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Sunday, May 14, 2023

Wk.19- Rome and the World Roams with You






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*WEEK 19*
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[Rome 1r-3r]




RISERS: Marketa Vondrousova/CZE and Paula Badosa/ESP
...never forget that Vondrousova has proven to be capable of big-time results on large stages, including reaching Olympic and slam (RG '19) finals. She's excelled on the clay in Rome in the past, as well, reaching a QF and SF in 2019-20.

On her way back from a wrist injury, the Czech once again utilized her protected ranking (does anyone use her PR more effectively?) to start off in the MD, where she's spent the first week bundling out foes while barely blinking an eye.

Opening with a love set against Kaia Kanepi, Vondrousova rallied to win a 6-2 3rd to advance, then dropped just one game (!) against Bianca Andreescu and eliminated Maria Sakkari 7-5/6-3, picking up her third Top 10 win of the season (her first on clay since a '20 Rome QF win over Svitolina). She's nearly back in the Top 50 in the live rankings, positioned at #55 (from #70) heading into week two.



Badosa spent a large chunk of 2021-22 in the Top 10, but since slipping outside last fall has seen her ranking become a steadily sinking ship. She dropped outside the Top 40 last month, and came into Rome at #35. The world #2 just a little over a year ago, the Spaniard is seeking the sort of result that might spark a true resurgence for a player who has recently reached the RG QF and semis in her home Madrid event (both in 2021). It's been sixteen months since Badosa last played in a singles final (Sydney '22, where she improved to 3-0 in WTA title matches in her career).

So far in Rome, Badosa has followed up her Madrid Round of 16 run by reaching the second week of the other side of the new month-long clay court 1000 event two-fer, opening with a three-set win over Anna-Lena Friedsam (winning a deciding TB), then defeating Ons Jabeur for her third '23 Top 10 win (11th career) and Marta Kostyuk, both in straight sets, to reach another big-event 4th Round. The result tops Badosa's 3rd Round result in her maiden Rome appearance in '22.


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COMEBACKS: Sofia Kenin/USA and Taylor Townsend/USA
...since her sudden and impressive career-best stretch in 2019-2020, when she reached two slam singles finals, Kenin hasn't often had a whole lot to be encouraged about. After two-plus years of a bad-tasting combination of injuries, lack of form and off-court distractions, that's changed in recent weeks.

In March, Kenin's 3rd Round result in Miami was her best big event finish since reaching the Roland Garros Round of 16 in 2021. In Rome, after getting past Cristina Bucsa in three sets she upset #2 Aryna Sabalenka to notch her first Top 10 victory since knocking off then-#1 Ash Barty in the '20 Australian Open semis en route to her maiden slam title. Kenin had posted five such wins in '19, as well, including two other #1 wins over Barty (Toronto) and Naomi Osaka (Cincinnati).

After Kenin lost in the 3rd Round to Anhelina Kalinina, the former world #4 (who finished last year at #235) will edge a bit closer to a Top 100 return. She's at #118 (U.S. #20) in the live rankings, up 16 spots. Kenin last ranked in the Top 100 in March of last year.



Townsend's recent comeback run comes after having returned to the sport in '22 after becoming a first-time mother. She's had much success in doubles, winning a pair of tour titles this season, as well as reaching the U.S. Open final last fall and Miami championship match in March. Townsend is currently the #6-ranked WD player on tour.

After winning a pair of ITF singles crowns -- a $100K and $80K -- last year, Townsend is now beginning to produce at tour-level. She recorded her first slam MD win since 2020 in Melbourne earlier this year, won a MD match in Miami (she hadn't done that in a 1000 since '19) and this week in Rome played her way into the 3rd Round (the second such 1000 run in her career, with the other coming in Miami six years ago).

After making it through qualifying (def. Bjorklund and Galfi), the unproblematic of Tennis Channel's active sometimes-commentators added a pair of MD victories over Ysaline Bonaventure (rallying from 3-1 in the 3rd) and Jessie Pegula (her second Top 10 win, after def. Halep in the '19 U.S. Open), Townsend lost to Wang Xiyu in the 3rd Round. Townsend had served for the match in the final set.

She'll jump 30+ spots in the next rankings, to inside the Top 140.
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FRESH FACES: Camila Osorio/COL and Wang Xiyu/CHN
...on the heels of a career-best 3rd Round runs in Madrid, both Osorio and Wang have already bested those feats in Rome.

