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Wednesday, October 7, 2020

RG.11- Sneaky Sofia

Don't look now, but Sneaky Pete Sofia is settling in in Paris. Existentially, we've sort of been here before.



The eyes in Paris have been focused on many subjects in the women's draw, from Iga Swiatek's ongoing breakout performance, to the surprising Nadia Podoroska (much like Tsvetana Pironkova in NYC, a living symbol of the unpredictable nature of this unprecedented tennis season) and Petra Kvitova's heartful run. But very little attention has been paid to Sofia Kenin.

Of course, what else is new?

In Melbourne about eight months ago (if you try *real* hard, you might remember it), the young Bannerette was hardly being considered a potential grand slam champion at this point in the Australian Open. After all, the other quarterfinalists included four slam winners, three #1's, and the home favorite #1 seed. Kenin was hardly the most dominant player Down Under, but she worked her way into the tournament and ultimately walked off with her maiden major title. At the U.S. Open, even as a reigning slam champ hailing from the host country and the highest-ranked Bannerette (as the #2 seed), she was virtually ignored for most of the tournament when it came to scheduling and court placement.

At the start of play at Roland Garros, Kenin wasn't considered a true threat, either. She was coming off being double-bageled in Rome, and she had to fight her way through the first week in Paris. The #4-seed went three sets with Liudmila Samsonova in the 1st Round, and no one would have been "shocked" in the moment had she lost. She hadn't seemed "right" since the Restart began. But she kept putting one foot, often quickly, in front of the other and advanced.

Kenin lost the 1st set to Ana Bogdan, then figured out how to win the 2nd and 3rd sets at 3 & 2. She fell behind qualifier Irina Bara 0-2, then reeled off twelve straight games. She lost the opening set to Pastry Fiona Ferro, then allowed just three games the rest of the way. With that established backstory, as well as Kenin's 0-3 mark (1-6 sets) in her head-to-head with her latest opponent, what happened today against countrywoman Danielle Collins in the first all-Bannerette QF in Paris since 2004 (Capriati/S.Williams) should come as no real surprise. But it'll likely be overlooked... at least until, maybe, it *can't* be any longer.

Kenin broke Collins' serve (at love) for a 3-2 edge in the 1st set on Court Chatrier. After Collins held in a tight game #7 (saving a BP) to remain within easy striking distance at 4-3, a close finish, perhaps even a tie-break, seemed in order. But Kenin, who never faced a BP in the set, got the break that had eluded her in Collins' very next service game, then struck quickly to serve out the 6-4 set a game later.



While Collins battled distraction, and publicly re-positioned her trainer/boyfriend in the stands, yelling at him to move to a new location (it turned out to be a rather complicated trek), the former NCAA star saw Kenin break serve for a 3-2 lead in a game that had seen Collins somehow choose to fire a high-bouncing (but inside the lines, landing on the left side of the court near the chair umpire) mishit ball off Kenin's racket directly back into the only spot on the court that Kenin (who'd brought her racket down and essentially conceded the point) might have a run at the ball. Taking a few (unexpected) steps, Kenin shot a backhand winner into the open court. That darn trainer/boyfriend!

But Kenin, too, soon had a lapse that threw Collins a lifeline. Her failed mid-rally forehand drop shot attempt handed Collins a BP chance that she cashed in with an angled backhand crosscourt shot to knot the score at 3-3. A few games later, Collins held for 5-4 and made sure Kenin (and maybe all of Paris) knew her intentions.



When Kenin couldn't get back a Collins lob, the result was another BP chance in game #10. On her fourth attempt, Collins elicited an error off Kenin's racket and took the set 6-4. The win set Collins up for another comeback, after having already at this RG rallied from a set down against Monica Niculescu in the 1st Round, 3-0 back in the 3rd against #11 Garbine Muguruza in the 3rd Round, and being a break down (twice) against #30 Ons Jabeur in the Round of 16.

