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Tuesday, May 30, 2023

RG.3- The Girl in the Mirra

It's safe to say, the kid is alright. More than alright, actually.




Looking back, maybe we'll be able to say that it all began on Court 10 on Day 3 of the 2023 edition of Roland Garros. Bigger and better things seem to await Mirra Andreeva.

Honestly, it was easy to be a little bit worried about her after Melbourne. In January, the then-15 year old lost the all-Hordette Australian Open junior final to friend and doubles partner Alina Korneeva. In the closing games, Korneeva broke Andreeva to get the chance to serve for the match at 5-4. She dropped serve in a 6-deuce game in which she had two MP and saved four BP before Andreeva finally converted on her fifth attempt. But Andreeva couldn't take the next step. Korneeva got another break and served for the match once more, this time closing it out via a 6-7(2)/6-4/7-5 score, ending the dramatic 3:17 affair in the Aussie summer heat.

Though she's slightly younger, Korneeva seemed to naturally assume something of a "big sister" role at the net, comforting the crushed Andreeva and offering words of encouragement (then and later during the trophy ceremony, promising her that they'd play many more times and that she'd win many of those matches).

Since then, it's quickly become clear that Andreeva seems to have a good head, good perspective and good people around her (though you never *really* know, I guess). Sport and circumstances can warp behavior and relationships over time, but all you can do with young tennis stars is hope that what appears to be a good core (ala Coco Gauff) can remain true.

If so, we've only barely begun to see Andreeva's success story play out. Thing is, there have been previews of it for months.

They say that youth is wasted on the young, but Andreeva hasn't gone about wasting her time since Melbourne, as she rebounded quite well from her teary disappointment. She immediately became a force on the ITF level, becoming the first player under 16 to collect two (and then three) $60K or better challenger wins in their career. Then came Madrid.

Given a wild card into her maiden 1000 event (second tour-level tournament after Monastir last October, where she lost in three in the 1st Rd. to Anastasia Potapova), Andreeva strung together wins over U.S. Open finalist Leylah Fernandez, #14 Beatriz Haddad Maia and (on her 16th birthday) Australian Open semifinalist Magda Linette to storm her way into the second week without dropping a set.

Ranked in the #300s prior to her ITF title dash, Andreeva cracked the Top 150 at the conclusion of the tournament. She arrived last week for RG qualifying at #143, the youngest player in the Top 300, and the second youngest in the Top 600 behind only (naturally) Korneeva. In a tough qualifying section, she didn't drop a set while taking out #31-seed Polina Kudermetova, Emiliana Arango and top Q-seed Camila Osorio to reach her first slam MD. Naturally, she was the youngest in the field.

Today, playing a veteran Bannerette literally twice her age (Alison Riske-Amritraj was playing U.S. Open qualifying in 2007 when Andreeva was in diapers), the teenager barely blinked. She took a quick 4-1 lead, and soon broke Riske at love to win the set 6-2. An early break in the 2nd gave her another immediate edge. Andreeva gave the break back a game later, but then never dropped another game in a 6-2/6-1 win closed out with another set-finalizing love game.



Andreeva won 89% of her second serves in the 56-minute match, piling up 20 winners (vs. 14 UE) to improve her record to 21-2 on the year (36-5 if you include junior play).

Clearly there's much to enjoy about a player who compares her game style to Ons Jabeur, and whose interviews display a few qualities a bit reminiscent of a young Monica Seles. Her great post-match Tennis Channel interview was a virtual how-to template for building a fanbase.



Of course, the sport has always walked a treacherous tightrope between embracing its young and (figurately, because you have to say so in this weird day and age, right?) eating them whole, from the likes of Andrea Jaeger through Jelena Dokic and now up to Amanda Anisimova.

Hopefully this "Once upon a time..." will be one of the stories that endures and remains a bright light.




=DAY 3 NOTES=
...on the third day of the elongated opening round of the year's second $lam, the 2022 women's finalists in Paris finally hit the court.

