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Sunday, May 7, 2023

Wk.18- Knit One, Purl Too






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*WEEK 18 CHAMPIONS*
MADRID, SPAIN (WTA 1000/Red Clay Outdoor)
S: Aryna Sabalenka/BLR def. Iga Swiatek/POL 6-3/3-6/6-3
D: Victoria Azarenka/Beatriz Haddad Maia (BLR/BRA) def. Coco Gauff/Jessie Pegula (USA/USA) 6-1/6-4
SAINT-MALO, FRANCE (WTA 125 Challenger/Red Clay Outdoor)
S: Sloane Stephens/USA def. Greet Minnen/BEL 6-3/6-4
D: Bibiane Schoofs/Greet Minnen (NED/BEL) def. Ulrikke Eikeri/Eri Hozumi (NED/JPN) 7-6(7)/7-6(3)
REUS, SPAIN (WTA 125 Challenger/Red Clay Outdoor)
S: Sorana Cirstea/ROU def. Elli Mandlik/USA 6-1/4-6/7-6(1)
D: Storm Hunter/Ellen Perez (AUS/AUS) def. Alexa Guarachi/Erin Routliffe (CHI/NZL) 6-1/7-6(8)




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[Madrid 4th Rd.+]

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Aryna Sabalenka/BLR
...Sabalenka's quest to climb atop the women's tennis rankings effectively kicked off last fall in the WTA Finals when she defeated the world #1, #2 and #3 on hard court despite failing to go home with the crown. While her loss to Iga Swiatek two weeks ago in the Stuttgart final proved a temporary stumbling block, she picked right back up again in Madrid as she claimed her second title in three years in the event and, edging just a little bit closer to her goal, took down Swiatek in the final to notch her first win over the Pole on her favored red clay.

Just how transformative the result might be -- for both Sabalenka *and* Swiatek -- as far as the women's 2023 race for #1 goes, well, we (and they) have the bulk of the season to figure out.

Sabalenka lost just one set en route to her tour-leading fifth final of the season, defeating Sorana Cirstea, Camila Osorio, Mirra Andreeva, Mayar Sherif (in three) and Maria Sakkari, setting up her third final against Swiatek in the last 54 weeks. In a match of shifting momentum (after being tied at 3-3 in the 1st, the match concluded with the final two and a half sets featuring seven consecutive alternating blocks of three-game winning streaks), Sabalenka prevailed 6-3/3-6/6-3 with clutch match play down the stretch, overcoming a shaky mid-3rd set stretch (at 3-1, she was broken at love with a string of UE and a game-ending DF), then holding from love/15 in game #7 and breaking for a 5-3 lead a game later. She again rallied from 15/30 to serve out the championship, saving a BP and finally converting on her fourth MP to win her tour-best third '23 title and the 13th of her career.

While Sabalenka's big jump in confidence in '23 was an offshoot of her WTAF run last October, her recovery from the serving issues that sunk her first half of '22 actually began to be seen once the summer hard court season started after she was subjected to the BLR/RUS ban at Wimbledon. In the 14 tournaments she's played since then, she's reached at least the QF in 12 of them (all seven in '23), reaching six finals, posting eight Top 10 wins and climbing back to her previous high of #2 (which she'd first reached in August '21).

Her run in Madrid, during which she turned 25, improves Sabalenka's record to 29-4 this season, after she recorded just 33 wins in her entire '22 campaign.


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RISERS: Maria Sakkari/GRE and Irina-Camelia Begu/ROU
...once more, Sakkari had a good week (well, two), but once again Madrid added to the Greek's list of ultimately "hollow" performances for a player who first set up shop in the Top 10 in September '21 and to date hasn't left (her 95-week streak is the second longest on tour behind Sabalenka's 129).

For every positive stat that Sakkari puts up (prior to her SF run she'd been just 3-4 in Madrid, having been far more successful in the *other* big pre-RG clay even in Rome, where she's reached a quarter and semi), there's always one that "lessens" its impact.

Sakkari's Madrid wins over Arantxa Rus, Rebeka Masarova, Paula Badosa and Irina-Camelia Begu put her into yet another tour SF (#20 since '21, with only Iga Swiatek w/ so many in the stretch), but her two-set loss to Aryna Sabalenka not only drops her to 0-4 at this stage this season, but 7-21 in her WTA career.

Since her "best" career season in 2021, when she reached a pair of slam semis (but, again, reached just one tour final), Sakkari got over the SF "hump" by reaching four finals last season, only to go 0-4. She'd been 1-5 vs. Top 10 competition last season until notching three wins in the WTA Finals. This year, again with no final appearances in nine events, the Greek has (so far) recorded just one Top 10 victory in four tries.

In 2023, 28 different women have reached tour finals. Sakkari remains out of the loop. This month marks the fourth anniversary of her lone singles title in Rabat in 2019.