But Kenin was having none of it.

It was at this point that the 21-year old did what she does. Perhaps seizing on an opponent's false sense of security, Kenin simply figures out how to win. The Kenin Way is a two-person effort, for sure, with father/coach Alex playing mind games with the opposition in the stands and, you know, doing whatever coaching he can get away with for as long as he can get away with it (in, I note again, the only situation in all of world competition that immediately comes to mind where athletes aren't allowed to be coached during actual game play... something which seems absurd on every level, until you remember that it's tennis, a sport which oft-times simply *doesn't* make sense and we just all accept that as "normal"), but it's Sneaky Sofia who employs the game plan, whenever it might be devised and/or altered, and eventually makes it work.

Once again, when "no one was looking," Kenin made her move. She broke Collins at love to start the 3rd set, effectively stopping cold her perceived momentum. Then, from love/30 down, Kenin consolidated the break to lead 2-0. Another break put her comfortably ahead, and Collins was soon taking a moment for a medical time out down 4-0. If it was even *partly* a tactic to try to change the course of the set, well, it didn't work. Kenin immediately broke again, then completed her surgical final stage demise of her oppenent by taking the set at love, winning 6-4/4-6/6-0 to reach her second 2020 slam semifinal. It was a case of Kenin doing on a small scale what she's done on the larger overall slam stage, on which she's now gone 15-1, this year.



Kenin may not possess great size or one especially *imposing* stroke, but her will and brain have proven adept at making their own opportunities. She plays quickly, but her methodical, analytical approach to gradually taking apart her opposition -- and her, "Yeah, no kidding, that's what I was trying to do" post-match winning posture -- work well for her. So well that she very well could win *two* slams in 2020.

Tennis Channel's Lindsay Davenport today pointed out one of the problems with the makeshift ranking system set up in light of the pandemic and shutdown: Kenin could win that second major and *still* only be ranked #3, behind a #1 who won zero slams (and only played one) in '20 and a #2 who is the still-reigning *2019* Wimbledon champ.

Leave it to Sneaky Sofia to have the chance to be the most prominent player of the season, yet still needing to stand on her tip-toes to look over the shoulders of others.

Ah, but that'd just be another dilemma for her to solve.




=DAY 11 NOTES=
...in the first women's quarterfinal of the day, #7 Petra Kvitova brought down the curtain on Laura Siegemund's belated second week run at Roland Garros, moving around and treating the terre battue as if it were the lawns of the AELTC, consistently moving forward into the court and taking balls out of the air whenever possible to put away the German in straight sets.



Putting on what would only rightly be called something of an "anti-Svitolina" serving performance, the Czech went through the 1st set while dropping just one point (14/15) on her first serve, firing six aces, and facing zero break points. Kvitova served out the set at 6-3, finishing with a 14/5 winners-to-unforced errors ratio.

She wasn't *quite* as dominant in the 2nd, losing serve twice, but the outcome was never really in doubt. Kvitova's 6-3/6-3 win puts her into her first Roland Garros semi in eight years, and for the seventh total time in her grand slam career.



If Kvitova ends up winning this thing, it's pretty much going to be a tear jerking, lovefest on Chatrier after the match, isn't it?

...meanwhile, Iga Swiatek's near-spotless run through this event continued on Day 11. The 19-year old has rushed through to the singles semis without dropping a set (10/10), and it should be noted that she and partner Nicole Melichar have done the same in doubles, too. Today, the makeshift duo defeated Asia Muhammad & Jessica Pegula to reach the semis, taking the straight sets match to improve their sets record to 7-for-7 (Siegemund/Zvonareva retired after just one set in the 2nd Rd.) in this slam. They'll face #14-seeds Alexa Guarachi & Desirae Krawczyk (recent title winners in Istanbul), who defeated #7 Shuko Aoyama/Ena Shibahara.




The other semi will pit the last two RG championships duo against each other, as #2 Timea Babos/Kristina Mladenovic ('19) meet #4 Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova ('18).

