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Wednesday, September 14, 2022

2022 3Q Awards: Iga's Bite of the Apple

Once upon a time, Iga went to the big city...




The WTA... simply irresistible.





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1.Caroline Garcia, FRA
...was *the* form player of the summer, winning titles on clay (def. #1 Iga in Warsaw) and hard court (in Cincinnati for her biggest career crown), not to mention on grass just *before* the 3rd Quarter, reaching her maiden slam semi at the U.S. Open and returning to the Top 10 for the first time since 2018

2.Iga Swiatek, POL
...turned a lackluster summer into a signature moment at Flushing Meadows, overcoming adversity (and her own intitially lacking confidence) to win her third slam title

3.Liudmila Samsonova, RUS
...rallied to turn around her season, winning consecutive titles in Washington and Cleveland, then extending her winning streak to 13 matches (18 straight sets, and 24/25) en route to the Round of 16 in New York

4.Bernarda Pera, USA
...stunningly emerged with back-to-back clay titles in Budapest and Hamburg, ultimately winning 16 straight matches overall (19/20) over two continents and on multiple surfaces

5.Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
...completed a Career Doubles Slam at the U.S. Open, becoming the first "Super Slam" women's doubles duo in tour history (4 slams + Olympic Gold + WTAF) and just the third pair (Bryan twins, and the "Woodies") to ever do it

6.Diede de Groot, NED (WC)
...de Groot's dominance has by now become expected, and her eleventh slam s/d sweep (w/ her fifth straight U.S. Open wheelchair singles crown) almost *quietly* allowed her to back up her '21 Golden Slam with a second singles Grand Slam in '22 as she extended her major title run to eight (and now has 65 straight match wins since early '21)

7.Dasha Kasatkina, RUS
...won titles in San Jose and Granby, returning to the Top 10 and reaching a career-best #9 ranking

8.Simona Halep, ROU
...Halep's consistently good-to-great season finally got its "big catch" with a title run in Toronto, as her biggest win since 2020 pushed the Romanian back inside the Top 10

9.Jessie Pegula, USA
...the Pegula train continues to chug along, adding a Toronto SF and QFs in Cincinnati and Flushing Meadows (her third '22 slam final 8, tied with Iga for the tour's best), as well as a 1000 doubles title in Canada. She's now #5 in singles and #6 in doubles.

10.Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
...finally getting her service issues (more) under control, Sabalenka closed with strong results in Cincinnati (SF) and at the U.S. Open (second straight semi), falling to the eventual champions in three-setters in both

11.Ons Jabeur, TUN
...turned her poor post-Wimbledon runner-up summer (2-3) into a second straight slam final berth at Flushing Meadows

12.Storm Sanders, AUS
...won her maiden slam crown (U.S. MX w/ John Peers), and reached the WD semis, too (w/ Dolehide)

HM-Petra Kvitova, CZE
...the Czech's Cincinnati final was her biggest in two and a half years, and her U.S. Round of 16 is her deepest slam run since her RG SF in 2020



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RISERS: Beatriz Haddad Maia/BRA, Alja Tomljanovic/AUS, Veronika Kudermetova/RUS and Madison Keys/USA
SURPRISES: Daria Snigur/UKR, Simona Waltert/SUI and Sophie Chang/Angela Kulikov (USA/USA)
VETERANS: Petra Martic/CRO, Shelby Rogers/USA, Irina-Camelia Begu/ROU and Serena Williams/USA
COMEBACKS: Dasha Saville/AUS, Anastasia Potapova/RUS, Rebecca Marino/CAN and CoCo Vandeweghe/USA
FRESH FACES: Coco Gauff/USA, Jule Niemeier/GER, Zheng Qinwen/CHN and Linda Noskova/CZE
JUNIOR STARS: Alex Eala/PHI, Lucie Havlickova/CZE and Victoria Mboko/CAN
DOUBLES: Melichar-Martinez/Perez (USA/AUS), L.Kichenok/Ostapenko (UKR/LAT) and Gauff/Pegula (USA/USA)
ITF: Brenda Fruhvirtova/CZE, Sara Bejlek/CZE and Selena Janicijevic/FRA
WHEELCHAIR: de Groot/Van Koot (NED/NED), Yui Kamiji/JPN, Zhu Zhenzhen/CHN and Jade Moreira Lanai/BRA (jr.)
DOWN: Jil Teichmann/SUI, Naomi Osaka/JPN and Maria Sakkari/GRE
TEAM: Czech 14u ITF juniors
BJK CUP ZONE PLAY: Anastasia Iamachkine/PER, Patcharin Cheapchandej/THA and Akgul Amanmuradova/UZB