Sometimes it's easy to forget that Coco Gauff played for the Roland Garros title a year ago. Not only in doubles, but in *singles*, too. She returned on Tuesday to begin her defense of that run.

Things didn't start well for the #6 seed, as she couldn't convert a handful (or two) of BP chances (8, in fact) in the opening set against Rebeka Masarova. The Spaniard served at 5-2, and held at love. But Gauff finally found a crack, and once she broke it open Masarova was all but done for. After breaking serve on her ninth BP chance of the day, Gauff took a 3-1 lead in the 2nd and never looked back, winning 3-6/6-1/6-2.



Gauff is 12-3 in her RG career.

Later, #1 Iga Swiatek returned to action for the first time since retiring in the Madrid final, looking to defend her RG crown and start down the path of winning a third title in four years, a stretch that would be the best at the tournament (on the women's side, of course) since Justine Henin did it from 2003-07.

The Pole looked rusty early against Cristina Bucsa, the same Spaniard she'd allowed just one game in their AO meeting in January. Swiatek was "off" (i.e. uncharacteristically error-prone) and had issues with her serve. Bucsa twice took break leads, only to give the edge back a game later. But once Swiatek found her form, there was little for Bucsa to do. After sweating out a 6-4 1st set win, the world #1 won the 2nd at love.



Is the slow start against an opponent several tiers below her a bad sign for when and if she might face the sort of players (you know the two, who wouldn't come around until very late in the tournament game) who have found her less-than-invincible since Swiatek won the U.S. Open last summer?

Maybe. But that doesn't mean she won't go out and establish bakeries on the heads of a series of opponents between now and then, starting with Claire Liu in Round 2. "Frontrunner Iga" is real, after all... and scary.

...after a slow start, the Pastry success at this Roland Garros has started to pick up. Caroline Garcia advanced yesterday, and on Day 3 she (and Leolia Jeanjean) got some additional company.

A year ago, Diane Parry had her big stage breakthrough. She made her AO debut, cracked the Top 100, and upset defending champ Barbora Krejcikova in the 1st Round in Paris en route to her maiden 3rd Round at a major. She'd back it up by repeating the finish at Wimbledon. For most of the past year, though, she's been unsuccessfully chasing a follow-up to those results.

After a tour-level SF in Granby before the U.S. Open and a couple of post-Flushing Meadows QF, Parry tailspinned into a 1-5 finish whose negative momentum carried over into 2023. After her opening round of qualifying loss in Madrid, Parry's six straight losses had her standing at 6-13 on the season. Things finally started to click for the Pastry in recent weeks, though. She reached a $60K SF in Zagreb, then played her way into a WTA 125 final in Florence. The 20-year old got a break from fellow finalist Caty McNally, who withdrew from the event before their match, handing Parry her second 125 crown ('21 Montevideo), matching the biggest of her career. With the result she climbed back into the Top 100 for the first time since November.

Now #77, wild card Parry, to a degree, relived her Paris success from a year ago on Day 3, putting another seeded player on the shelf in a slam with a 2 & 3 win over #25 Anhelina Kalinina. Perhaps Parry has found herself again, but one should probably withhold some judgment considering that Kalinina was likely not yet ready to return in full form after her career-best run to the Rome final less than two weeks ago was abruptly ended with her retirement due to a leg injury.



Parry will next face off with seemingly-inevitable (if not here, then elsewhere) "It" Girl Mirra Andreeva, so we'll see where the thoughts stand on the Pastry after that one.

Oceane Dodin won the all-Pastry face off with wild card Selena Janicijevic, coming back from dropping a love 1st set to win in three; while wild card Clara Burel, a semifinalist in Strasbourg, fell at the hands of Sara Sorribes Tormo. The #132-ranked Spaniard is in the MD using her protected ranking (#68) after not starting her season until April after missing six months with a foot injury. It's just Sorribes' second RG win in 6 appearances.

The Pastries went 4-6 in the 1st Round. Not spectacular, but considering six of those entires came via WC and another as a qualifier it's actually quite good. We'll see how it compares to the players from the host nation of the *next* slam, which didn't even have anyone highly ranked or healthy enough (and went 0-for-7 in qualifying attempts) to even *reach* the MD in Paris.