...in the girls singles Round of 16, two of the four Russians (Polina Kudermetova and Alina Charaeva) remaining in the draw advanced, as did three of the Top 4 seeds (#2 Alexandra Eala/PHI, #3 Elsa Jacquemot/FRA and #4 Kudermetova), and five seeds overall. The one Hordette to lose was #8 Oksana Selekhmeteva, who was eliminated by #9-seeded German Alexandra Vekic.



There's still a chance for an all-Pastry final, as Jacquemot is positioned in the bottom half of the draw, while Océane Babel is in the top.




...the wheelchair singles began today, and both the top two seeds were forced to three sets. #1 Diede de Groot (the defending champ) dropped a love 2nd set (!!!) to Jordanne Whiley, but rebounded to win 6-3/0-6/6-1; while #2 Yui Kamiji (a three-time RG winner) dropped a 1st set TB to Marjolein Buis (the '16 champ, likely in her final RG) but then dominated the rest of the way, winning 6-7(7)/6-2/6-1. Buis was hampered by a back injury.

From Buis' website (via Google translate): "Today Roland Garros started for the rollers. I had a tough draw and took on Yui Kamiji, the number 2 in the world, in the quarter finals. In the first set we both played strong. It went very well and a tiebreak had to bring the outcome. At 5-6 I survived a set point against. At 8-7 I took the set on my second set point. The second set also started with some exciting games. Unfortunately after that the cake was finished with me. It shot in my lower back and a treatment from the physiotherapist on the track unfortunately did not help enough. I did finish the match, but unfortunately was not able to play enough games anymore. I lost 7-6 2-6 1-6. Tomorrow I have a rest day, which I can use well. On Friday Charlotte Famin and I will play the semi-final doubles together."

I might have to start referring to the wheelchair players as "the rollers" from here on out. It sort of rolls of the tongue (no pun intended, but obviously recognized).




Meanwhile, de Groot's serving issues from the U.S. Open haven't gone away, as she had 16 DF today, and had just a three-point advantage (76-73) over the Brit in the match.



It'll be a two-nation banquet in the semis, as de Groot's fellow Dutch woman (and doubles partner) Aniek Van Koot defeated French wild card Charlotte Famin, and Japan's Momoko Ohtani won the only straight sets match of the four, defeating South African KJ Montjane.







=WOMEN'S SINGLES SF=
Iga Swiatek/POL v. (Q) Nadia Podoroska/ARG
#4 Sofia Kenin/USA v. #7 Petra Kvitova/CZE


=WOMEN'S DOUBLES SF=
#14 Guarachi/Krawczyk (CHI/USA) v. Melichar/Swiatek (USA/POL)
#4 Krejcikova/Siniakova (CZE/CZE) v. #2 Babos/Mladenovic (HUN/FRA)


=GIRLS SINGLES QF=
Alina Charaeva/RUS v. #8 Oksana Selekhmeteva/RUS
#4 Polina Kudermetova/RUS v. Oceane Babel/FRA
#10 Kristina Dmitruk/BLR v. #3 Elsa Jacquemot/FRA
Linda Noskova/CZE v. #2 Alexandra Eala/PHI


=GIRLS DOUBLES QF=
Bouzas Maneiro/Grant (ESP/URU) v. #6 Dmitruk/Kolodynska (BLR/BLR)
Belgraver/Mohr (FRA/FRA) vs. #6 M.Bondarenko/Shnaider (RUS/RUS)
(WC) Hasegawa/Matsuda (JPN/JPN) v. Alvisi/Pigato (ITA/ITA)
Coleman/Sieg (USA/USA) v. #2 Bartone/Selekhmeteva (LAT/RUS)


=WOMEN'S WHEELCHAIR SINGLES SF=
#1 Diede de Groot/NED v. Momoko Ohtani/JPN
Aniek Van Koot/NED v. #2 Yui Kamiji/JPN


