Angelique Kerber's successful rebound from a disappointing '17 season hit its zenith at SW19, as she won her first Wimbledon title, defeating a string of NextGen stars en route to the final and then handling 23-time slam champ Serena Williams 6-3/6-3 to claim the Venus Rosewater dish. She lost just one set the entire fortnight (to '17 junior champ Claire Liu in the 2nd Round, odd as it was), got three-quarters of the way to a Career Slam, became the first German to win at Wimbledon since 1996, the first to win a third major since 2011, and just the second (w/ Venus) to defeat Serena in *two* slam finals.
Sealed with a kiss ??#Wimbledon @AngeliqueKerber pic.twitter.com/v2FHKXXoVb
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 14, 2018
After Kerber had slowly built her SW19 resume over the decade -- semifinal in '12, final in '16... -- perhaps it was fitting that it took a while to get started in the Ladies final. Literally.
Naturally, because the AELTC couldn't get out of its own way even while patting itself on the back at every turn, Williams and Kerber were forced to wake up on final day not really knowing *when* they'd get to play. The indeterminate wait began at 1 p.m. Centre Court time. The issue was kicked up because of what had happened on Friday.
First, an interminable men's semifinal (6:36, 26-24 in the 3rd... a bang-your-head-against-the-wall, some-think-they-deserve-more-money-for-this-kind-of-senses-numbing-crap? match which pretty much single handledly led to the institution of a final set TB rule in '19) between Kevin Anderson and John Isner (yep, Isner in a long, boring match that threatened to never end... shocking, I know) dragged on, and on, and on, and on, and on, and on, and... well, you get the idea, and pushed back the second men's semi between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal so far that it was only barely half-finished when it walked up to Wimbledon's 11 p.m. curfew (???). So off everyone went to bed, set to meet up again on Saturday. Then another two-plus hour delay occurred when the completion of *that* match turned into another five-set affair that went to 10-8.
Finally, at 4:16 in the afternoon, the Wimbledon Ladies final began. And, with that, change was going to come.
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Williams' appearance in the final was the tenth of her Wimbledon career, but the first since her return to the game after giving birth to daughter Olympia. It would be her first attempt in a final to win her 24th career slam singles crown to tie Margaret Court's all-time mark.
It would prove to to not be an easy task.
A similar thing could be said about follow-up success for previous year's Wimbledon semifinalists, all of whom were eliminated early in an upset-laden tournament. Ten seeds lost in the 1st Round, and fourteen in the first two. Amongst the early victims were all four of 2017's semifinalists.
Defending champion Garbine Muguruza lost in the 2nd Round to Alison Van Uytvanck, the earliest exit by a DC since Steffi Graf in 1994, while runner-up Venus Williams went out at the hands of Kiki Bertens (in an 8-6 3rd) in the 3rd Round. Semifinalists Johanna Konta (2nd) and Magdalena Rybarikova (1st) both failed to escape the first four days of competition, as well.
As it was, no Top 10 seed reached the QF at the event, the worst showing at any Wimbledon in the Open era. None of the top four seeds advanced to the Round of 16, another first.
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Almost, @DKasatkina... ??#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/RnnVsULghd
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2018
Meanwhile, Russian's Dasha Kasatkina put on something of a show. The 21-year old fell to eventual champ Angelique Kerber 6-3/7-5 in the QF, her second straight such result in a major in '18, but it was wise to pay no attention to the rather "routine" scoreline.
A meeting between the two would be expected to have many things, from a large dose of variety, long rallies, the Russian pulling off every shot in the How-To-Tennis guidebook (and a few only available in the "updated" version you can purchase online), the German's defensive scrambles turning into suddenly shocking offense, and several instances when you see sweat glistening off both as they bend over in exhaustion after a particularly exciting adventure caper (complete with its own catchy theme song) and recognize that *this* is what guts and glory look like in a sports setting. And that's what we got, too. In fact, about the only thing we didn't see was a 3rd set.
As things played out a pattern developed for the swashbuckling Kasatkina, who'd often fluctuate between being brilliant and frustratingly inconsistent all day. A little more steadiness from the grinding *and* flashy Hordette and this could have been a Wimbledon classic. Kerber, by contrast, played a steady game. No big highs, but also no big lows. She staked out the "middle" and maintained it from the first point until the last. It turned out to be her key to victory.
The final game turned out to be a semi-masterpiece of guile and audacity. Kerber actually led 40/15 and it seemed as if it would end quickly, but it turned out to be a 16-point, 7-MP tussle highlighted by a 25-shot rally (to reach MP #6) that saw, just to name a few moments, Kasatkina slip and fall behind the baseline, then recover and race back to the other side of the court, pull off a drop shot, but then see it answered by a point-winning volley from Kerber.
Seven match points. A 25 shot rally. Hawk-Eye drama.
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2018
The best game of #Wimbledon so far? pic.twitter.com/d0jXhLZ2ag
A point later Kerber just missed completing a drop and lob combo to win the match (on MP #6), then finally did on MP #7 when Kasatkina failed to get back the German's forehand as Kerber's win set the stage for what turned out to be her third career slam title run.
Game recognises game ??#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/xJTtcWXJ6S
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2018
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Armed with two-handed swings from both sides, Selesian angled shots, and an array of magical weapons that included slices, drops, superior anticipation and movement, Hsieh Su-wei once again flashed her upset skills vs. a top player in a major in her 3rd Round match against reigning RG champ Simona Halep. The 32-year old Taiwanese vet had already defeated both Muguruza and Radwanska in Melbourne in '18, and added the Romanian's name to her victim list in London.
Halep (as sometimes happens to Hsieh's foes) didn't give a particularly admirable accounting of her in-match problem-solving skills, while her own form was off, and her serve wasn't up to par. Lured into a series of cross court rallies that made her opponent's game plan even "easier" to implement, when she wasn't off balance or fooled so well that she couldn't even offer a stab at a defensive get, Halep often found herself racing in vain to chase down shots.