...21-year old Wang Xinyu of China came into Paris on a five-match losing streak and hadn't recorded a win on clay this season. Her opponent, #31 Marie Bouzkova, knocked off #5 Coco Gauff in Rome, her best win since 2019 and biggest ever on clay. You can probably see where this is going.



The #80-ranked Wang's first career RG MD victory "replaces" the upset that her countrywoman, Wang Xiyu, wasn't able to pull off in her three-setter yesterday against Caroline Garcia. Yeah, we'll just go with that.

Bouzkova was the third seeded Czech to fall in the 1st Round, but she wasn't the last. There was another.



Yikes! Barbora Krejcikova remains winless in Paris since she won the title in 2021.

This has not been a good spring for the #13-seed. This loss drops her to just 5-5 on the dirt. Last year, coming back from injury, she went 2-3. In her RG title year she was 15-3, leading one to wonder if that spring was something of a "mirage" as far as thinking that Krejcikova was a "great" claycourter.

It could be a situation similar to Maria Sharapova winning Wimbledon very early in her career in 2004. She was initially viewed as a great grass court player, but it turned out to be her worst surface. She was far more adept on hard court, then after shoulder surgery clay was her best platform for success. Remember, in '21 Krejcikova was really very early in her WTA singles career, having mostly focused on doubles at tour level and playing singles mostly at lower levels.

Other than that transforming spring two years ago, Krejcikova has been a much better hard courter. It could be that that is where her goals are more likely to be reached. We'll see how that plays out over the next few seasons.

Krejcikova's loss pretty much wrapped up the "Nation of Poor Souls" choice (four seeds!), and it comes after the Czechs picked up the "Revelation Ladies" award in Paris the last two years.

The remaining Czechs filled out the nation's 1st Round stats on Day 3, with Linda Noskova notching her maiden slam win (w/ a retirement from Danka Kovinic), as she becomes the second of the Crush of Czechs (after Linda Fruhvirtova's '22 US 2r and '23 AO 4r) to record a MD slam win in their career. Speaking of a Fruhvirtova, "the Younger" Brenda joined "the Older" Linda on the RG sidelines with a 4 & 2 loss to #4 Elena Rybakina. The Rome champ will next face... (wait for it)... Noskova.

The Czechs have gone 3-9 as a group.

...last year, the happenings in Rabat had an impact on Paris. Martina Trevisan won in Morocco, then played into the RG semis. This year, Trevisan retired in the 2nd Round in the tour-level event, then fell in her opening match in Paris. So, what about *this* year's Rabat achievers?

Well, champion Lucia Bronzetti was sent packing today, falling 6-4/6-1 to a (hopefully) healthy #7-seeded Ons Jabeur, looking to have the RG *this* year that she *didn't* have a year ago (1r/Linette) after arriving in Paris at less than 100% after winning Madrid and reaching the Rome final. The Tunisian, a winner in Charleston, injured her calf *this* spring on the clay and played just two matches in the Madrid/Rome swing while she tried to get her body right for the two-slams-in-less-than-two-months (then another six weeks later) stretch that just started a few days ago.

Of course, Jabeur rebounded quite well last summer, reaching back-to-back slam finals in London and New York.

Oh, yeah. Rabat.

Runner-up Julia Grabher played in her second straight slam MD today, after having been an automatic entry in Melbourne after going 0-for-12 in career slam qualifying attempts. The Austrian broke through another barrier, posting her maiden slam win with a 6-2/6-3 win over qualifer Arantxa Rus.

...late in the day, in a match-up of former slam winners, #18 Victoria Azarenka's disappointing spring persisted as she let slip a 6-2/3-1 lead over Bianca Andreescu. Andreescu swept the final five games of the 2nd to force a decider, where she grabbed a break lead and held off Vika down the stretch, saving a BP at 2-1, and three more at 3-2. Serving for the match at 5-4, the Canadian took a 40/love lead only to see Azarenka save a trio of MP, then a fourth, before Andresscu finally converted MP #5.