Seven years after her back-to-back QF in Madrid, and after going 3-5 in the tournament in the years since, Begu returned to the final eight without dropping a set, pulling off big wins over Karolina Muchova, Shelby Rogers and Liudmila Samsonova before taking Maria Sakkari to three sets in a call back to her similiar three-set defeat at the hands of the Greek in last year's Saint Petersburg semis.

Roland Garros continues to be Begu's best chance at a deep slam run, as she reached her second Round of 16 on the clay in Paris a year ago and is 15-11 in the event in her career (she's 12 under .500 in the other three majors combined).

Begu's week finally makes her rise to the top of the Romanian rankings official, as she'll pass the still idle (and waiting) Simona Halep, who'll drop from her nation's top spot for the first time since 2013 (!!).


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SURPRISE: Mayar Sherif/EGY
...yes, Sherif landed here for the *first* week of Madrid, but she carried over her early run (wins over Giorgi, Kalinina and Garcia, the latter her first career Top 5 win) into the tournament's second week with another big win over Elise Mertens to reach her first 1000 QF, then took the 1st set vs. Aryna Sabalenka to get within a set of the semis.

Of course, Sabalenka rallied to take the match, but Sherif is back on the rankings elevator and will climb to a new career-best #41 (from #59) on Monday.

While Sherif will have title points to back up (from Parma) in the fall, the Egyptian may still be able to more than balance that out and keep rising with some success during the "blank" two-month period (June-July, as well as the entire summer HC season during which she had no wins in '22) she skipped due to injury last year following Roland Garros (where she was forced to pull out after a 1st Round win).


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VETERANS: Sloane Stephens/USA and Sorana Cirstea/ROU
...trying to hold onto a Top 50 ranking, #47 Stephens was just 5-9 on the season as she arrived for the Saint-Malo 125 challenger in France. Thus far this year, she'd gone 0-4 in the biggest tournaments on her schedule (AO-IW-Miami-Madrid). Of course, Sloane being Sloane, *any* result is possible, including a title run. Naturally, she's listed here because that's just what she did.

Because, of course.

The top seed (as a wild card) in the event, Stephens dropped just one set all week (vs. Jessika Ponchet in the QF) vs. a field that included six other Top 100 players (she was the only in the Top 50), as well as a rather well known Ukrainian who was ranked #1088 (but used to be #3).

Stephens staged rallies in both sets in a straight sets SF win over the aforementioned Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, reaching her first final below tour-level since 2011 (and her first at a 125). Fifteen months after winning her most recent WTA title in Guadalajara (her first tour title since Miami '18), Stephens defeated Greet Minnen 6-3/6-4 to claim the honors in Saint-Malo.

Stephens, 30, is back up to #36 in the new rankings just weeks before heading to the major where she's had the most success. Despite being a U.S. Open champ (2017), Sloane's best *statistical* major is Roland Garros, where she's 32-11 with a final (2018), two QF (2019/22) and five 4th Rounds.



In Reus, 33-year old Cirstea (ranked #44) remained in Spain after her 2nd Round loss to Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid. It payed off, as the Romanian added to a recent spurt that has already seen her reach the Indian Wells QF and Miami SF, taking a 125 challenger title after stringing together wins over Aliona Bolsova, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova and a trio of Bannerettes in Caty McNally (QF), Lauren Davis (SF) and Elli Mandlik (F), coming back from 5-2 down in the 3rd in the latter match and saving a MP to claim the title in a deciding 7-1 TB.

This was Cirstea's first final on any level since reaching the WTA Strasbourg final two years ago, just a month after having won her first tour title in 13 years in Istanbul.
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COMEBACKS: Veronika Kudermetova/RUS and Elina Svitolina/UKR
...arriving in Madrid on a four-match losing streak and 1-6 slide, Kudermetova's rebound couldn't have been more welcome to the Hordette, who'd slipped from her '22 season-ending #9 to #13 and hadn't gone *up* in the rankings since October.

After posting wins over Nuria Parrizas Diaz and surging countrywoman Anastasia Potapova, Kudermetova recorded back-to-back Top 10 wins over #8 Dasha Kasatkina (saving 2 MP) and #3 Jessie Pegula (tying her biggest win) in her third and fourth consecutive three-set matches (How did she get through the such a tough stretch? With the help of beer, of course.) to reach her biggest career semifinal. Madrid is the first tournament of her career in which she's posted more than one victory over a Top 10 opponent, and it's the first time she's done it in consecutive matches.

Kudermetova's run ended unceremoniously, as so many do at this time of year, against Iga Swiatek, who dispensed her first pair of baked goods since Indian Wells (2r vs. Liu) in a 6-1/6-1 win as the Russian joined Maria Sakkari as the only players with multiple semifinal appearances in '23 who've yet to reach a final (going 0-2, w/ a walkover L).

A Roland Garros quarterfinalist a year ago (her best major result), Kudermetova will finally *rise* in the rankings again on Monday, climbing one spot to #12.