=WOMEN'S WHEELCHAIR DOUBLES=
#1 Diede de Groot/Aniek Van Koot (NED/NED) v. KJ Montjane/Momoko Ohtani (RSA/JPN)
Marjolein Buis/Charlotte Famin (NED/FRA) v. #2 Yui Kamiji/Jordanne Whiley (JPN/GBR)






...LIKE ON DAY 11:


...SO, VAMPIRES *and* NAZI-WANNABES CAN GET COVID, TOO (who knew?) ON DAY 11:


...ASSUME NOTHING, especially with a month to go (been there, done that) ON DAY 11:


...NOTE ON DAY 11:


Actually, it's even more scattershot than that...


=WASHINGTON WEEK 1 STARTING QBs=
2021...???
2020...Dwayne Haskins
2019...Case Keenum
2018...Alex Smith
2015-17...Kirk Cousins
2012-14...Robert Griffin III
2011...Rex Grossman
2010...Donovan McNabb
2007-09...Jason Campbell
2006...Mark Brunell
2005...Patrick Ramsey
2004...Mark Brunell
2003...Patrick Ramsey
2002...Shane Matthews
2001...Jeff George
1999-00...Brad Johnson


...Heehee ON DAY 11:


...THIS ON DAY 11:

Aside from a song here or there, I was never a huge Van Halen fan, but always thought David Lee Roth was one of the great frontmen of the era. RIP Eddie Van Halen.






...LIKE ON DAY 11:

It's great to still see Joe Johns covering politics on CNN. He was a local Washington D.C. reporter many, many years ago. As was Katie Couric before she went national (I can remember her ducking into and disappearing inside a virtual scrum of reporters to interview -- though her cameraman was left *way* behind -- Redskins QB Doug Williams when the team arrived back home after winning the Super Bowl). Oddly enough, another former local D.C. TV guy was sold-his-soul "Fox & Friends" host Steve Doocy, who I can still fondly remember being the young guy who did funny, late night TV-like man-on-the-street comedy segments for the local NBC affiliate. My grandmother and I would watch them on the news after I'd come home from school during the week. Seeing what he does now is a little soul-crushing, to be honest... though, on occasion, I do enjoy seeing the close-up clips of his face when he's talking to Trump or one of his minions, and believing that there's at least a tad of that same regret visible *there*, as well. Or maybe I'm just seeing what I want to see there.

Anyway, Joe Johns and a raccoon...



...LIKE ON DAY 11:


...FREE RIDES ON DAY 11:


via GIPHY


...A WORD FROM THE FONZ ON DAY 11:


via GIPHY








Have rackets, will travel...















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*2020 WTA SF"*
5 - Elena Rybakina, KAZ (5-0)
4 - Simona Halep, ROU (3-1)
3 - SOFIA KENIN, USA (2-0)
3 - Naomi Osaka, JPN (2-1)
3 - PETRA KVITOVA, CZE (1-1)
3 - Garbine Muguruza, ESP (1-1+L)
3 - Ash Barty, AUS (1-2)
3 - Jennifer Brady, USA (1-2)
3 - Aryna Sabalenka, BLR (1-2)

*ACTIVE CAREER SLAM SF*
39 - Serena Williams (33-6)
23 - Venus Williams (16-7)
16 - Kim Clijsters (8-8)
8 - Victoria Azarenka (5-3)
8 - Simona Halep (5-3)
7 - Angelique Kerber (4-3)
7 - PETRA KVITOVA (3-3)
[6 - Jankovic, 1-5]
5 - Svetlana Kuznetsova (4-1)
5 - Garbine Muguruza (4-1)
5 - Samantha Stosur (2-3)
4 - Vera Zvonareva (2-2)
4 - Madison Keys (1-3)
3 - Naomi Osaka (3-0)
3 - Sloane Stephens (2-1)
3 - Genie Bouchard (1-2)
3 - Sara Errani (1-2)
3 - Johanna Konta (0-3)
3 - Karolina Pliskova (1-2)
2 - Ash Barty (1-1)
2 - SOFIA KENIN (1-0)
2 - Sabine Lisicki (1-1)
2 - Alona Ostapenko (1-1)
2 - Timea Bacsinszky (0-2)
2 - Elina Svitolina (0-2)
2 - CoCo Vandeweghe (0-2)