The 21-year old Colombian, not armed with the wild card that had gotten her into the MD in Spain, won her way through qualifying (w/ a win over Oceane Dodin) to reach the 1st Round in Italy. Against Varvara Gracheva, Osorio rallied in the 1st (from 5-3 back) and 3rd (5-2 down, and facing 3 MP) to improve to 23-6 in career tour-level (Q+MD) three-set matches. After a win over Petra Martic, on Saturday, she avoided the rain and suspension of play and added her second career Top 10 win (w/ Svitolina, '21 Tenerife) with a straight sets victory over Caroline Garcia.

A Top 35 player last spring, Osorio finished at #82 and slipped outside the Top 100 earlier this season. She'd come into Rome at exactly #100, though, and is (so far) up 17 more spots in the live rankings, where she's #83.



Wang, 22, has put up Rome wins over Italian Lucrezia Stefanini, Irina-Camelia Begu and Taylor Townsend, overcoming the latter serving for the match in the 3rd set.

With back-to-back career-best 1000 runs (w/ Madrid 3r) in her back pocket, Wang's first second week big event appearance will kick off with her meeting countrywoman Zheng Qinwen for a berth in the QF.


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DOWN: #2 Aryna Sabalenka/BLR, #3 Jessie Pegula/USA and #4 Ons Jabeur/TUN
...top seed and two-time defending Rome champ Iga Swiatek's path toward activating full "frontrunner mode" was cleared significantly during the opening days in Rome as the Pole seeks to three-peat as Italian Open champ. Before the weekend had even begun, the #2, #3 and #4 seeds were out without having won a match.

First to go was Pegula in a rare early-round big event exit, falling to Taylor Townsend in three sets in her opening 2nd Round contest. It's her earliest demise in a 1000+ event since a 2nd Round loss in Indian Wells last year. The loss ends Pegula's streak of 14 consecutive 3rd Round-or-better results in 1000/slam tournaments. She'd reached the *4th* Round in 9 straight, and in 12 of the last 14.

Next to be shown the door was Madrid champ Sabalenka, who'd reached the semis in Rome last year, at the hands of Sofia Kenin. In a fair exchange of goods, the Belarusian swapped last year's 1r/SF results in Madrid/Rome with a W/2r combination in '23. Sabalenka had reached the QF in all five of this season's other 1000/slam events.

Completing the unholy set was Jabeur. The Tunisian, back after her brief injury break, lost to Paula Badosa. The Madrid champ and Rome finalist a year ago, Jabeur missed the former and exited in the 2nd Round without a victory in the latter this time around. She's down to #7 in the live rankings.

On Saturday, #5 Caroline Garcia joined the list of top seeds getting an early start on Roland Garros preparation, going out at the hands of Camila Osorio in the 3rd Round.

With the #2-5 seeds going a combined 1-4 in Rome, #1 Iga has won 24 of 26 games en route to the 4th Round, following up a dominant love & love win over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova with a 2 & love win over Lesia Tsurenko on Sunday. On the same day, Iga's recent nemesis, Barbora Krejcikova, was shipped out in the 3rd Round by Alona Ostapenko, as well. (And in very Ostapenk-ian fashion, too... IYKYK.)

The last woman to three-peat in Rome was Conchita Martinez as part of her four-year run between 1993-96. Chris Evert (Lloyd) won three straight from 1980-82, while Margaret Court's pre-Open era trio of wins came from 1962-64.

The last woman to win three straight in *any* WTA event was Serena Williams in Miami from 2013-15.
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ITF PLAYERS: Yanina Wickmayer/BEL and Jaqueline Cristian/ROU
...yet another mother stepped into the winner's circle in Trnava (SVK), as Wickmayer went home with her biggest title since having a baby in April '21 (and biggest on any level since 2016) by winning the $100K challenger event via a love & 3 victory in the final over fellow Belgian Greet Minnen.

Wickmayer had advanced through the week via a pair of retirements, from Kristina Kucova and Viktorija Golubic, before defeating Chloe Paquet in three sets to reach the final. With another '23 title (a $40K in January) already on her season ledger, Wickmayer will climb back into the Top 150 (from #191) in the next updated rankings.



In Zagreb (CRO), Cristian continued to climb back toward tour-level contention with a $60K title run, her third of the season.

Stringing together wins over Arina Rodionova, Emiliana Arango, Jana Fett and Carole Monnet, the "Countess" advanced to the final against German teenager Ella Seidel, playing in her maiden pro title match. Cristian rallied from a break down twice in the 3rd set, with Seidel serving for the match at 6-5.