Even after Hsieh had pushed things to a 3rd, though, Halep held a seemingly commanding lead (5-2) there, and served at 5-3. A game later, she held a MP on Hsieh's serve. Halep's worst mistake may have been to allow Hsieh back into a match she appeared to have it on her racket in spite of everything Hsieh had thrown at her.
After Halep didn't convert her MP, she never saw another. In fact, she didn't win another game. Hsieh converted a BP and served for the match at 6-5. She fell down 15/40, but then Hsieh proceeded her pull Halep around the court as if she were on the end of a string. Side to side, up and back. Essentially, at times, the Romanian looked like a fidget spinner in all-white tennis gear. Every stroke was a scramble since she didn't really know where any were going, a situation made worse by the ever-present fear that Hsieh might just suddenly step in and pull off a hard down the line shot. The BP's squandered in game #11 left Halep just 7-of-23 on the day, 2-of-10 in the 3rd. Hsieh served out third career slam Round of 16 result, her second of '18.
#1 Halep's exit was the ninth by a Top 10 seed in the first three rounds, an all-time record.
She's make up for it a year later by winning the singles title.
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In her final Wimbledon classic, former junior champ and Ladies finalist Aga Radwanska, recently back from a multi-month injury layoff, avoided a shocking 1st Round upset at the hands of an unheralded Romanian.
Against #197 Gabriela Ruse, Radwanska jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the 1st. But the qualifier, in her slam MD debut, began to find her footing, playing fearless tennis and going for all her shots. She managed to close to within 5-3 in the 1st before Radwanska finally finished off the set, then broke the Pole's serve to take the 2nd. The two were locked in a tight battle in the 3rd, tied at 4-4. Pulling Aga in to the net, then firing passing shots by her, Ruse converted a GP with a net cord shot that plopped onto Radwanska's side of the court to go up 5-4.
Game #10, with Radwanska serving to stay in the tournament, with her worst-ever Wimbledon result potentially at hand, turned out to be a showcase for all the "murky" things that seem to happen around Radwanska on the AELTC grounds. It wasn't quite of the Konjuh-steps-on-a-ball-and-turns-her-ankle variety, but it was surely memorable in its own right. The game lasted fourteen minutes, had 23 points, went to deuce eight times, saw Ruse hold SIX match points... and then ended when Radwanska, somehow, managed to hold for 5-5. Perhaps the key point, Ruse's 6th and final MP, came when after she'd gotten into position for a career-altering win by hitting out, she tried to drop shot Radwanska to end the match. The ball failed to make it over the net, and the sense of a lost opportunity swept over the windswept SW19 landscape. A game later, Ruse went up 30/love, but soon found herself BP down. An error off the Romanian's racket got Aga the break and the chance to serve out the match.
What a battle.
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 2, 2018
After saving six match points in the third set, @ARadwanska finally prevails 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 against Grand Slam debutant Elena-Gabriela Ruse#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/BLyDu2w0sc
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Katerina Siniakova had a wild Wimbledon.
First, the Czech escaped her 1st Round match with CoCo Vandeweghe. The Bannerette was nursing an ankle injury and took a bad spill at the net, but still led Siniakova 5-2 in the 3rd set and served for the match at 5-3. Three days later, Siniakova experienced a very vivid case of deja vu. She likely began the day feeling good about her chances against Ons Jabeur. She held a 4-0 head-to-head lead over the Tunisian, having never lost a set against her. After splitting sets, Jabeur took a 5-2 lead (and had a MP) in the 3rd, then served for the match at 5-3. Sound familiar? She couldn't do it, and in the blink of an eye Siniakova was serving for the match at 6-5 (she fell behind 15/40), then again at 7-6 (she fell behind 15/40), then again at 8-7. She finally won it in 2:27. She needed every last one of the 117 points she won (vs. Jabeur's 115) on the day.
What goes around comes around, though. Even after falling and having her hip looked at by a trainer, Siniakova led the Camila Giorgi in the 3rd by a 6-3/4-2 score, and held a MP at 5-4. But the Italian saved it, got a late break and soon saw herself serving for the set at 6-5. Siniakova got the break to send things to a tie-break. There, she saved a SP via 25-shot rally at 6-5, but Giorgi immediately rebounded and took the final two points to win 8-6 and send things to a 3rd. The tearful Czech was left to lament what might have been during the changeover. And, later, after the match.
From there, Giorgi seized control. She led 5-2 with Siniakova serving to stay in the match, so the possibility of a THIRD straight opponent serving at 5-3 in the 3rd vs. the Czech was there for the having. But the Italian got the break to win in 2:41, reaching the Round of 16 at Wimbledon for the first time in six years. Her run would end in the QF vs. Serena Williams, but she was the first Italian to make it as far at Wimbledon since 2009.
But Siniakova wasn't through...
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Siniakova teamed with Barbora Krejcikova to follow up their Roland Garros title run by taking the Wimbledon doubles, becoming the first team to put together the combo since Kim Clijsters & Ai Sugiyama in 2003. Winning the girls doubles crown in 2013, the Czechs became the first pair to win both in their careers.
In the final, Krejcikova & Siniakova defeated Nicole Melichar & Kveta Peschke in a match-up that included two players (Krejcikova and Melichar) born in Brno, Czech Republic. Brno was the hometown of former Wimbledon champ Jana Novotna, and the '18 tournament was the first to take place since her tragic death due to cancer the previous November at age 49. Novotna's life and death were commemorated during the fortnight by the AELTC, but perhaps the most fitting honor came in the doubles competition.
Aside from Krejcikova being born in Brno, she had been coached by Novotna and spoke touchingly of her both before after winning the title. Melichar, a Czech-born U.S. player, not only reached the WD final, but she also *won* the Mixed, teaming with Alexander Peya to claim her first slam title with a win over Victoria Azarenka & Jamie Murray in the final.
Earlier in the doubles, Bethanie Mattek-Sands & Lucie Safarova had teamed for what turned out to be the last time in a major. One year after BMS' knee injury had prevented them from trying to win a fourth straight slam crown, they attempted to complete their Career Doubles Slam (Mattek is also a win at SW19 from a Mixed Doubles Career Slam, which would be Golden since she won the Olympics in '16). Their run ended in the quarterfinals.