*RECENT BEST U.S. WOMEN'S SLAM RESULTS*
=2015=
AO: Serena Williams (W)
RG: Serena Williams (W)
WI: Serena Williams (W)
US: Serena Williams (SF)
=2016=
AO: Serena Williams (RU)
RG: Serena Williams (RU)
WI: Serena Williams (W)
US: Serena Williams (SF)
=2017=
AO: Serena Williams (W)
RG: Venus Williams (4th)
WI: Venus Williams (RU)
US: Sloane Stephens (W)
=2018=
AO: Madison Keys (QF)
RG: Sloane Stephens (RU)
WI: Serena Williams (RU)
US: Serena Williams (RU)
=2019=
AO: Danielle Collins (SF)
RG: Amanda Anisimova (SF)
WI: Serena Williams (RU)
US: Serena Williams (RU)
=2020=
AO: Sofia Kenin (W)
US: Serena Williams and Jennifer Brady (SF)
RG: Sofia Kenin (in semifinals)

*OUTSIDE TOP 16 SEEDS IN SLAM SF, since 2000*
8 - #17-19 (last 2: #17 S.Williams '18 US, #19 Sevastova '18 US)
17 - #20-25 (last 2: #20 Osaka, '18 US, #25 S.Williams '18 WI)
6 - #26-29 (last 2: #28 Brady '20 US, #26 Konta '19 RG)
4 - #30-32 (last 2: #30 Bacsinszky '17 RG, #30 Bouchard '14 AO)
32 - unseeded (last 2: Swiatek '20 RG, Azarenka '20 US/Muguruza '20 AO)
4 - wild card (last 2: Henin '10 AO, Lisicki '11 WI)
1 - qualifier (last 2: Podoroska '20 RG, Stevenson '99 WI)

*RG "MADEMOISELLE/MADAM OPPORTUNITY" WINNERS*
2004 Anastasia Myskina, RUS & Elena Dementieva, RUS
2005 Mary Pierce, FRA
2006 Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
2007 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2008 Ana Ivanovic, SRB
2009 Samantha Stosur, AUS
2010 Francesca Schiavone, ITA
2011 Francesca Schiavone, ITA & Li Na, CHN
2012 Samantha Stosur, AUS
2013 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
2014 Simona Halep, ROU
2015 Timea Bacsinszky, SUI & Alison Van Uytvanck, BEL
2016 Kiki Bertens, NED & Shelby Rogers, USA
2017 Simona Halep, ROU & Karolina Pliskova, CZE
2018 Simona Halep, ROU
2019 Ash Barty, AUS & Diede de Groot, NED (WC)
2020 Iga Swiatek, POL

*RG "KIMIKO CUP FOR VETERAN ACHIEVEMENT" WINNERS*
2015 Lucie Safarova, CZE
2016 Martina Hingis/SUI and Samantha Stosur/AUS
2017 Bethanie Mattek-Sands & Lucie Safarova, USA/CZE
2018 Latisha Chan, TPE
2019 Latisha Chan, TPE
2020 Petra Kvitova, CZE & Laura Siegemund, GER

*RG "COMEBACK PLAYER" WINNERS*
2007 Patty Schnyder, SUI
2008 Elena Dementieva, RUS
2009 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2010 Kimiko Date-Krumm, JPN
2011 Casey Dellacqua, AUS
2012 Yaroslava Shvedova, KAZ
2013 Jelena Jankovic, SRB
2014 Andrea Petkovic, GER
2015 Ana Ivanovic, SRB
2016 Ekaterina Makarova/Elena Vesnina, RUS/RUS
2017 Petra Kvitova, CZE
2018 Maria Sharapova, RUS
2019 Johanna Konta, GBR
2020 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK & Alona Ostapenko/LAT