Svitolina has only been back on tour for a few weeks after having a baby last year, but the current world #1088 posted her best result yet in the Saint-Malo 125 challenger in France.

The former world #3 continues to have a difficult time salting away sets within her reach during her comeback (not that that is all that different from her pre-motherhood years), following up her win over Despina Papamichael by twice failing to serve out the 3rd against Ysaline Bonaventure (Svitolina had rallied from 0-3 down) before winning a TB. After defeating Leolita Jeanjean, Svitolina lost 7-5/7-6 to Sloane Stephens in the semis after having failed to serve out the 1st set, then been unable to convert 3 SP on Stephens' serve in the 2nd.

Still, Svitolina will cut her ranking in half on Monday, rising 548 spots to #540.


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FRESH FACES: Elli Mandlik/USA and Dayana Yastremska/UKR
...in the 125 challenger in Reus (ESP), 21-year old Mandlik reached her biggest career final and came within a single point of claiming the title.

After winning a match to qualify, Mandlik posted wins over Jasmine Paolini, Nuria Parrizas Diaz and Dayana Yastremska to reach the final, where she led Sorana Cirstea 5-2 in the 3rd, and held a MP at 5-4, only to see the veteran Swarmette win the title via a 7-1 deciding TB.

Last August, Mandlik had lost to Zhu Lin in a $100K challenger title match in what had previously been her biggest. She's 7-2 in ITF finals.

Mandlik will jump 30 spots in the new rankings to a career-high #117.

Yastremska rebounded well and rose above Genie Bouchard's "just another doper" insult from the opening week of Madrid, heading to Reus, Spain and reaching a 125 semi after collecting wins over Sara Sorribes Tormo, Anna Blinkova and top-seeded Jil Teichmann. She came within a set of reaching the final, but lost in three to Mandlik.


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DOWN: Iga Swiatek/POL
...it took a great match to take her out in Madrid, but Swiatek's week served to amplify many of the trends that have come to pass over the last eight months.

When in full flight against opponents who immediately fall behind, especially on clay, Swiatek often romps. A great frontrunner, she allowed less than five games in four of her first five matches in Madrid -- def. Julia Graber 3/2, Bernarda Pera 3/2, Petra Martic 0/3 and Veronika Kudermetova 1/1. In the 4th Round, she prevailed over Ekaterina Alexandrova in three sets after losing a set and 5-2 lead, failing to convert a MP in the 2nd. While Swiatek survived that challenge, she wasn't as fortunate in the final against Aryna Sabalenka as the world #1 and #2 showed up on one another's dance card yet again (for the seventh time since the start of last season) just 13 days after Swiatek won their Stuttgart final match-up last month.

The loss ends Swiatek's streak of six straight clay final victories, and is her first defeat at the hands of Sabalenka on the surface (she'd beaten Iga twice on hard court, both coming in the WTA Finals in 2021-22). She's 0-3 in finals when losing the 1st set.

While she's still a great front row leader, Swiatek has shown cracks in her dominance since her (somewhat surprising, considering how much she complained about, well, almost everything about the tournament) U.S. Open title run last summer. Of note, during the post-match ceremony on Saturday, while (for once) she didn't claim an injury after a loss (she did mention the one she reported after her *last* loss -- in Indian Wells -- though she'd already won nine straight matches and won a tournament since then) and did note how she didn't like "playing at 1 a.m." (in the semis) in the tournament's night session (unless that was meant as another excuse for *this* loss, though she had a day off in between matches).

The loss to Sabalenka is already Swiatek's third Top 10 defeat in '23 (she had two in all of '22), and since the U.S. Open she's gone a combined 1-4 (1-3 this year) vs. the big-hitting combo of the Belarusian and Elena Rybakina, arguably her only true top-tier "threats" on tour at the moment (she's also fallen twice in finals vs. Barbora Krejcikova since Flushing Meadows). After winning two majors and four 1000 titles in '22, since New York Swiatek has been good in big events but come up short in every one (WTAF SF, AO 4r, Dubai F, IW SF, Madrid F), numbers that look more "Pegula 2.0-like" than "Serena-esque" in the stretch.

Swiatek's one safe haven from challenge has consistently been red clay, but now the player closest to her in the rankings has a win over her on the surface. It could be a game-changer for the rest of '23, not just as far as Sabalenka's trajectory but as a true test for Swiatek herself to pass, fail or merely hold her own vs. the rising tide.

While Sabalenka remains far enough back that Iga's top ranking is safe for now, the pressure will shift mightily onto the Pole's shoulders in Paris, where she won't be *quite* the definite favorite that she was a year ago and would have been had she won in Madrid. For most top players, that might be a blessing. But will it be for Swiatek, who has embraced the favorite role at RG, often seeing it give her the upper hand against wary opponents before matches even start?