It's only her third win at RG, which actually ties it (w/ AO) for the second most she has at *any* major. She's just won just one MD match at Wimbledon, but is 12-2 in New York.

...regarding the other two major post-1st Round (usually) awards, the Hordettes made it extremely easy as far as the "Revelation Ladies" pick goes. Going 11-2 in the opening round will do that.

It was nearly even batter, as Mirra's slightly older sister Erika Andreeva, 18, led wild card Emma Navarro 3-0 in the 3rd before the Bannerette surged back to defeat the lucky loser (#5 to be specific) 6-2/3-6/6-4 to pick up her maiden slam victory.



As far as "Upset Queens," while there have been a *lot* of seeds taken down (already nearly half), many of them haven't necessarily been true "upsets," and not many nations have more than one such win. The rare exceptions are Italy, Canada and Ukraine.

Ukraine's biggest win was Tsurenko over #13 Krejcikova (upset), but Svitolina's win over #26 Trevisan could sort of be seen coming from Rome (and surely Strasbourg and Rabat); while Canada's two seeded wins came from Leylah Fernandez (#21 Linette) and Andreescu (#18 Azarenka). Hardly upset-minded "upstarts," no matter their current rankings. So we turn to Italy.

The Italian resurgence, even with Bronzetti's loss, continues in Paris. Elisabetta Cocciaretto knocked off #10 Petra Kvitova, while Paolini's win over #30 Cirstea combines with Sara Errani's victory over (unseeded, but still "expected" to be better) Jil Teichmann to deliver the honors to the "women of the boot."




...NOTE TO MARTINA (and Ted Robinson, to a lesser degree), per some early TC commentary moments... ON DAY 3:

Yes, a player *can* decide to not shake hands with an opponent, and can even single out particular players and not shake hands with them. They're not going to be banned for such actions. But when those same players have openly advocated for the same players they refuse to shake hands with to *actually* be banned due to no wrongdoing on their part, or publicly impugn their character because they don't react to something in accordance with some sort of imaginary standard they've established in their head, then people can have a problem with such actions, no matter what may be going on with those players personally. And attempting to shame individuals for having such opinions does not disallow them from having and wishing to express them.

The people who have a problem with the lack of handshakes aren't the ones "making an issue" of it, they are simply reacting to the issue that has been created by the withholding of the handshakes.

Just one side of this "discussion" (which it's never been, really) has chosen to "weaponize" a simple, usually obligatory, act of competitive respect and sports(wo)manship that *could* have been used over the past year to promote peace, understanding and a comaraderie between members of a group not incidentally honoring a significant anniversary this year of the power of such pulling together for the good of the whole. But rather than utilize a small gesture as an olive branch it has instead been used as yet another wedge to create animosity and stoke tension.

If certain players have the right to refuse certain customs for nationalistic reasons, then other people have the right to dispense with other customs and disagree. If that displeasure is expressed in the "public square" of a sporting event in the only way that it really can be, through light booing, then they are allowed to do so, as well. *They* are not the problem here. Those exercising their right to point out a poor decision are not in the wrong.

Fini.


..."FUNNIEST" THING ABOUT TENNIS CHANNEL... ON DAY 3:

...is how multiple commentators at this slam, while talking about tournament/match favorites' betting odds, have noted that they aren't allowed to bet on tennis matches. Yet this is the same network that has the "FanDuel Desk" and begins each day during the week with commentators shilling for the gambling service *and* giving their picks for the day. But they can't bet... because it would look bad?

via GIPHY





















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*2023 RG - 1st Rd. NATION W/L*
1-0 - ARG
1-1 - AUS
1-0 - AUT
1-2 - BEL
2-2 - BLR
1-0 - BRA
0-1 - BUL
2-1 - CAN
2-3 - CHN
1-0 - COL
2-0 - CRO
3-9 - CZE
1-0 - DEN
1-0 - EGY
2-3 - ESP
0-2 - EST
4-6 - FRA
1-2 - GER
0-1 - GRE
0-3 - HUN
4-2 - ITA
0-1 - JPN
2-0 - KAZ
1-0 - LAT
0-1 - MNE
0-1 - NED
2-1 - POL
1-2 - ROU
11-2 - RUS
0-1 - SLO
1-0 - SRB
1-3 - SUI
1-2 - SVK
1-0 - SWE
1-0 - TUN
2-4 - UKR
10-8 - USA