Once Cristian secured the break in game 12, Seidel didn't win another point, as the Romanian shut her out in the deciding TB in a 6-1/3-6/7-6(0) victory.


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JUNIOR STARS: Ella Seidel/GER and Ranah Akua Stoiber/GBR
...in a week without any top level junior events, neither Seidel nor Stoiber claimed their maiden pro singles title, but both reached their first finals.

18-year old Seidel, a girls' Wimbledon quarterfinalist last year (and AO jr. 3r in January, where she lost to Stoiber), came the closet of the two to walking away with the crown. The German led Jaqueline Cristian twice by a break in the 3rd set, and served for the title at 6-5 before dropping serve and scoring zero points in the match-ending breaker.

17-year old Stoiber, a junior semifinalist in Melbourne earlier this year, reached her first final in the Monastir (TUN) $15K event, but fell love & 3 to China's Ren Yufei.
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WHEELCHAIR: Zhu Zhenzhen/CHN
...with the top of the wheelchair pyramid sitting out things a week after the Dutch claimed yet another World Team Cup, Zhu seized the opportunity to win her first singles title of 2023.

In the Series 2 event in Vendee, France, #6-ranked Zhu won a battle of Top 10 players in the final, defeating #10-ranked Brit Lucy Shuker in three sets.

Zhu won five singles title last season, but had seen most of her previous '23 success come on the doubles side, where she's won four times (she claimed 11 crowns in '22). Zhu was half of the doubles runner-up duo in Vendee.
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[Rome 1r-3r]

1. Rome 1st Rd. - Camila Osorio def. Varvara Gracheva
...7-6(4)/1-6/7-6(4). Osorio's second week run started off with a 1st Round thriller.

The Colombian qualifier took the 1st set from Gracheva after trailing 5-3. After the Russian knotted the match, she again grabbed the set lead (at 5-2) in the 3rd, holding three MP on Osorio's serve before serving for the win on her own a game later.

After Osorio turned the tide in her favor and served for the match at 6-5, it was Gracheva's turn to save match points (2 of them) and force the contest into a deciding TB. Osorio grabbed a 5-1 lead, then held off Gracheva down the stretch to win 7-4 on MP #4.


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2. Rome 2nd Rd. - Karolina Muchova def. Martina Trevisan
...3-6/6-3/7-5. Here she comes again.

Looking to make another nice run in a big event, Muchova led 4-0 in the 3rd before Trevisan reeled off five consecutive games and held a MP on the Czech's serve at 5-4. A game after her hold to stay alive, Muchova broke the Italian and then served out the match.


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3. Rome 2nd Rd. - Taylor Townsend def. Jessica Pegula 6-2/3-6/6-3
Rome 2nd Rd. - Sofia Kenin def. Aryna Sabalenka 7-6(4)/6-2
Rome 2nd Rd. - Paula Badosa def. Ons Jabeur 6-1/6-4
...as the draw opened wide, three of the top four seeds were swallowed whole.

Townsend picked up her first Top 10 win in four years, while Kenin posted her first in three seasons.



Badosa, though, notched her third this year, all three coming in less than a month on red clay (w/ Kasatkina in Stuttgart, and Gauff in Madrid).


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4. Rome 1st Rd. - Iga Swiatek def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
...6-0/6-0. Bagels #8 and #9 of 2023.

In lieu of flowers, Karolina Pliskova sent the Traveling Pants for Pavlyuchenkova to wear for a while until another is initiated into the Sisterhood.
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5. Rome 3rd Rd. - Alona Ostapenko def. Barbora Krejcikova
...7-6(2)/6-0. You must be THIS TALL in order to climb aboard the Tilt-a-Penko ride. Unfortunately for Krejcikova, she was just tall enough.

With most players, if they'd been down 5-1 in the 1st set a straight sets victory would seem a remote possibility. Not with Alona.

From 1-1, 30/love up, the Latvian proceeded to lose 16 straight points until she trailed 5-1. No problem, she just won five straight games, rallied from 0-2 down in the 1st set TB with a run of seven consecutive points, then won the 2nd at love to win this match-up of former RG singles champions.

While the unexploded ordnance that is the '17 winner in Paris is *the* true wild card not only in Rome but in the season's upcoming second major, the '21 champ from the Czech Republic is not carrying a lot of momentum at the moment. Krejcikova is just 5-4 on clay this year, and 7-7 over the past two seasons on the surface after her slam-winning 15-3 dominance on the dirt two seasons ago.


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6. Rome 1st Rd. - Barbora Strycova def. Maryna Zanevska
...6-1/3-6/6-3. Strycova gets her first post-motherland singles win, her first since the 2020 fall version of Roland Garros.