With a slam in her back pocket, and now a win over Swiatek on clay (as well as a relatively early '22 3r RG exit she can improve upon, and an upcoming -- w/ SW19 points -- short stint on grass, a surface on which Iga has turned down expections *way low* at this point in her career), Sabalenka has a lot of room to manuever over the next few months.

Come the summer hard court season, things could get very interesting at the top of the women's rankings. But that'll really be up to Swiatek.
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ITF PLAYERS: Kayla Day/USA and Elina Avanesyan/RUS
...a pair of $100K champs, on two different colors of clay an ocean apart.

On green clay in Bonita Springs, Florida, Day won the battle of former Bannerette junior stars against Ann Li. The 23-year old, the 2016 U.S. Open girls' champ, has struggled to find her footing as a pro, but this past week put together wins over Katarzyna Kawa, Marcela Zacarias, Caroline Dolehide and Li in a 2 & 2 final, winning her fourth career and biggest pro crown. Day's previous biggest title had been a $50K challenger back when she was still on top of the junior world in '16.

Day will jump 46 spots to #137 on Monday (her career high is #122), while Li will also benefit even in a losing effort. A two-time tour finalist in 2021 (and winner in Tenerife), Li has slipped outside the Top 200 after being in the Top 50 just last year. The '17 Wimbledon junior runner-up will climb back into the Top 200 this week, rising from #229 to #187.



On red clay in Wiesbaden (GER), 20-year old Hordette Avanesyan won her fifth and biggest ITF title.

Avanesyan battled to escape the QF, coming back from a break down three times in the 3rd set to defeat Dalila Jakupovic, then proceeded to drop just four combined games in the SF/F in a pair of wins over Sinja Kraus and Jaimee Fourliss (2 & 0 final). She'll climb 43 spots to #123, just one off her career high standing.

Fourliss claimed the WD title with Aussie compatriot Olivia Gadecki.


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DOUBLES: Victoria Azarenka/Beatriz Haddad Maia, BLR/BRA
...neither Azarenka (2r) nor Haddad Maia (2r) had the singles journeys in Madrid that they would have hoped for, but the unlikely doubles partners had the last laugh in Spain, picking up the WD crown while knocking off the #3 (Krawczyk/Schuurs) and #1 (Gauff/Pegula in the 1 & 4 final) seeds, as well as Badosa/Mattek-Sands and Fernandez/Townsend, en route.

It's the biggest tour doubles title for Haddad (she'd reached 1000 finals in Guadalajara and Indian Wells the last two seasons), who picked up career win #5, while Azarenka's 10th title matches her 1000 win in Rome in 2019 for her biggest WD title since her previous Madrid run in 2011. It's Azarenka's 5th career 1000 win to go along with her two MX slams (in 4 finals) and Olympic MX Gold (she's 0-4 in slam WD finals), nice additions to what will officially be designated as a Hall of Fame *singles* career a few years down the line.

Gauff/Pegula drop to 5-2 in finals as a pair, and suffer their first defeat together in four 1000 finals. They're 0-2 in clay finals (w/ last year's RG runner-up). They'd beaten last year's Madrid champs in back-to-back matches early in the tournament, defeating Giuliana Olmos (w/ Panova) in the 1st Rd. and Gaby Dabrowski (w/ Luisa Stefani) a round later.


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WHEELCHAIR: NED World Team Cup
...and in 2023, in Portugal, the Netherlands' wheelchair juggernaut set things right.



A year ago, Japan became just the fourth nation other than the Netherlands to claim the Wheelchair World Team Cup in the event's 36-year (not counting 2020) history (no country other than NED has won more than once). Of course, the '22 title came with an asterisk, as JPN was able to defeat NED in the final largely because Diede de Groot had been deemed too injured to play in the tie after having participated all week.

That wasn't the case this year, as the two nations faced off in a rematch in the final. This time it was Aniek Van Koot who'd been ruled out of the event entirely due to injury, bumping up Jiske Griffioen to the week's NED singles #2 and doubles slot (w/ teenager Lizzy de Greef filling out the roster). In the final, Griffioen fell to Momoko Ohtani in the opening match, sending things to the second match which featured de Groot and longtime rival Yui Kamiji.

As usual, it was world #2 Kamiji who left frustrated, losing her 20th straight match in the series (her three singles wins on the week extended her non-Diede winning run to 63 matches, though) as the Dutch #1 pulled away late in a tight 1st set after falling down love/30 on serve at 5-all (after she'd failed to secure two SP in the previous game). A backhand crosscourt winner avoided a love/40 hole and de Groot held for 6-5, then grabbed a love/40 edge in Kamiji's service game. She broke to take the set 7-5.