*RECENT RG "REVELATION LADIES" WINNERS' NATION/REGION*
2014 Spain
2015 Australia (The New Aussies)
2016 France
2017 Muslim women
2018 Romania
2019 Russia
2020 Romania
2021 Czech Republic
2022 Czech Republic
2023 Russia

*RECENT RG "UPSET QUEENS" NATION/REGION*
2014 France
2015 Croatia
2016 South America
2017 South America
2018 Ukraine
2019 Russia
2020 Australia
2021 Slovenia
2022 France
2023 Italy

*RG "NATIONS OF POOR SOULS"*
2012 ROU (1-5 in 1st Rd.; Cadantu double-bageled)
2013 CZE (2-8 in 1st Rd.)
2014 CHN (0-4 in 1st; Sh.Zhang "1st Loss" & #2 Li, AO champ)
2015 USA (4-13 in 1st Rd.; most players in draw)
2016 ITA (Quartet 0-3 in 1st Rd.; Pennetta retired)
2017 GER (2-5 1st Rd.; #1 Kerber out)
2018 LAT (both DC Ostapenko & Sevastova out 1st Rd.)
2019 ITA (0-2; first none in RG 2nd Rd. since 1982)
2020 USA (4 seeds pre-3r, Serena w/d 2r, US QF/SF Rogers/Brady 1r, Venus 1r, Gauff 2r w/ 19 DF)
2021 GER (0-3 in 1st Rd.; Kerber FSO 2 con GS/2 of 3 RG; Siegemund 1r)
2022 HUN (0-4 in 1st Rd.; Galfi 2 MP in loss)
2023 CZE (3-9 in 1st Rd.; four seeds out 1r; Krej. 0-2 since '21 title)

*RECENT RG "CRASH-AND-BURN" WINNERS*
2015 Simona Halep, ROU (2nd Rd.)
2016 Angelique Kerber, GER (1st Rd./AO champ)
2017 Angelique Kerber, GER (1st Rd., earliest RG #1 ever)
2018 Alona Ostapenko, LAT (1st Rd., earliest RG DC since '05)
2019 Alona Ostapenko, LAT (1st Rd.; zero RG wins before/after '17 title)
2020 US Open '20 SF (Osaka DNP, Brady 1r, Serena w/d 2r, Azarenka 2r - in 24 hrs)
2021 Ash Barty, AUS and Naomi Osaka, JPN (#1 seed ret. 2r; #2 seed w/d 2r)
2022 Barbora Krejcikova, CZE (1st/DC) and Ons Jabuer, TUN (hottest non-Iga on clay)
2023 Barbora Krejcikova, CZE (0-2 at RG since winning '21 title)

*2023 OVERALL SLAM MD DEBUT RECORDS
AO = 1r: 3-7 / 2r: 0-3
RG = 1r: 3-0 / 2r: TBD

*2023 FIRST CAREER SLAM MD WINS (w/ career slam MD)
-AUSTRALIAN OPEN (4)-
Anna Bondar, HUN (5th slam MD)
Olivia Gadecki, AUS (1st)
Diana Shnaider, RUS (1st)
Lucrezia Stefanini, ITA (1st)
-ROLAND GARROS (8)-
Mirra Andreeva, RUS (1st)
Elina Avanesyan, RUS (2nd)
Julia Grabher, AUT (2nd)
Emma Navarro, USA (2nd)
Linda Noskova, CZE (3rd)
Iryna Shymanovich, BLR (1st)
Peyton Stearns, USA (2nd)
Simona Waltert, SUI (1st)