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It was Day 3, and a sense of dread (or at least the threat of it) was *still* apparent, five years after "Black Wednesday."
As insects once again swarmed the AELTC grounds on Flying Ant Day, reigning AO champ #2 Caroline Wozniacki fell on the infested Court 1 to Ekaterina Makarova, becoming the sixth Top 8 seed to fall in the tournament's first three days.
Meanwhile, Aga Radwanska flirted with staging a comeback from a set and 5-1 down while trying to force a 3rd set (after having saved 6 MP in the 1st Rd.), saving a MP vs. Lucie Safarova before the Czech staves off a total of seven BP in an 11-minute game to hold and secure the win.
As it turned out, it was Radwanska's final match at Wimbledon, as she'd retire at season's end. It was also Safarova's final SW19 win at the tournament, as she'd retired early in 2019.
Draw notes:
* - 29-year old Julia Georges, after having lost five straight 1st Round matches at Wimbledon, made the All-England Club the site of her first career slam semifinal berth. Her win over Kiki Bertens in the QF made it *two* Germans in the semis of a major for the first time since the 1993 Roland Garros, and for the first time at Wimbledon since Cilly Aussem defeated Hilde Krahwinkel in the final in 1931.
* - one year after following up her RG title run with a QF result at Wimbledon, '14 SW19 girls champ Alona Ostapenko reached the semifinals in her best post-slam win result in a major.
* - with Serena and Sharapova back in the mix, 2018 marked the first time that both Williams sisters, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka had been in a Wimbledon draw since 2015. The foursome have combined for 37 slam wins in their careers.
* - Sharapova was playing in her first Wimbledon MD since '15, but her 1st Round loss to Vitalia Diatchenko was her worst in fourteen appearances.
The Russian qualifier's 6-7(3)/7-6(3)/6-4 win in 3:08 in the final moments of the day's light gives her her first Wimbledon MD victory, and just her third ever at a slam. Sharapova served for the match at 7-6/5-3. But Diatchenko would never go away, and Sharapova, as has been the case since she returned from suspension, often seemed tight in the big moments and had a hard time not only putting her opponent away, but just keeping hold of an advantage on the scoreboard when she got it. Diatchenko won a 7-3 TB to knot the match. She then saw Sharapova obtain, then give away, a pair of break leads in the 3rd set. Her last came after she'd taken a 4-3 lead, only to drop serve herself moments later. She wouldn't win another game after that, and ultimately double-faulted on MP. Diatchenko hadn't played a slam MD match since 2016, while Maria was 49-3 in the 1st Round of majors alone. Not only that, but Sharapova had a long history of beating up on her fellow Russians inside the lines of the court. She came into the day with a nearly 80% win percentage vs. her countrywomen for her career and had gone 35-4 against them since early 2010, 27-3 since 2011.
* - two players who dominated the Wimbledon discussion in the early years of the decade barely registered a blip in 2018.
Petra Kvitova, a year out from having played at Wimbledon soon after her return from hand surgery, lost in the 1st Round to Aliaksandra Sasnovich, her worst SW19 result since 2009. The Czech lost a love 3rd set to the Belarusian.
Sabine Lisicki, a former finalist (2013) with five QF+ results from 2009-14, followed up her 1st Round loss in '17 with an opening round qualifying exit. A year later, she'd end the decade by falling in the final qualifying round. After winning 19 matches at SW19 from 2011-14 (23 if you include '09), Lisicki won just four in the MD from 2015-19.
* - 2010 Wimbledon finalist (in singles and doubles) Vera Zvonareva, having gotten married and had a baby since her best years of nearly a decade earlier, played in her first Wimbledon MD since 2014 at age 33. After making her way through qualifying, she was Kerber's initial 1st Round opponent/victim during her title run.
* - a year after a tearful three-hour, 10-8 in the 3rd loss to Johanna Konta in the 2nd Round, Donna Vekic rebounded with a renewed fight. She upset U.S. Open champ (#4 seed) Sloane Stephens in the 1st Round, and ultimately made it all the way to her first career slam Round of 16. It was the type of resilient result that would have made Jana Novotna proud.
* - a year after her semifinal run, Konta had been gone from the draw in a flash. But other Brits made some noise.
Katie Boulter notched her first career slam MD win, while Londoner Harriet Dart, two years after losing a 13-11 3rd set TB in the final round of qualifying in '16, made her belated slam debut. Dart lost in the 1st Round, but gave #7 Karolina Pliskova a run for her money, making her work to win 7-6(2)/1-6/6-4. Dart had beaten Pliskova's twin Kristyna in Eastbourne a week earlier. Dart went on reach the Mixed doubles semis with countryman Jay Clarke, upsetting #1 seeds Dabrowski/Pavic along the way.
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Poland's Iga Swiatek became the fourth from her nation to win the Wimbledon girls crown, the first since the Radwanska sisters won twice in three years between 2005-07 (Aga, then Urszula). In her final junior competition, the unseeded (because she'd essentially left the circuit, but was still age eligible to compete) Switaek, 17, opened with a win over #1-seeded Whitney Osuigwe in three sets. She wouldn't lose another set, ending with a 4 & 2 win in the final over Swiss qualifier Leonie Kung.
The player who'd been considered by many to be the favorite, having won the Roehampton tune-up event, was 14-year old Coco Gauff. Soon to be the youngest girls #1 ever, the reigning Roland Garros junior champ was upset in the quarterfinals by Wang Xiyu in three sets (Gauff had a MP in the 2nd). A year later, Gauff would qualify for the women's draw, knock off a legend in the 1st Round and reach the Round of 16 in her Wimbledon debut.
Wang Xiyu was joined by Wang Xinyu in the girls semis, marking the first time two players from China had reached the final four stage in a junior slam.
They also teamed to win the doubles, defeating Osuigwe & Caty McNally (the latter finishing as runner-up in the SW19 GD for a third straight year) to become the first all-Chinese duo to win a girls doubles slam crown.
Diede de Groot won her second straight Wimbledon wheelchair crown, and completed the sweep of the events that had eluded her in 2017.