MOST IMPROVED COACH
1. Yuan Yue, CHN 1. Bertrand Perret (Garcia)
2. Bernarda Pera, USA 2. Tomasz Wiktorowski (Swiatek)
3. Marie Bouzkova, CZE 3. Michael Geserer (Martic)
4. Wang Xiyu, CHN 4. Guillermo Canas (Pera)
5. Clara Burel, FRA 5. Carlos Martinez (Kasatkina)
6. Dalma Galfi, HUN 6. Alessandro Dumitrache (Samsonova)
7. Diane Parry, FRA 7. Piotr Sierzputowski (Rogers)
8. Cristina Bucsa, ESP 8. Issam Jellali (Jabeur)
9. Lucia Bronzetti, ITA 9. Nicole Pratt (Saville)
10. Barnett/Nicholls, GBR/GBR 10. Cristian Requeni (Bouzkova)
HM- Catherine Harrison, USA HM- Alessandro Bega (Tomljanovic)






1. Iga Swiatek, POL ...it's all over except for the engraving, but there's still more for Iga to seek out before the end of '22 (i.e. the WTAF and BJK Cup finals)
2. Diede de Groot, NED ...the reigning "Ms.Backspin," de Groot hasn't lost in singles and has again won 7 of 8 s/d slam titles (hmmm... so she can *still* break new ground in '23)
3. Krejcikova/Siniakova, CZE/CZE ...won all three slams they played (only Krejcikova's Covid in Paris prevented a possible Grand Slam)
4. Ons Jabeur, TUN ...back-to-back Madrid/Rome finals (winning 1), back-to-back WI/US slam finals (0-2), a #2 ranking and finals on three surfaces (winning on 2)
5. Caroline Garcia, FRA ...titles on three surfaces, a slam singles semi and RG doubles win
6. Ash Barty, AUS ...still retired, but still undefeated in '22 and the Australian Open champ
7. Simona Halep, ROU ...two titles (w/ 1000 Toronto), Wimbledon and I.W. semis and a return to order after an injury-marred '21
8. Elena Rybakina, KAZ ...the Wimbledon champ is still looking to find solid footing again after SW19
9. Jessie Pegula, USA ...3 slam QF, the Madrid final, Miami/Toronto semis, two 1000 WD titles, U.S singles #1 and a doubles Top 10 (if only she could win a singles crown)
10. Coco Gauff, USA ...at 18, a slam singles and doubles finalist (both RG), with 2 WD 1000 wins (w/ Pegula) and Top 10 s/d rankings (including being the WD #1 for 4 weeks)
HM- Veronika Kudermetova, RUS ...eight overall finals (3s/5d), a RG QF, and with four Top 10 wins on three different surfaces












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1. CARO FLYS OVER CINCINNATI
...Caroline Garcia becomes the only player in '22 to win titles on grass, clay and hard courts, checking off the latter by claiming her biggest title since 2017 in Cincinnati by stringing together *eight* consecutive victories to become the first qualifier to claim a WTA 1000 (or Premier Mandatory, since 2009) crown.

Garcia went on to the MD and defeated the likes of Petra Martic, Maria Sakkari, Elise Mertens, Jessie Pegula, Aryna Sabalenka and Petra Kvitova in a 6-2/6-4 final, finishing off a string of opponents better than most slam winners have had to take down en route to a major title.


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2. THE CZECHS CHECK ANOTHER (the last one) OFF THE LIST
...Barbora Krejcikova & Katerina Siniakova complete their Career Doubles Slam at the U.S. Open, staging a comeback from 6-3/4-1 down vs. Caty McNally & Taylor Townsend in the final to take control down the stretch and win 3-6/7-5/6-1. The winners of three majors this season (and sporting a spotless 18-0 record in slams, missing RG because Krejcikova got Covid), they're 21-2 together on all levels in '22 and now have six total major titles.



Not only do Krejickova & Siniakova join the Williams sisters as the only two female pairs in history to complete a "Career Golden Slam," but they stand *alone* as the only women's team to complete a "Super Slam" (titles at all four slams, the Olympics and the year-end championships). The only men's duos to do it were Bob & Mike Bryan and Todd Woodbridge/Mark Woodforde.
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3. A SENSATIONAL SAMSONOVA SUMMER
...after coming into the summer hard court season on a 1-7 slide, Liudmila Samsonova wins back-to-back titles and 13 straight matches (ending in the U.S. Open 4th Round).

In Washington, the Russian battled from behind. After opening with a win over Elise Mertens, she rallied from a set down to defeat Ajla Tomljanovic, then handled Emma Raducanu in two (but only after saving four SP in the 1st). Samsonova allowed just two games against Wang Xiyu to reach her first singles final since winning in Berlin last summer. In the final, she came from a set back vs. Kaia Kanepi to win.