*RECENT SLAM 3rd Rd.+ "LUCKY LOSER" RESULTS*
=AO=
3rd Rd. - Sandra Kleinova, CZE (1997)
3rd Rd. - Bernarda Pera, USA (2018)
=RG=
3rd Rd. - Veronika Martinek, GER (1995)
3rd Rd. - Gloria Pizzichini, ITA (1996)
3rd Rd. - Ons Jabeur, TUN (2017)
=WI=
3rd Rd. - Tine Zwaan, NED (1974)
3rd Rd. - Lauren Davis, USA (2019)
=US=
4th Rd. - Maria-Jose Gaidano, ARG (1993)
3rd Rd. - Nathalie Herreman, FRA (1991)
3rd Rd. - Dasha Kasatkina, RUS (2015)
3rd Rd. - Kamilla Rakhimova, RUS (2021)
3rd Rd. - Greet Minnen, BEL (2021)





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Saw "Chick-fil-a" trending on Twitter today and said, "What? Did Chick-fil-a say that gay people have a right to exist or something? I mean... that would be a break from the long-time company policy." So I clicked...



The new right wing is so easy to read sometimes.

So no Bud Light, Target *or* Chick-fil-a now, I guess. Do companies still sell those underground bunkers/bomb shelters for people to hunker down in during the apocalypse?

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On a related note...




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TOP QUALIFIER: Mirra Andreeva/RUS (16; youngest in MD)
TOP EARLY-ROUND (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-ROUND (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE-ROUND (SF-F): xx
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q1: #29 Brenda Fruhvirtova/CZE def. Antonia Ruzic/CRO 3-6/6-2/7-6(10) - Ruzic MP in MTB; B.Fruhvirtova qualifies for first RG
TOP EARLY-RD. MATCH (1r-2r): xx
TOP MIDDLE-RD. MATCH (3r-QF): xx
TOP LATE-RD. MATCH (SF-F/Jr.-WC): xx
=============================
FIRST VICTORY: Magdalena Frech/POL (def. Sh.Zhang)
FIRST SEED OUT: #29 Zhang Shuai/CHN (1r: Frech/POL)
FIRST SLAM MD WINS: M.Andreeva/RUS, Avanesyan/RUS, Grabher/AUT, Navarro/USA, Noskova/CZE, Shymanovich/BLR, Stearns/USA, Waltert/SUI
UPSET QUEENS: ITA
REVELATION LADIES: RUS (11-2 1st Rd.)
NATION OF POOR SOULS: CZE (3-9 1st Rd.; four seeds out 1r; Krejcikova 0-2 since '21 title)
LAST QUALIFIER STANDING: 1r wins: M.Andreeva/RUS, Danilovic/SRB, Day/USA, Hunter/AUS, Shymanovich/BLR, Tauson/DEN, Waltert/SUI
LAST LUCKY LOSER STANDING: 1r wins: Avanesyan/RUS, Bolsova/ESP, Osorio/COL
LAST WILD CARD STANDING: 1r wins: Jeanjean/FRA, Navarro/USA, Parry/FRA
PROTECTED RANKING WINS: 1r wins: Pavlyuchenkova/RUS, Sorribes Tormo/ESP, Svitolina/UKR
LAST PASTRY STANDING: 1r wins: Garcia, Dodin, Jeanjean, Parry
Ms./Mademoiselle OPPORTUNITY: xx
IT "TBD": M.Andreeva (teen)
COMEBACK PLAYER: xx
CRASH & BURN: Barbora Krejcikova/CZE (0-2 since winning '21 title) Additional nominees: xx
ZOMBIE QUEEN OF PARIS: Nominees: Osorio (LL #6); Andreescu (1r-down 6-2/3-1 vs. Azarenka)
DOUBLES STAR: xx
VETERAN PLAYER (KIMIKO CUP): xx
Mademoiselle/Madame OF THE EVENING: xx
JUNIOR BREAKOUT: xx
Légion de Lenglen HONOREE: xx
Coupe LA PETIT TAUREAU: xx






All for Day 3. More tomorrow.
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