De Groot defeated countrywoman Aniek Van Koot 3 & 2 in the singles final, the first step toward a year-long run that would see her return to London in '19 as the reigning champ in all *eight* slam disciplines, a first in the sport's history.
The 21-year old Dutch woman has lost out in the Wimbledon doubles final (w/ Van Koot) in '17 to four-time champs Yui Kamiji & Jordanne Whiley. But with the Brit out while pregnant in '18, de Groot took the if-you-can't-beat-'em-join-'em route, teaming up with Kamiji to win a slam title *together* (rather than at the expense of the other, as has been the case in every slam singles event *but* at Wimbledon) for the first time. They defeated Sabine Ellerbrock & Lucy Shuker to take the crown.
For the second straight year, world #2 Kamiji had failed to reach her first Wimbledon singles final after losing a 3rd set TB in the semifinals.
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In the Invitation doubles competition, Kim Clijsters teamed with Rennae Stubbs to defeat defending champions Cara Black & Martina Navratilova (Martina had won the previous *two* years) in a 6-3/6-3 final. It's Clijsters' first title in the competition, while Stubbs had won previously in 2015.
SEEN AT THE AELTC:
Kate Middleton & Meghan Markle...
Emma Watson...
Jessica Biel & Justin Timberlake...
Tom Hiddleston...
Benedict Cumberbatch...
Stella McCartney...
And Sir David Attenborough (w/ requisite binoculars for close examination of the species)...
Wherever Serena Williams walks, she's the biggest story in play. But while Angelique Kerber may speak more softly and carry a comparatively "smaller" stick, but she has *also* developed the walk of a champion -- rediscovered it, really, after a season lost within the enveloping forest that was created by her own success.
Today at Wimbledon, that so-recently-overgrown forest became a newly-enchanted one for the German, who maintained the steady and decisive style of play in the final that she displayed over the course of this fortnight, out-serving and out-playing a Williams who was never able to fully find her form in the face of Kerber's steady but driving game style, which did nothing if not accentuate, exploit and ultimately prey upon the wanting footwork and error-prone performance put forth by Serena in a rare moment on the slam final stage in which she didn't (eventually) bring her best tennis to the battle at hand.
Of course, maybe she would have if given the time. Kerber, though, didn't allow that potential scenario to live long enough to become a reality. She preferred another.
Two seasons ago, everywhere Williams and Kerber went, there was the other. So as both made their way back around, through very different circular journeys, into position to claim another major title at the end of this very upset-heavy and gloriously chaotic fortnight, perhaps we should have seen their return engagement in the final coming all along.
When Kerber was busy claiming her first slam title in Melbourne two and a half years ago, there was Serena on the other side of the net in the final. Williams then countered later in the summer by winning her most recent Wimbledon title with a Ladies final over Kerber. Eighteen months ago, after learning that she was pregnant, Williams won the Australian Open, replacing the German as the reigning champ and dethroning Kerber as the #1 player in the world. Though Serena was ranked #1 for ten total weeks in 2017 following her win in Melbourne, she never played a match while in the position after announcing her impending motherhood. Just over ten months ago, daughter Olympia was born, and Williams once again narrowly escaped what could have been a tragic post-delivery health scare. Over that same period, Kerber, mentally worn down and lacking the sort of belief that had pushed her to her career year in '16, suffered through an unprecedented ranking fall for a year-end #1 last season, dropping from the top spot to outside the Top 20 in the biggest one-year, non-injury/retirement related slip in tour history.
Today, though they were playing for the right to lift the same Venus Rosewater Dish (Serena for an eighth time, Angie for a first), they met with very different personal accomplishments at hand. While a win from Williams would tie her with Margaret Court for the all-time major title record with 24, Kerber was looking to become just the seventh player to be a three-time slam champion this century, the first since 2011, and just the second (w/ Capriati) not named Williams, Sharapova, Henin or Clijsters. After taking down a series of Generation PDQ stars (C.Liu/Osaka/Bencic/Kasatkina/Ostapenko) while losing just one set (to Liu) along the way at the All-England Club, the reinvigorated Kerber was facing a 36-year old living legend, already the oldest Wimbledon women's champion ever when she won the title in 2016, who with a victory would add yet another intriguing layer to her remarkable career story as she'd become the fourth mother (after Court, Goolagong and Clijsters) to win a slam in the Open era.
After Serena's love hold, Kerber served at 5-3 for the match, her third major title, and to become the second player to defeat Serena twice in a slam final (the other was someone named Venus).
Trying to pull off an eleventh hour save that would keep slam #24 in play, Serena worked the rally in the game's second point in her favor and ventured in to the net to put it away, but instead flied her forehand volley to fall behind 30/love. She knelt on her knee in the shadow of the net, head down and quite possibly coming to grips that "it" just wasn't going to come back to her on this day. Or maybe she was actually gathering herself for one final burst. A drop shot and big deep return got the point to 30/30. But a Kerber forehand down the line into the corner off a high bouncing, deep court ball got her her first MP. She'd only need one. Williams' return error ended the 6-3/6-3 match. Kerber was the Wimbledon champion for the first time.
The moment @AngeliqueKerber won #Wimbledon for the first time ??#TakeOnHistory pic.twitter.com/GsySRMNXaq
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 14, 2018
Kerber fell to knees and onto the ground. She was immediately enveloped not by a foreboding forest, but by a cloud of dust kicked up by her rolling over on her back on the well-worn baseline.
Now knowing how to recognize both the enchanted forest *and* the trees that make it up, the journey of the German, the first from her nation to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish since her idol Steffi Graf in 1996, has come full circle. After learning how to believe in herself and take chances in 2016, her opposite end of the spectrum experience of '17 showed her the importance of taking time off and "taking care of (herself)." Still improving her game and approach two seasons after her career year, six months beyond the 30th birthday that used to signal the *end* of a tennis player's peak years of accomplishment, Kerber now finds herself three-quarters of the way to a Career Slam.