Two weeks later, Samsonova went to Cleveland and dominated the field, not dropping a set all week (and holding 36 of 38 service games). In the SF, she lost just four points on serve vs. Bernara Pera (who'd gone 19-1 in her previous 20 matches), the defeated Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-1/6-3 in the final.


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4. IGA IN THE CITY
...Iga Swiatek defeats Ons Jabeur in the final to win her third major title at the U.S. Open, becoming the first #1 seed to win in New York since 2014 (Serena Williams), and pulling off the fifth Roland Garros/U.S. slam combo season this century (Serena and Justine Henin twice each, w/ Williams the last in '13). Working her way through the draw and winning while at times struggling with the faster surface and lighter balls, the world #1 defeated three Top 10 players (Jabeur, Pegula and Sabalenka) and a former Open champ (Stephens). Swiatek is the third woman to win Indian Wells, Miami and the U.S. Open in the same year (joining Steffi Graf in '96, and Kim Clijsters in '05).



3-0 in slam finals to begin her career, Iga matches Naomi Osaka's recent spotless start (that now stands at 4-0, a mark matched only by Monica Seles and Roger Federer in the Open era of tennis). Her seventh singles title this season is the most in a year since '14 (S.Williams - 7). Her tenth career tour title marks her tenth consecutive win in a final in straight sets, with Jabeur's six games won in the 2nd set being more games won by any of the other nine in their *entire* matches
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5. SI-MO-NA IN CAN-A-DA
...after coming close, but always just missing out on "something big" since her Week 1 title, Simona Halep gets her "signature" result under new coach Patrick Mouratoglou in Toronto. Picking up her third title in the event (Montreal in 2016 and '18), Halep found her true form in the tournament's return to Ontario, defeating Coco Gauff (improving to 4-0 vs. the teenager) in straight sets in the QF, staging a comeback to defeat Jessie Pegula in the semis, then grinding out another three-setter vs. Beatriz Haddad Maia in the final to claim her ninth career 1000 win, her first since 2020.

Halep returned to the Top 10 after injury issues had ended her 373-week run there (2014-21) last year.


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6. DIEDE SLAM II
...Diede de Groot completes her second straight wheelchair Grand Slam season, winning her eighth straight major title (and fifth in a row at Flushing Meadows).



De Groot's three-set win over longtime rival Yui Kamiji, in their 14th slam final, gives her 65 straight singles victores dating back to early 2021.

It's the Dutch #1's 16th singles slam crown, to go along with her 15 doubles majors, added to as she and Aniek Van Koot took the title in New York, de Groot's 11th career slam sweep. Meanhwile, Van Koot's 22nd major doubles crown passed the legendary Esther Vergeer on the all-time women's WC list.
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7. FEARING THE KASATKINA AGAIN
...with her mind clear and game (though not perfect, see her second serve) in more than workable form, Kasatkina finally got back onto the title-winning horse in San Jose, putting together the sort of week's worth of results that originally made one "fear the Kasatkina."

A finalist in the event a year ago, Kasatkina displayed a persistent, never-say-die approach all week in California, three times coming back from a set down while posting wins over a pair of Top 10ers (#4 Paula Badosa and #6 Aryna Sabalenka, her first multiple Top 10 win event since she reached the Indian Wells final in 2018), Wimbledom champ Elena Rybakina and a pair of U.S. women (Taylor Townsend and, in the final, Shelby Rogers) playing on home soil. In her five wins, Kasatkina delivered 3rd set bagels three times, and allowed just 3 games in the final two sets in the final vs. Rogers after dropping a 1st set TB.



Back in the Top 10 for the first time since January '19 (she fell as low as #75 in '21 before finishing at #26), Kasatkina rebounded from a few post-San Jose early-round losses to win again in Granby, claiming an all-Dasha match-up (vs. Saville) in the final.
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8. THE PERIL OF PERA
...unexpectedly, after ending '21 at #93 after reaching a pre-pandemic high of '59 in 2020, Bernarda Pera becomes a sudden star by winning consecutive titles in Budapest (as a qualifier) and Hamburg, not dropping a set in either event.

After defeating Aleksandra Krunic in the Budapest final, Pera went to Hamburg with momentum and confidence. The result was the 27-year old extending her winning streak to12 matches and 24 sets as she knocked off no less than the defending champ in Gabriela Ruse in the 1st Round and top-seeded Anett Kontaveit in the final. Pera surrendered just 22 games through her five matches.

After standing at #130 two weeks earlier, Pera climbed to #54 after her second title..