In the 2nd, things remained on serve until de Groot broke to lead 5-3. Trying to serve out the win, she led 40/15. On her second MP, de Groot won 7-5/6-3 as Kamiji netted a volley to send things to the deciding doubles. It was de Groot's 96th consecutive singles win (why that streak isn't front and center whenever I hear commentary on her matches is beyond me, but it's rarely *ever* noted, if it's noted at all, despite all the well-earned praise that's heaped upon her throughout), and 186 of 192 sets. She's 101-1 since the start of 2021.

Cued up to the de Groot/Kamiji match:



With Kamiji on the sidelines, the doubles wasn't much of a contest. De Groot & Griffioen took the first 10 games of match 3 vs. Ohtani and Manami Tanaka, including game 3 in the 2nd set when the JPN team went up 40/love on serve. The Dutch converted MP in the 6-0/6-1 win when they won a replay challenge to overturn a line call that hadn't gone their way.



The title is the 33rd for the Dutch women in the 37 editions of the event (and 21 of 23). Meanwhile, Wang Ziying (CHN), Nalani Buob (SUI) and Pauline Deroulede (FRA) added their names to the list of de Groot's victims in the streak, becoming the 24th, 25th and 26th different women she's beaten over the 96-match run.

Afterward, de Groot was entrusted to be strong enough to lift the trophy in the post-match ceremony (she was flexing her muscles for her teammates as she prepared). Cued up...


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kosova-font

[Madrid 4th Rd.+]



1. Madrid Final - Aryna Sabalenka def. Iga Swiatek
...6-3/3-6/6-3. When the top players in the world meet up, superb matches often result. Go figure. Thankfully, Swiatek and Sabalenka seem to possess the sort of magnets that draw them to each other, potentially producing the kind of rivalry that has eluded the WTA due to the oft-transitory nature of the faces atop the women's game in recent years.

Not only was this final between the two women their second in two events, it's their seventh meeting since the start of last season. And with them being the reigning champs at three majors, Sabalenka's first win over Iga on the Pole's favorite surface (in their fourth clay clash) will serve to only further deepen the meaning of future match-ups between the two.

Sabalenka had grabbed the opening set, sweeping the final three games. Swiatek took a 3-0 lead in the 2nd and then after Sabalenka had knotted the score swept the final three games to knot the match. The same pattern held up in the 3rd. Sabalenka led 3-0. Swiatek tied things at 3-3, then Sabalenka swept the final three games (the seventh consecutive alternating three-game sweep in the match). In between all that shifting momentum was some fine, sometimes epic, tennis.



In the 2nd set, Swiatek (according to the Tennis Channel commentators, she'd entered with the worst percentage in the Top 50 when it comes to BP saves) saved 2 BP in a key hold in game 7. In the 3rd, up 3-1, Sabalenka was broken at love with a string of UE and a DF off the net cord on BP.

At 3-3, though, Sabalenka completed a solid hold from love/15, then broke Swiatek in the following game. At 5-3, serving for the match and a truly significant title in the grand scheme of 2023 Tennis Things, Sabalenka fell behind 15/30. She produced her own lifeline with an ace. After an overturned line call gave Iga a BP rather than Aryna a MP, Sabalenka saved the point, then fired another ace to reach MP for the first time. Sabalenka was unable to get back Swiatek's squat shot off the baseline, though, keeping the match alive.

Sabalenka netted a forehand on MP #2, and Swiatek batted back a backhand return winner on #3. Finally, Sabalenka fired a forehand into the corner out of Iga's reach on her fourth MP attempt.

After having won in ten straight finals through last year's U.S. Open, Swiatek is now 3-3 in her last six. She's 0-3 when dropping the opening set.

It's Sabalenka's 4th career #1 victory, and her second of the group that's come in the Madrid final (after def. #1 Barty in '21)

Sabalenka's win cuts Swiatek's overall career head-to-head edge to 5-3. A year ago, Swiatek defeated the Belarusian in the Rome semis en route to the title. Could we get a rematch -- Iga/Aryna IX -- two weeks from now?

Yes, Rome is a two-week tournament for the first time this year as it has been elevated to "Mandatory" status, a move that you have to think *could* become more common -- at least as far as the two-week length and bigger draw goes -- with the other 1000 level events on tour as the WTA legislates against the Top 30 playing in smaller events (see below), perhaps precipitating the need for larger draws in 500/1000 tournaments going forward in order to give the top ranked players more opportunities to play.

Of course, the bigger question going forward will be whether Aryna gets an Alcaraz-sized birthday cake in Madrid *next* year, right?


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2. Madrid 4th Rd. - Iga Swiatek def. Ekaterina Alexandrova
...6-4/6-7(3)/6-3. Last year, it was Samsonova in Stuttgart, this year it was Alexandrova playing the role of the Russian pushing Iga on clay in Madrid.

Swiatek led 6-4/5-2, served for the match at 5-3, and held a MP on Alexandrova's serve at 5-4 before losing a TB and having to win in a two and a half hour three-setter.