* - "I think without 2017 I would not be here. I learned a lot last year." - Angelique Kerber
* - "To all the moms out there, I was playing for you today. And I tried." - Serena Williams
* - "I knew I had to play my best tennis against Serena. It’s my second chance [in the final]. I’m the next German after Steffi to win, it’s amazing." - Angelique Kerber
For @AngeliqueKerber, the #Wimbledon dream came true...#TakeOnHistory pic.twitter.com/apeVhtWRVv
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 14, 2018
One year after finally breaking through to win her maiden slam title in Paris, Simona Halep deepened her career legacy with an unexpected title run at Wimbledon.
Having seen her reign as Roland Garros champion end the month before, Halep responded with quite possibly the best string of performances of her career. After downing story-of-the-tournament 15-year old Coco Gauff in the Round of 16, she ran her sets-won streak to eleven (she lost just one during the fortnight) with straights sets wins over Zhang Shuai and, in two consummate back-to-back performances in the closing days of the tournament, Elina Svitolina (1 & 3) and Serena Williams (2 & 2). In the final against Williams, Halep committed just three unforced errors (a low in recorded slam final history) to win for just the second time in eleven meetings with the seven-time SW19 champion. Her win made her the first-ever Romanian champion at Wimbledon.
Williams, playing in her 32nd career slam final, lost in a third slam final (a career worst streak) in the last five majors in her attempt to tie Margaret Court's all-time mark of 24 slam singles titles. Still, a SW19 finalist for the 11th time (and for the second straight year since returning after having a baby), Williams became the oldest singles slam finalist in the Open era at 37 years, 291 days.
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The two previous Ladies champions at SW19 didn't fare nearly as well.
Defending champ Angelique Kerber lost in the 2nd Round to Lauren Davis, with a 13/31 winner/UE ratio failing to keep up with the young Bannerette's 45/50 stats. The German's loss made her the first DC to lose to a lucky loser in slam history, while Davis' 3rd Round result was the best at SW19 by a LL since 1974. She was the first *ever* to advance as far without having had a bye in the 1st Round.
A round earlier, '17 champion Garbine Muguruza (the #26 seed, obscenely low for a player of her caliber who wasn't dealing with any sort of noteworthy injury) had been upset by Brazilian qualifier Beatriz Haddad Maia. The Spaniard had been up a break in the 1st set, but lose her advantage and was then broken for the set. Haddad did it again in the 2nd, winning 6-4/6-4. It was Muguruza's worst Wimbledon result since 2014, and gave her a typically feast-or-female results line for the decade that looks like this: 2r-1r-F-2r-W-2r-1r.
Before Wimbledon was over, Muguruza parted ways with coach Sam Sumyk after a four-year partnership; while less than a week after the conclusion of the fortnight Kerber ended things with her coach, Rainer Schuettler, who'd only come aboard the previous fall after Wim Fissette's stint during the German's resurgent '17 season had ended.
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The '19 Wimbledon hosted the star-making coming out party for 15-year old Coco Gauff.
Having been the youngest player in history to reach the junior #1 spot in 2018, Gauff was given a WC into Ladies qualifying. All she did was knock off the #1 seed (Aliona Bolsova) and win all three matches without dropping a set, becoming the youngest SW19 qualifier ever. In a match-up that seemed created by destiny, Gauff drew one of her idols in the 1st Round: 39-year old Venus Williams.
Not only was Gauff not overwhelmed by her Day 1 moment in the spotlight, she was more than up to the task, downing Williams 6-4/6-4 (at #313, she was the lowest ranked player to ever beat the legend) to hand her her earlier exit at SW19 since her debut in 1997 at age 17. Gauff was the youngest main draw winner since Jennifer Capriati in 1991, and she followed it up by defeating '17 semifinalist Magdalena Rybarikova in straight sets in the 2nd Round, then staged a comeback from 6-3/5-2 and 2 MP down vs. Polona Hercog in the 3rd, securing the 2nd set by winning a 32-shot rally with a swing volley winner, then converting MP in a 3-6/7-6(7)/7-5 win on a point which included two overheads.
Gauff ultimately lost to eventual champ Simona Halep in the Round of 16, but the teenager had already been crowned the sport's newest "It girl."
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While Gauff got her first taste at 15, 33-year old Barbora Strycova, in the middle of attempting to map out her retirement plans, had the time of her life.
A Wimbledon quarterfinalist in 2014, the Czech downed Johanna Konta in the Last 8 to become the oldest first-time slam semifinalist in tour history in her 53rd career slam MD appearance, topping Roberta Vinci's 2015 final run at the U.S. Open. She lost to Serena Williams, but then picked up her first career slam doubles title alongside Hsieh Su-wei (a winner with Peng Shuai in '13) defeating "Sunshine Doubles" winners Mertens/Sabalenka in the QF, #1-seeded Babos/Mladonovic in the semis, and #4 Dabrowski/Xu in the final, completing their title run without having dropped a set in the event.
After Wimbledon, Strycova replaced Mladenovic as the double #1 for the first time in her career.
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In Mixed doubles, Latisha Chan teamed with Ivan Dodig to win back-to-back slam crowns (w/ RG), defeating Alona Ostapenko & Robert Lindstedt in the final. It was Chan/Dodig's third MX crown in the last five majors.
Ostapenko & Lindstedt reached the final riding a wave of resurgent, fearless winner-producing tennis from the Latvian (who'd lost in the 1st Round of singles), while "bonding" over the 22-year old's habit of occasionally hitting her 42-year partner in the back of the head with her serve.
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After years of trial, error, flame-outs and blown leads, Elina Svitolina finally had things go her way for a change.
Coming in recovering from injury and having had the worst first half-season of her career since she gained her footing on tour, the Ukrainian was given a gift by the Tennis Gods in the 2nd Round.
