media posts, with the only real difference being the lamely contrived hashtags and different colors and/or logos. One each from the two most recent attempts wastes of money and time...



And the "new" versions...



Rinse. Wash. Repeat. The last two campaigns died out within a few weeks, and this one pretty much has, too. Money lit on fire, and another opportunity lost.

But hardly a surprise.




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1. Miami 3rd Rd. - Alex Eala def. Madison Keys
...6-4/6-2. After upsetting Alona Ostapenko in the 2nd Round, 19-year old Eala kicked off the second week of play in Miami with an even more historic upset, notching the first Top 10 win of her career (and that of all of Philippines tennis history) and maybe setting the course for a breakout season after struggling to get over the proverbial "hump," despite flashes of big potential, last year.



Eala didn't get to celebrate her trip to the QF, as it happened via a walkover from Paula Badosa.

No matter...



Miami QF - Alex Eala def. Iga Swiatek
...6-2/7-5. And here one would have thought that wins over Ostapenko and Keys were what career weeks were made of. Nope.

With Swiatek committing too many errors (off the ground, and via DF), Eala took advantage of the growing widening cracks in the world #2's game to lay down a slew of impressive accomplishment notes with this single win: her (and for any PHI player) biggest win ever, her first tour-level SF (and at a 1000, no less... joining Mary Joe Fernandez and Danielle Collins as the only three to get #1 in Miami), the first WC to go so far in South Beach, becoming the only teenager other than Bianca Andreescu to win her first two match-ups with Top 5 players and, last but not least, cracking the Top 100 for the first time.



More specifically, Eala coverted 8/10 BP chances on Swiatek's serve, breaking her in 8 of 10 service games (the first five, then the last three) while presenting a note of intimidation -- or the lack thereof when it came to Iga's serve -- by moving inside the baseline to return, and staging rallies in both sets to win in straights. Swiatek held an early break edge in the 1st, and led 4-2 in the 2nd after having reeled off four straight games.
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2. Miami 2nd Rd. - Ashlyn Krueger def. Elena Rybakina
...6-4/2-6/6-4. If not for the big stage exploits of a handful of other new young stars (Mirra, Alex, et al.), Krueger's breakout campaign -- w/ a 500 RU, Miami 4r and now a probable first slam seed come RG time -- might have been recognized a bit more in the 1st Quarter.

The 20-year old Bannerette missed out on a shot to play Rybakina in the Abu Dhabi final earlier in the season, as while the Bannerette reached her biggest career title match the Kazak fell in the semis to Belinda Bencic (who then defeated Krueger for the crown). Given her belated shot against the 2023-24 Miami runner-up, the 20-year old collected her first career Top 10 victory after having narrowly missed out on the feat on three occasions (def. then #11 Kasatkina, #12 Badosa and #14 Kalinskaya) earlier in 2025.


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3. Brisbane 2nd Rd. - Kimberly Birrell def. Emma Navarro
...7-5/7-5. Though she eventually found her '25 footing (winning in Merida), Navarro started slowly this season a year after her 12-3 open to the '24 season. This loss to wild card Aussie Birrell came in Navarro's Week 1 opener.

Navarro's most recent win (this was her third straight back to '24) had come over Birrell in the Hong Kong 125 in October when Navarro was (unsuccessfully, in turned out) trying to backdoor a WTAF berth in the 11th hour by taking a WC into a below tour-level event vs. "lesser competition" (the then-#8 ranked player was the event's only competitor ranked in the Top 50).


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4. Miami 2nd Rd. - Alex Eala def. Alona Ostapenko
...7-6(2)/7-5. *Shockingly* this was an Ostapenko match which featured multiple big swings of momentum, as Ostapenko led 4-0 in the 1st but saw Eala rally to win a TB, then in the 2nd it was Eala who lost a 4-0 lead, saving an Ostapenko SP, before the Filipina swept the final three games to notch her biggest win.

This was Ostapenko's fourth straight loss (0-8 sets) since she throttled Iga Swiatak to reach the Doha final.


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5. Adelaide 1st Rd. - Emerson Jones def. Wang Xinyu
...6-4/6-0. Ash Barty remains in the shadows, or in the sun in the stands, but the young group of Aussies (see Maya Joint, Taylah Preston, Talia Gibson and Olivia Gadecki) that have found their way to the court in the years since the 2022 AO champ's early retirement continue to put up some nice results as newbies.

Girls' #1 Jones notched her maiden tour-level MD win ahead of her AO slam debut, and did it with a love set finish vs. #37 Wang.


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6. Miami 1st Rd. - Victoria Mboko def. Camila Osorio
...7-5/5-7/6-3. 2025 ITF Queen Mboko makes good on her MD wild card to notch her first career WTA win, nearly three years after her maiden MD appearance (a Granby '22 1r loss to Rebecca Marino at age 15).

The 18-year old Canadian nearly lost a 5-2 1st set lead vs. Osario, failing in two attempts (and 4 SP) to serve it out before finally making good on try #3 and going on to win in three over the world #54.


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7. Australian Open 1st Rd. - Clara Tauson def. Linda Noskova
...5-7/6-3/6-4. #29-seeded Noskova became the first seed to fall at this year's AO, one year after she'd upset then-#1 Iga Swiatek in Melbourne on her way to her first career slam QF. Ooh, ouch.

Who knocked her out? Well, Clara Tauson, of course. Because, you know, naturally... you could see that one coming from a mile away once the draw was made.



The Dane won Auckland in Week 1 (def. Week 2 champ Madison Keys along the way, and firing off 26 aces in a win over Sofia Kenin), and has now posted five career victories over slam seeds in her career since she debuted at the 2020 Roland Garros (with, of course, a win over a seeded Jennifer Brady). Those wins account for more than a third (5 of 14) of her career MD win total in majors. Tauson "only" had 13 aces in this AO 1st Round win, though.

But Tauson would soon top this win by a large margin...




6. Dubai 3rd Rd. - Clara Tauson def. Aryna Sabalenka
...6-3/6-2. The two met in Melbourne when they were a combined 14-0 on the season, and Sabalenka gutted out a 7-6/6-4 win after Tauson had led 5-3 in the 1st (and served two up 5-4 in the TB), then was tied at 4-4 in the 2nd when she couldn't convert on six GP chances (or on two BP down 4-5 a game later).

The Dane didn't have to find a way to avoid squandering the big points this time, as she just won most of them, period.

Tauson won 19 of 24 first serve points to get her first #1 win (third Top 10, counting one over Sakkari in BJK zone play last year).
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8. Abu Dhabi 1st Rd. - Wakana Sonobe def. Yuan Yue
...6-4/6-3. Will we one day say, "I remember when...?"

Maybe, if early returns are any indication, as 17-year old AO junior champ Sonobe followed up her impressive Q-run (w/ two Top 100 wins) with another straight sets upset victory in her tour MD debut, this time over Yuan Yue.


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All for now.
2025 1Q Awards: Mirra on the Edge of an Era
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