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3. Reus 125 Final - Sorana Cirstea def. Elli Mandlik
...6-1/4-6/7-6(1). In another final of shifting tides, Cirstea took the opener at 6-1, only to then fall behind 4-0 in the 2nd. The Romanian battled back to erase Mandlik's two-break lead, only to then drop serve again once she had as the Bannerette broke to take the set 6-4.

Mandlik led 5-2 in the 3rd, and served for the title at 5-3. She couldn't do it, then saw Cirstea save a MP while serving at 5-4 a game later. In game 10, Mandlik managed to save two BP to get the 6-5 hold and ultimately see things head to a deciding TB. But, again, one player took the momentum and ran with it, as Cirstea won 7-1.


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4. Madrid 4th Rd.- Petra Martic def. Barbora Krejcikova
...6-3/7-6(1). Finally at full health, Krejcikova (even w/ this loss) has had a nearly Pegula-like consistency in big events, winning in Dubai and posting 4th Round results at the Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami and Madrid. After a 15-6 turn on hard courts this season, though, the '21 RG champ is just 4-3 on the dirt.

But...


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5. Saint-Malo 125 2nd Rd. - Elina Svitolina def. Ysaline Bonaventure
...2-6/6-4/7-6(5). And Svitolina's first two-match winning streak was complete, after falling behind 3-0 in the 3rd and then twice failing to serve out the match at 5-4 and 6-5.


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6. Saint-Malo 125 SF - Sloane Stephens def. Elina Svitolina
...7-6/7-6(5). Surely when the organizers planned this event, and people bought tickets to the semifinals, *no one* could have dreamed they'd get a match-up of a former slam champion vs. the former world #3, the same two players who'd faced off for the WTA Finals championship in the 2018 final.



Stephens rallied from 5-2 back to take the 1st set, and staved off three Svitolina SP (all on Sloane's serve) in the 2nd.
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7. Reus 125 Final - Storm Hunter/Ellen Perez def. Alexa Guarachi/Erin Routliffe
...6-1/7-6(8). Two home-grown Aussies take the Reus final over the U.S./Canadian-born Chilean-Kiwi duo. Ah, tennis, where flags mean oh-so-much... am I right?


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8. Saint-Malo 125 Final - Bibiane Schoofs/Greet Minnen def. Ulrikke Eikeri/Eri Hozumi
...7-6(7)/7-6(3). Minnen's last 125 WD win came six years ago (Mumbai), while Schoofs won two years ago in Angers.


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9. $25K Nottingham ENG Final - Harriet Dart def. Taylah Preston
...6-0/6-2. A season after her breakout '22 campaign, Dart was just 5-10 and had fallen down to #140 in the rankings.

Her title run in Nottingham is a much needed boost, as the Brit picks up her first singles crown since 2018.


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10. Reus 125 1st Rd. - Leyre Romero-Gormaz def. Alize Cornet
...6-0/6-2. Cornet records just two games vs. the 21-year old, #156-ranked Spaniard, falling to 4-9 on the season.


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HM- Reus 125 1st Rd. - Viktoriya Tomova def. Clara Tauson
...4-6/7-6(4)/6-4. Tauson served for the match twice in the 2nd set, at 5-4 and 6-5.
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[Madrid 4th Rd.+]

1. Madrid 4th Rd. - Veronika Kudermetova def. Dasha Kasatkina
...7-5/1-6/7-6(2). After leading 4-2 in the 3rd, Kudermetova is forced to save a pair of MP on serve down 5-6 to Kasatkina. After forcing a TB by converting on her fourth GP chance, Kudermetova takes the deciding TB en route to her biggest career semi.


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2. Madrid 4th Rd. - Aryna Sabalenka def. Mirra Andreeva
...6-3/6-1. Andreeva didn't last long in the second week, but she surely left her mark on Madrid.


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3. Reus 125 Q - Erika Andreeva def. Anna Danilina
...6-1/6-4. After having been unable to make it out of Madrid qualifying to join Mirra in the MD, Erika won her only qualifying match in Reus to reach the MD there.



The Hordette fell 4 & 4 to Emiliana Arango in the 1st Round.
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HM- Madrid QF - Veronika Kudermetova def. Jessie Pegula
...6-4/0-6/6-4. Another big event, another QF for Pegula.

The Madrid runner-up a year ago, Pegula has gone 54-19 in 1000 level events since 2020, producing QF+ results in 13 of 20. She's reached two finals, winning once (Guadalajara '22).

Meanwhile, the Bills drafted Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid in the 1st Round last weekend.
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Eyeroll... fine, I guess. Nothing like worrying about the *big* issues, though. This isn't against the tour rules, and I've seen that she's apparently been told she can't wear the patch in slams or in the U.K.. So is it really a story?

Of course, this is another issue that would never even come up had the WTA effectively codified Russian sponsorship issues across the board a year ago. But they did not (shocking, I know). Maybe they were too busy handing out little Ukrainian flags or something?