Two weeks earlier, #62-ranked Russian Margarita Gasparyan, having assiduously built back her career since returning in the spring of '18 after missing over a year (and most of two) while undergoing three knee surgeries, recorded her biggest career win over Svitolina in a match that was just her third on grass since 2016. After winning a 1st Round match in her first Wimbledon appearance in three years, the Russian once again was facing Svitolina. She quickly took a 5-2 lead on the #8-seed. Svitolina rallied to tie the score at 5-5, but Gasparyan held and broke for 7-5 to claim the opening set. She held a 22-6 edge in winners. The 2nd set saw more of the same, as Svitolina's '19 injury issues, lack of focus and subpar game confidence seemed about to come home to roost yet again. She'd won just two matches since March. At 5-4, Gasparyan came within two points of getting the break of serve to end the match, but Svitolina held firm to knot the score at 5-5. Five minutes later, it was all but over. For the Russian. Serving at 5-5, love/30, she came down awkwardly on her leg and immediately bent over and grabbed her leg. Soon, she was down on the ground, being tended to by trainers (and delivered water by Svitolina) for a severe cramping situation.
Gasparyan tried to finish the set, perhaps hoping things would improve or she'd somehow stumble into winning the 2nd to end the match, since she didn't seem set to go a full three. After dropping serve, then falling down double set point on Svitolina's serve, the Russian pulled the rip cord and got out without suffering any more damage. Gasparyan's retirement came while leading 7-5/5-6 (still with a 42-15 edge in winners, and 82-81 in points).
Two rounds later, Svitolina faced Petra Martic, coming off three consecutive SW19 three-setters and with barely enough left in the tank to complete the match. In the QF, Karolina Muchova -- "fresh" off a marathon 3:17 win over Karolina Pliskova the day before -- was game but exhausted, and Svitolina slipped through against a third physically compromised oppenent to erase her 0-4 career mark in slam QF and become the first Ukrainian to reach a major semifinal.
Against an in-form Simona Halep, Svitolina barely registered yet again... essentially coming up two sets short of handing slam #24 to Serena Williams on a silver platter (aka the Venus Rosewater dish) two days later in a would-be final match-up.
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Draw notes:
* - the 2019 Wimbledon was a rare major in which the *unseeded* players included the likes of Venus Wililams, Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Sam Stosur, winners of seventeen slam titles from 2000-14
* - four unseeded woman -- Strycova, Muchova, Alison Riske and Zhang Shuai -- reached the QF, the most at Wimbledon since 1997
* - this was the first slam as the new world #1 for Ash Barty, the 2011 SW19 girls champ. The Aussie didn't follow in the recent footsteps of Alona Ostapenko and Naomi Osaka with QF-or-better results in the first major after their maiden crown, but her Round of 16 finish was still her best Wimbledon result to date.
Having just lost the #1 ranking to Barty, Osaka fell in the 1st Round to Yulia Putintseva, her second loss to the Kazakh in a matter of weeks. The 7-6/6-2 win made Putintseva 6-0 in sets vs. Osaka.
* - Maria Sharapova was seeking her first Wimbledon win since 2015, and seemed set to get it in the 1st Round against Pauline Parmentier. The Russian led 6-4/5-3, but wasn't able to serve out the match. A forearm injury -- a common occurrence since her return from suspension -- ultimately did her in, as she won just one more game and retired down 5-0 in the 3rd. Parmentier, who'd infamously joined in on cyber-bullying fellow French Fed Cup teammate Caroline Garcia a few years earlier, moonwalked on the court in celebration and afterward denigrated Sharapova's decision to not play out one final game, snottily saying that it was something that she'd expect from the Russian.
While the loss was Sharapova's second straight in the 1st Round at Wimbledon, four young Russians had won their opening matches. But all (including Gasparyan) fell in the 2nd Round, meaning that the nation had zero players in the 3rd Round of a slam for the first time since the 2000 Roland Garros, breaking a 76-slam streak.
* - Zhang Shuai's QF run had come after having previously been 0-5 in her Wimbledon career. Before the Chinese veteran's first slam QF result in Melbourne in 2016, she'd gone 0-14 in slam MD matches for her career.
* - aside from Konta's QF run, fellow Brit Harriet Dart (as a WC) recorded her first career slam MD singles wins and reached the 3rd Round
* - 2014 finalist Genie Bouchard lost in the 1st Round to Tamara Zidansek in an 8-6 3rd set. Zidansek had been up 6-3 and with a double-break lead in the 2nd set twice, and led 4-1 in the 3rd, but Bouchard battled back to get within two points (up 6-5, 30/15) of the win, only to drop the final three games. Zidansek led 109-107 in total points, as Bouchard (without a win since February) fell to 3-5 at Wimbledon since winning six matches five years earlier en route to her maiden (and only) slam final.
* - Bouchard's 2014 final conqueror Petra Kvitova managed to reach the second week at Wimbledon for the first time in five years, but lost there to Konta, who was coming off a semifinal run at Roland Garros. After posting QF-or-better results in each of the first five years of the 2010's, going from being hailed as the next great Wimbledon champ, Kvitova had none from 2015-19.
* - former #1 and slam finalist Karolina Pliskova (who'd had a chance to reclaim the top spot at this tournament) once again failed to reach the QF at Wimbledon (after eight appearances), the only slam at which she'd failed to advance to the semis. Against fellow Czecch Karolina Muchova, Pliskova twice served for the match at 5-4 and 11-10 in the 3rd set. The set had come within one hold of serve of being the first MD SW19 singles match to play the newly-instituted 7-point TB at 12-12 in the final set (the first ended up being the men's final), but Muchova broke Pliskova to win 13-11 and advance to her first slam QF in her SW19 debut, and just her fourth MD appearance in a slam.
* - the first match to go under the new Court 1 roof was a 1st Round contest between Donna Vekic and Alison Riske, during which the roof was closed due to darkness at 5-5 in the 3rd set.
After Vekic had been heartbroken after losing a three-hour match vs. Konta in a 10-8 3rd set in '17, the rebounded in '18 to upset U.S. Open champ Sloane Stephens en route to her first slam Round of 16. This time around, after having been forced to a 3rd set, the Croat at one point led it 4-1, only to drop three straight games and ten straight points. In a long service game at 4-4, Vekic earned a six-deuce hold (on GP #5, after saving 2 BP) to edge ahead. Riske knotted it at 5-5, then the roof was closed.