After also reaching a WTA 125 final and WTA SF (Cleveland) this summer, Pera rose to a career high #44 after her 1st Round loss at the U.S. Open.
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9. MARTIC MARCHES TO VICTORY
...in Lausanne, Petra Martic posted wins over Belinda Bencic in the QF (improving to 4-0 vs. the Top 20 in '22) and Caroline Garcia to reach her first final in almost three years. Her 4 & 2 win over Olga Danilovic lifted the Croat back to almost the Top 50 after falling to #86 earlier this season.


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10. GARCIA'S EARLY FLIGHT
...in Warsaw, Caroline Garcia picked up her first title on clay since 2014. The Pastry's run, highlighted by a QF upset of #1 Iga Swiatek (in Poland) that ended the RG champ's 18-match clay court winning streak, concluded with a win in the final over Ana Bogdan, fueling her confidence to fully take flight over what remained of the summer.


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HM- THE BIA-TIFICATION OF TORONTO
...Beatriz Haddad Maia's takeover of the Toronto event was *nearly* complete.



It included wins over Martina Trevisan (RG semifinalist), Leylah Fernandez (U.S. Open finalist), world #1 Iga Swiatek (RG champion), Belinda Bencic and Karolina Pliskova, the latter her fourth Top 20 win of the week (Trevisan rose to #25 after the event) to send her into her third final of the season (tying the Open era mark for a Brazilian), her first at the 1000 level (a first for a woman from Brazil).

Haddad's big game gave her a shot in the final against Simona Halep, but she wasn't able to withstand the pressure of Halep's consistency and couldn't keep up (or change-up *enough*) her power game. When she was on, she controlled the action, but when Halep was able to extend rallies (which was often) it was the Romanian who won the most important points.

Haddad rose into the Top 20 the following Monday.
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*BEST/WORST COIN TOSS*

But how about a hand (or something) for Timea Bacsinszky for quite possibly the worst/best coin toss performance ever.



*DASHA FEARING NOTHING*




*PETKO'S LAST DANCES (as it turned out)*

Hamburg 1st Rd. - Andrea Petkovic def. Tamara Korpatsch
...6-3/6-3. In her final tour event in Germany, Petkovic turned back the clock with the return of the Petko Dance...



And then gave it an encore...




Next stop: North America...




*BEST ONS JABEUR IMPRESSION*

In Lausanne, while talking about final opponent Olga Danilovic during the post-match ceremony, Petra Martic caught a case of "the Ons"...




*BEST PETKO SNEAK ATTACK*




*BEST SUMMER WEDDINGS*




*BEST PETRA HALL OF FAME*




*YOU KNOW YOU'VE MADE IT IF...*




*EMMA RADUCANU'S FUTURE OPPONENTS, or COACH(ES)?...*




*FUTURE MOMMY DUTY*




*BEST CHAIR UMPIRE FANGIRL MOMENT*




*BEST OSTAPENKian FASHION SENSE*




*LATEST ENTRANT IN THE WTA DOGGO-LYMPICS*




*MOST GENIE MOMENT*

First, Bouchard returns to the court...

Vancouver WTA 125 1st Rd. - Arianne Hartono def. Genie Bouchard
...6-2/6-2. Back from shoulder surgery, Bouchard plays her first match in 17 months.



Of course, the post-match story turned out to be the "whodunnit" mystery about the photo chosen by the tournament for the Canadian's credentials.



*A DOUBLE-DASHA RETROSPECTIVE*




*THROWBACK PASTRIES*

If you know, you know.




*CREEPIEST POST-U.S. OPEN QUALIFYING MOMENT*




*A NEW NATIONAL HEROINE IS BORN*




*PETKO'S GOODBYE*

U.S. Open 1st Rd. - Belinda Bencic def. Andrea Petkovic
...6-2/4-6/6-4. While Venus will be back, Andrea Petkovic won't be. The German announced before the tournament that this U.S. Open would be her final major before retiring this season, though she left open the possibility of a farewell appearance in a European event this fall. Ostrava!!! maybe? Or Cluj? She could even borrow Jaqueline Cristian's vampire cape (and maybe throw in some plastic fangs to make the outfit complete?).

Petkovic forced #13 Belinda Bencic to play three sets in New York, and after the Swiss aced her to end the match the two had a long embrace at the net. Cheers and waves followed (but no final Petko dance), as chants (heard often during the match) of "Petko! Petko! Petko!" rang out before she left the slam stage one final time to a standing ovation (from the crowd and Bencic alike).



*THE SURVIVOR*

The "last bug standing" at Flushing Meadows...




*BRINGING DOWN THE CURTAIN*

How the North American summer began...




How it concluded...




But did it, really?







All for now.
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