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I missed this the other week. This is a really stupid move, and it's hard to think that this won't be detrimental for both players *and* tournaments.



At the very least, you'd think they'd make an exception for a local player ranked in the Top 30 to be able to play in and support the event.


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*2023 SLAM-WTAF/1000 CHAMPIONS*
Australian Open - Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
Dubai - Barbora Krejcikova, CZE
Indian Wells - Elena Rybakina, KAZ
Miami - Petra Kvitova, CZE
Madrid - Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
Rome - x
Roland Garros - x
[doubles]
Australian Open - Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
Dubai - Veronika Kudermetova/Liudmila Samsonova, RUS/RUS
Indian Wells - Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE
Miami - Coco Gauff/Jessie Pegula, USA/USA
Madrid - Victoria Azarenka/Beatriz Haddad Maia, BLR/BRA
Rome - x
Roland Garros - x

*WTA SINGLES TITLES - 2020-23*
13 - 1/2/8/2 - Iga Swiatek
8 - 3/2/0/3 - ARYNA SABALENKA
7 - 1/5/1/ret - Ash Barty
6 - 0/3/2/1 - Barbora Krejcikova
5 - 3/0/2/0 - Simona Halep
5 - 0/4/1/0 - Anett Kontaveit

*MOST WTA FINALS in 2023*
5 - ARYNA SABALENKA (3-2)
4 - IGA SWIATEK (2-2)
3 - Belinda Bencic (2-1)
3 - Elena Rybakina (1-2)
2 - Caroline Garcia, FRA (0-2)
[2020-23]
16 - 1/2/9/4 - IGA SWIATEK (13-3)
14 - 3/3/3/5 - ARYNA SABALENKA (8-6)
12 - 1/7/4/0 - Anett Kontaveit (5-6-1)
11 - 5/0/3/3 - Elena Rybakina (3-8)
10 - 0/3/6/1 - Ons Jabeur (4-6)

*MOST 2020-2023 WTA FINAL MATCHUPS*
3...SABALENKA/SWIATEK = Swiatek 2-1
2...Azarenka/Osaka = Osaka 1-0 (+L)
2...Barty/Sabalenka = tied 1-1
2...Bencic/Jabeur = tied 1-1
2...Bencic/Samsonova = tied 1-1
2...Jabeur/Swiatek = Swiatek 2-0
2...Kontaveit/Sakkari = Kontaveit 2-0
2...Krejcikova/Swiatek = Krejcikova 2-0
2...Kvitova/Muguruza = Kvitova 2-0
2...Rybakina/Sabalenka = tied 1-1

*RECENT #1 vs. #2 MATCH-UPS*
2014 Brisbane Final - #1 S.Williams d. #2 Azarenka
2014 Miami Final - #1 S.Williams d. #2 Li
2015 Australian Open Final - #1 S.Williams d. #2 Sharapova
2016-17 = NONE
2018 Australian Open Final - #2 Wozniacki d. #1 Halep
2019 WTA Finals SF - #1 Barty d. #2 Ka.Pliskova
2020-22 = NONE
2023 Stuttgart Final - #1 Swiatek d. #2 Sabalenka
2023 Madrid Final - #2 Sabalenka d. #1 Swiatek

*#1 WINS (22) - 2020-23*
3 - ARYNA SABALENKA, BLR
2 - Barbora Krejcikova, CZE
2 - Elena Rybakina, KAZ
1 - Paula Badosa, ESP
1 - Jennifer Brady, USA
1 - Danielle Collins, USA
1 - Alize Cornet, FRA
1 - Caroline Garcia, FRA
1 - Coco Gauff, USA
1 - Beatriz Haddad Maia, BRA
1 - Sofia Kenin, USA
1 - Madison Keys, USA
1 - Petra Kvitova, CZE
1 - Magda Linette, POL
1 - Karolina Muchova, CZE
1 - Jessie Pegula, USA
1 - Shelby Rogers, USA
1 - Sara Sorribes Tormo, ESP
[wins-by-nation, 2020-23]
7 - USA
4 - CZE
3 - BLR
2 - ESP,FRA,KAZ
1 - BRA,POL
--
LOSSES: 11-Barty, 11-Swiatek
[career - active]
15 - Venus Williams
7 - Svetlana Kuznetsova
6 - Petra Kvitova
6 - Elina Svitolina
4 - Belinda Bencic
4 - Alize Cornet
4 - Garbine Muguruza
4 - ARYNA SABALENKA