After a short warmup period, Riske dominated the conclusion of the match as Vekic had another of her (by now nearly patented) heartrending exits. While Riske had converted just 3 of 17 BP in the match, Vekic DF'd on #18 to fall behind 5-6. Riske then held serve, ending the match with an ace to win 3-6/6-3/7-5 in 2:29.
Riske went on to hand Barty her first loss as world #1 and advanced to her first slam QF, joining the AELTC's "Last Eight Club" and vowing to take advantage of all the perks -- including free tea and access to special member areas -- for the rest of her life. "Now they'll never get rid of me!," Riske happily exclaimed.
* - several former Wimbledon junior achievers had career firsts in 2019. 2018 girls champ Iga Swiatek made her SW19 debut (losing in the 1st Round weeks after reaching the Round of 16 in Paris), while '16 winner Anastasia Potapova posted her first MD win in the event. 2016 runner-up Dayana Yasremska finally made her Wimbledon debut and reached the Round of 16, while '17 girls doubles champ Kaja Juvan recorded her first slam MD victory (and played Serena Williams well in a 2nd Round encounter, taking the 1st set off the 23-time slam champ).
Additionally, first-time semifinalist Svitolina was the '12 girls runner-up and a junior doubles finalist in '10.
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The long tentacles of 2013's "Black Wednesday" were still around in 2019, as Gasparyan's retirement had come (naturally) on Day 3.
Although a case *could* be made that something had been a bit fishy on Day 2, as well, as former slam winners Sharapova, Muguruza, Stosur *and* Kuznetsova (and former finalist Bouchard, too) all bowed out.
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Unseeded Daria Snigur, who'd won Roehampton leading into Wimbledon, became the second Ukrainian (K.Bondarenko '04) to win the SW19 girls singles title. Snigur defeated #1 seed Emma Navarro in the SF, then repeated her win over Alexa Noel in the Roehamption in the final match at the All-England Club.
Savannah Broadus & Abigail Forbes became the second all-U.S. duo to win the girls title in four years, after what had previously been a drought that extended back to 1989.
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In the wheelchair final, Aniek Van Koot upset #1-seeded Diede de Groot, who'd just swept the RG titles to become the first player in history to win all four WC singles slams, all eight WC slam competitions, *and* simultaneously be the reigning champion in all slam events. De Groot had a 25-match slam winning streak (14 singles, 11 doubles) and was looking to win her third straight SW19 singles and tenth straight overall slam competition (dating back the 2017 RG doubles).
Van Koot won the 1st set, but de Groot took things to a 3rd. After Van Koot broke for 4-2, de Groot broke back at love. After DF'ing to go down a break again at 5-3, de Groot fired a return winner on BP to get back on serve again a game later. Serving to stay in the match, de Groot fell down love/30, and saved a MP when a mishit caught the baseline mid-rally and went on to hold for 5-5. After a solid hold of serve from Van Koot, de Groot was down love/30 on serve again in game #12. A Van Koot net cord dribbler gave her triple MP. De Groot saved the first, but then DF'd on the second as Van Koot won 6-4/4-6/7-5.
The win made it four straight Dutch champs in the Wimbledon WC singles (w/ Jiske Griffioen in '16), and solidified Van Koot as probably the most underrated WC player of the era. Though she rose to #1 in 2013 after Esther Vergeer's retirement, throughout her career there had always been "someone else." Van Koot won her first of thirteen slam titles (3s/10d) in 2010, but continually played in the shadow of, first, Vergeer, then Yui Kamiji, Griffioen and now de Groot. Yet, at 28, with the SW19 win she's won seven of the eight major titles, joining only de Groot (w/ all 8), Kamiji (7) and Vergeer (who played when there wasn't a Wimbledon singles competition) with such a distinction.
Van Koot & de Groot later teamed to win the doubles, as de Groot won her sixth straight doubles slam title, defeating Marjolein Buis & first-time slam finalist Giulia Capocci for the crown (after having defeated four-time SW19 champs Kamiji & Jordanne Whiley, teaming for the first time in two years as the Brit played her first slam since having a baby, in the opening round). With the win, the duo was a U.S. Open title away from completing a Doubles Grand Slam in 2019.
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After having fallen in the Invitation Doubles final in '18 to Kim Clijsters & Rennae Stubbs, Cara Black & Martina Navratilova were set to have rematch in the '19 final. But after having qualified for the final before round robin play was complete, Clijsters/Stubbs pulled out with an injury. They were substituted in the final by Marion Bartoli & Daniela Hantchova.
Bartoli & Hantuchova (34 & 36... *younger* than the MD women's singles runner-up, and barely older than another semifinalist), dropped the first eight games of the match to Black & Navratilova (40 & 62...Martina played her first Wimbledon 46 years earlier, reaching the women's 3rd Round and junior final at age 16).
But Black/Navratilova seemed to noticeably let up a bit to make things more competitive, and it resulted in Bartoli/Hantuchova finally getting on the board *and* on a bit of a run. They took the 2nd set 6-3 to force a ten-point match TB. Black/Navratilova took a 4-0 lead, but the score tightened to 4-3 as 2013 Ladies champ Bartoli, playing much better as the match wore on, kept the score close while Hantuchova (mostly) watched. Things were knotted at 8-8. But the (more) veteran pair put away two volleys to finish things off, first came Navratilova to reach MP, then Black with a high fade away overhead from the middle of the court, sent between Bartoli and Hantuchova, to secure the 6-0/3-6 [10-8] victory.
It was the second Invitation title won by Black/Navratilova in the last three years, as they'd reached the final three years running. It was Navaratilova's sixth straight, having teamed with Selima Sfar from 2014-16 (going 1-2).
At 62, Navratilova is the oldest winner of any Wimbledon title, in the Invitation competition or otherwise.
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SEEN AT THE AELTC:
Coco Gauff's parents...
Serena Williams & Andy Murray in Mixed doubles...
The Duchess of Cambridge (Kate Middleton) and the Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle, FoS...Friend of Serena)
Oops...
Double buns...
Double buns on doubles duty... pic.twitter.com/gAkll0uHln
— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) July 6, 2019
„I think the buns might be giving us superpowers…“ #quotemaybe pic.twitter.com/CELxdmcWHS
— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) July 6, 2019
Beckham...