TOP QUALIFIER: Mayar Sherif/EGY (first EGY woman in slam MD)
TOP EARLY-ROUND (1r-2r): #25 Amanda Anisimova/USA (lost 4 games)
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): Iga Swiatek/POL (no sets lost; def. #1 Halep)
TOP LATE-ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q1: #17q Barbara Haas/AUT def. Diana Snigur/UKR 6-0/5-7/7-5 [Haas led 6-0/5-0 40/30, then DF; won on 4th MP on 5th attempt to serve out match]
TOP EARLY-RD. MATCH (1r-2r): 1st Rd.- (Q) Clara Tauson/DEN def. #21 Jennifer Brady/USA - 6-4/3-6/9-7 (17/slam debut; saved 2 MP, wins on MP #5)
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): 3rd Rd. - Caroline Garcia/FRA def. #16 Elise Mertens/BEL - 1-6/6-4/7-5 (night match on Chatrier)
TOP LATE-RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.): xx
=============================
FIRST VICTORY: Kamilla Rakhimova/RUS (def.Rogers/USA)
FIRST SEED OUT: #17 Anett Kontaveit/EST (1st Rd./Garcia)
FIRST SLAM MD WINS: Bara/ROU, Burel/FRA, Paolini/ITA, Podoroska/ARG, Rakhimova/RUS, Tauson/DEN, Trevisan/ITA, Zarazua/MEX
UPSET QUEENS: Australia
REVELATION LADIES: Romania
NATION OF POOR SOULS: United States (4 of 7 seeds failed to reach 3r, Serena w/d 2r, US QF/SF Rogers & Brady 1r, Venus 1r, Gauff 2r w/ 19 DF)
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: Nadia Podoroska/ARG (in SF) [LL Sharma-2nd Rd.]
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: Genie Bouchard/CAN, Clara Burel/FRA, Tsvetana Pironkova/BUL (all 3rd Rd.)
PROTECTED RANKING WINS: Gavrilova/AUS (2r), AK.Schmiedlova/SVK (3r)
LAST PASTRY STANDING: Fiona Ferro and Carolina Garcia (4th Rd.)
Mademoiselle OPPORTUNITY: Iga Swiatek/POL
IT "New Dane on the Block": Clara Tauson/DEN
COMEBACK PLAYERS: Anna Karolina Schmiedlova/SVK (had 12 con slam MD L; def. Venus & Vika) and Alona Ostapenko/LAT (had zero RG wins since '17 title; def. #2 Ka.Pliskova 2nd Rd.)
CRASH & BURN: 2020 U.S. Open semifinalists (Osaka DNP; Brady out 1st Rd., Serena w/d 2nd Rd., Azarenka upset 2nd Rd. within 24 hrs. on Day 3/4)
ZOMBIE QUEEN OF PARIS: Kiki Bertens/NED (2nd Rd.: injured; Errani up a break 5 times in 3rd, served for match 3 times, 1 MP at 6-5; 3:11; collapses and wheeled off court after 9-7 win)
DOUBLES STAR: xx
VETERAN PLAYERS (KIMIKO CUP): Laura Siegemund/GER (32; first slam QF) and Petra Kvitova/CZE (30; first RG semi since '12)
LADY OF THE EVENING: Martina Trevisan/ITA
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx
Légion de Lenglen HONOREE: Court Chatrier roof (+night tennis) debuts
Coupe LA PETIT TAUREAU: Simona Halep/ROU [not able to be awarded on LPT Day/June 1, Justine Henin's birthday -- but Halep wins on Day 1 on *her* own birthday]




All for Day 11. More tomorrow.
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