**TOP 10 def. #1 - since 2018**
2018 Australian Open Final - #2 Caroline Wozniacki d. Halep
2018 Madrid QF - #6 Karolina Pliskova d. Halep
2018 Rome Final - #4 Elina Svitolina d. Halep
2019 Beijing Final - #4 Naomi Osaka d. Barty
2019 WTA Finals rr - #10 Kiki Bertens d. Barty
2020 - none
2021 Madrid Final - #7 Aryna Sabalenka d. Barty
2022 WTA Finals SF - #7 Aryna Sabalenka d. Swiatek
2023 United Cup SF - #3 Jessie Pegula d. Swiatek
2023 Indian Wells SF - #10 Elena Rybakina def. Swiatek
2023 Madrid Final - #2 Aryna Sabalenka def. Swiatek
-
LOSSES: 4-Swiatek, 3-Barty, 3-Halep

*2022-23 WTA FINALS WON BY TOP 10 PLAYERS*
[2022]
OVERALL: 17 of 55
500+ EVENTS: 16 of 25
[2023]
OVERALL: 9 of 20
500+ EVENTS: 9 of 11

*MOST WTA SF in 2023*
5 - ARYNA SABALENKA (5-0)
5 - IGA SWIATEK (4-1)
4 - Jessie Pegula (1-3)
4 - MARIA SAKKARI (0-4)
3 - Elena Rybakina (3-0)
3 - Belinda Bencic (2-0+W)
3 - Ons Jabeur (1-2)
3 - VERONIKA KUDERMETOVA (0-2 +L)

*IN STUTTGART/MADRID FINALS*
2009 Dinara Safina (RU-W)
2012 Victoria Azarenka (RU-RU)
2014 Maria Sharapova (W-W)
2017 Kristina Mladenovic (RU-RU)
2021 Ash Barty (W-RU)
2021 Aryna Sabalenka (RU-W)
2023 Aryna Sabalenka (RU-W)
2023 Iga Swiatek (W-RU)
[Stuttgart-Madrid-Rome Finals]
2009 Dinara Safina (RU-W-W)

*MADRID/ROME FINALS (Madrid started '09); w/ RG RESULT*
2009 Dinara Safina (W-W + RU)
2013 Serena Williams (W-W + W)
2017 Simona Halep (W-RU + RU)
2022 Ons Jabeur (W-RU + 1r)

*2023 WTA DOUBLES FINALS*
3 (2-1) = COCO GAUFF, USA
3 (2-1) = JESSIE PEGULA, USA
3 (2-1) = Katerina Siniakova, CZE
3 (2-1) = Taylor Townsend, USA
3 (1-2) = Chan Hao-ching, TPE
[2023 finals - duos]
3...GAUFF/PEGULA, USA/USA (2-1)
2...Krejickova/Siniakova, CZE/CZE (2-0)

*WHEELCHAIR WORLD TEAM CUP WINNERS, w/ host nation*
2023 [POR] - Netherlands
2022 [POR] - Japan
2021 [ITA] - Netherlands
2020 DNP
2019 [ISR] - Netherlands
2018 [NED] - Netherlands
2017 [ITA] - China
2016 [JPN] - Netherlands
2015 [TUR] - Netherlands
2014 [NED] - Netherlands
2013 [TUR] - Netherlands
2012 [KOR] - Netherlands
2011 [RSA] - Netherlands
2010 [TUR] - Netherlands
2009 [GBR] - Netherlands
2008 [ITA] - Netherlands
2007 [SWE] - Netherlands
2006 [BRA] - Netherlands
2005 [NED] - Netherlands
2004 [NZL] - Netherlands
2003 [POL] - Netherlands
2002 [ITA] - Netherlands
2001 [SUI] - Netherlands
2000 [FRA] - Netherlands
1999 [USA] - Australia
1998 [ESP] - Netherlands
1997 [GBR] - Netherlands
1996 [AUS] - Netherlands
1995 [NED] - Netherlands
1994 [GBR] - United States
1993 [AUT] - Netherlands
1992 [BEL] - Netherlands
1991 [USA] - Netherlands
1990 [USA] - Netherlands
1989 [USA] - Netherlands
1988 [USA] - Netherlands
1987 [USA] - Netherlands
1986 [USA] - Netherlands

*2023 WTA 125 FINALS*>
Cali, COL (rc) - Nadia Podoroska/ARG d. Paula Ormaechea/ARG
San Luis Potosi, MEX (rc) - Elisabetta Cocciaretto/ITA d. Sara Errani/ITA
Saint-Melo, FRA (rc) - Sloane Stephens/USA d. Greet Minnen/BEL
Reus, ESP (rc) - Sorana Cirstea/ROU d. Elli Mandlik/USA





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REPORTER: "Who are you wearing!"
COCKROACH: "Raid. My designer said it can only be worn once."


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Princess Anne. The royal for the people (Backspinner raises hand) who don't care whatsoever about the royal family.



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If anyone is offended by any/either part of this, I suspect you'll sense when to jump off the merry-go-round...



It was either this or the unedited photos from this weekend's latest gun massacre in Texas. (I went with this, because *nothing* seems to matter when it comes to that issue.)

Of course, I'm sure there will be many more "opportunities," though. Many more.


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All for now.
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