Serena's diamond-encrusted Nike logo...
Cumberbatch & Hiddleston...
Janelle Monae...
Jodie Whittaker, that's Who...
Martina's message...
Woody Harrelson. Oh, Woody...
can someone check on woody pic.twitter.com/LFunpC0pNj
— Tyler “The Emmy-nominated One” White (@TylerRuinsTV) July 13, 2019
by popular demand: Curb Your Woody pic.twitter.com/scpaX3X8M2
— Tyler “The Emmy-nominated One” White (@TylerRuinsTV) July 13, 2019
And *this*...
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See Simona. See Simona win. See Simona win Wimbledon? Yes, as a matter of fact. We just did.
On the occasion of the 2019 Wimbledon Ladies final, Simona Halep answered the time honored question that centers around what one does *after* getting what they'd always dreamed of. It's a query that has stumped many before who'd won their first major title, only to be then forced to ask themselves, "Now what?"
But, past self-flagellating appearances aside, there has rarely been a player more eager to battle than Halep.
While many over the past year have seized upon the former #1's "chill year" description of her twelve-month reign as the leading lady of Paris as a sign that she may have lost her edge, was lackadaisical or didn't have the same desire to win major crowns, Halep's results have always countered any such notion. She was a point away from the rare back-to-back Montreal/Cincinnati combo last summer, led Romania to a huge Fed Cup win over the Czechs in February, and has never been anything less than game and/or in-the-mix at nearly every big event she's played in 2019 even if she *didn't* have anything tangible (like a singles title) at hand to unquestionably prove it as recently as two weeks ago. Sometimes she just lost, was beaten (just no longer *by* herself). She accepted it, learned from it, and moved on. It wasn't the end of the world, but it could still be the start of a good thing. That, more than anything, is the mantra that has driven the current version of Simona forward to new experiences, including winning at SW19.
While Halep has never "left" since the spring of last year, what she proved to be in London over the last fortnight *is* something new. With her RG reign behind her, she confirmed at this Wimbledon that the "better Simona" that she and former coach Darren Cahill strived to create has unequivocally emerged from her cocoon, fully formed and brilliant.
Her win over Serena Williams in the today's final, if one only managed to maintain a glancing focus on the proceedings, appeared to come with relative ease. But it was hardly that. At various times, Williams seemed on the verge of emerging in her own right, only to see the Romanian's hard work thwart such momentum from being established by chasing down ball after ball, gliding atop the grass surface from sideline to sideline and then finding room to strike a winner or put Serena into a position where she couldn't keep the rally alive.
Here comes Serena. No. Then *here* she comes. Umm, still no.
Soon, Halep held a dominant edge on the scoreboard, between the lines and in the air. Then the notion dawned, this was *really* going to happen.
Somewhere in the middle of Simona's masterpiece in southwest London, it was almost as if an in-her-prime Justine Henin had been transported through time and into the body of what once was the young Romanian girl (La Petit Swarmette?) who'd idolized the Belgian. Henin, in spite of her size, found ways to tactically frustrate more powerful players, to out-prepare and sometimes even out-will them. She even did it against one Serena Williams, defeating her in three consecutive slam QF in 2007, as well as in their biggest slam match ('03 RG semi) with the same sort of confidence, lack of fear, and utterly crystal-clear clarity and adherence to an agreed upon game plan that Halep showed in her match with Williams today.
By now, Halep was fully in the flow. Up 4-2, she again led love/30 on Serena's serve. Williams fought back to hold a GP, but too many errors reversed the course of the game. She saved Halep's first BP with an ace, her first of the match. But on BP #2, Halep immediately seized control of the rally and then ended it with a backhand winner down the line to take a 5-2 lead. Serving for the title, Halep went up 30/love when Williams' backhand sailed long. She put in a big serve to lead 40/love. It took two attempts, but on her second MP Halep claimed the title when Williams netted a forehand, ending the 6-2/6-2 match after just fifty-six minutes.
The moment @Simona_Halep became Romania's first ever #Wimbledon singles champion ???? pic.twitter.com/bny53dP8AL
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 13, 2019
In recent years -- since Jana Novotna went from crying on the shoulder of the Duchess of Kent to lifting the Venus Rosewater dish -- has there been a more decidedly *human* slam champion than Halep? Or one who has freely admitted her failings quite so unflinchingly, dealt with them so openly, and then ultimately conquered them while the sports world (and her entire "Si-mo-na!" crazy home nation) watched? Oh, there have been quite a few multi-dimensional figures on the slam-winning stage over the years, but has any been as open and honest a book, warts and all, as the Romanian *and* successfully come back for more after having experienced such highs and lows?
Surely a few are in the conversation (from Halep's opponent today to the aforementioned Bartoli, and even Li Na and Amelie Mauresmo), but you'd really have to spend many hours splitting hairs to put Halep anywhere but *atop* that list.
It's been quite a journey of discovery these last few years. For Halep, as well as for anyone who's been invested in her quest to embrace her favored identity. While Roland Garros allowed her to finally exhale a year ago, Wimbledon now enables her to take another gulp of air. Who really knows what will come next?
The journey isn't over, though. And isn't that grand?
* - "She [Venus Williams] said congratulations. I told her thank you for everything that you did. I wouldn’t be here without you. I always wanted to tell her that." - Coco Gauff
* - QUESTON: What are the moments you see in your future that you are fighting for at this point?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: "I mean, after withdrawing from a match, it's moments of finishing one and just being healthy."
* - "This tournament shows me that I can win over myself, over my emotions, over my character because I am a very emotional player, person. In the past I couldn't really control it. But in these two weeks I could accomplish something that I worked so many years with my mental coaches." - Barbora Strycova
* - "If you start to think about, okay, it's the first time semifinal, like, Stop it. Stop it. Let's think what I'm going to have for dinner." - Elina Svitolina
* - "It was my mum's dream for me. she said if I wanted to do something in tennis I have to play the final of Wimbledon, so today the day came." - Simona Halep
* - "Never!" - Simona Halep, when asked after the final if she'd ever played better