The Czech lost to Maria Sakkari in the 2nd Round.


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7. Rome 1st Rd. - Lisa Pigato def. Diletta Cherubini
...7-5/2-6/6-3. In a match-up of Italian wild cards, Pigato gets her first career WTA MD win. The 19-year old won the 2020 Roland Garros girls' doubles alongside fellow Italian Eleonora Alvisi, becoming the first all-ITA pair to win the crown in Paris since Pennetta/Vinci in 1999.

Pigato lost to Dasha Kasatkina in the 2nd Round.

Of course, Pigato is perhaps best known for "fangirling" Serena Williams while also making her tour debut in Parma as a 17-year old in 2021.


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8. Rome 2nd Rd. Marketa Vondrousova def. Bianca Andreescu
...6-0/6-1. Marketa "No Mercy" Vondrousova strikes again.

In the same week, Vondrousova didn't get the BJK Cup Heart nomination out of the CZE/UKR Qualifier tie despite going 2-0 (vs. the same two players that Barbora Krejcikova went 1-1 against) *and* clinching the tie in match 4 (after Krejcikova couldn't put it away in match 3).

The reason? Apparently, solely because Krejcikova donated her fee for playing the tie to relief for the earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.



Krejcikova is great and all, but shouldn't that sort of thing be honored with a different award?
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9. Rome Q1 - Dalma Galfi def. Genie Bouchard
...7-6(4)/6-3. There's something about defeating a former slam finalist turned journeywoman in the opening round of Rome qualifying.

Fast Fact: after going 23-5 in slam play over the five-major stretch from the 2014 AO to the 2015 AO, Bouchard has gone 16-19 (plus that late night slip-and-fall retirement in NYC) and lost in qualifying five times in majors since.
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10. Rome Q1 - Nao Hibino def. Kristina Mladenovic
...6-2/1-0 ret. The latest in a disappointing season, across the board, for Mladenovic.

At #153, and 5-10 on the season with this exit, the Pasty has yet to appear in a slam or 1000 MD (falling three times in qualifying) in '23. She wasn't able to play her way into any any singles MD in the eight 1000-level events held in 2022, either.

Mladenovic has also fallen out of the Top 10 in doubles, lost in the AO WD 2nd Round, and exited the MX at the same stage after winning the title in Melbourne in '22. She's 7-8 (and 1-1 MX) overall, and hasn't reached a doubles SF in any of the nine WTA/slam/ITF events she's entered.
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11. Rome 1st Rd. - Sofia Kenin def. Cristina Bucsa
...6-3/6-7(8)/7-5. Kenin's resurgent week began with her staging comebacks in both the 2nd and 3rd sets vs. Bucsa.

Kenin's 2nd set rally came up short, as she overcame Bucsa's 5-3 edge to force a TB. She led it 3-1 and came within two points of the win on four different occasions before the Spaniard won 10-8.

In the 3rd, Kenin saved three BP in game 4, then took a break lead a game later. Bucsa got it back to knot the set at 4-4, but Kenin's late break gave her a 6-5 lead. She served out the match at love.
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12. Rome 1st Rd. - Taylor Townsend def. Ysaline Bonaventure 4-6/6-1/7-5
Rome 3rd Rd. - Wang Xiyu def. Taylor Townsend 6-2/0-6/7-5
...the Tennis Gods giveth, as well as taketh away.

Townsend rallied to sweep the final four games after Bonaventure had led 3-1 and served for the match at 5-3 in the 3rd. Then, come Saturday, it was Townsend who led Wang 3-1 and 5-3 in the final set, serving at 5-4 and holding one MP.
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13. Rome 2nd Rd. - Victoria Azarenka def. Sloane Stephens
...6-4/6-3. With her second win over Stephens this season, after the two hadn't played in four years, Azarenka takes over the all-time head-to-head lead at 5-4.

Vika had lost four consecutive matches to Sloane in 2018-19, after having gone 3-0 in consecutive Australian Opens from 2013-15. In case you're wondering, the 2013 semifinal match-up was *that* AO semifinal match-up.

Unfortunately, Vika's disappointing spring continued before she could even play a second match, pulling out of her 3rd Rounder vs. Madison Keys with a leg injury.
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14. Rome 2nd Rd. - Caroline Garcia def. Ana Bogdan
...6-4/3-6/7-5. Garcia didn't last past Saturday, but she almost didn't make it out of her first match, having to stage a late comeback in the 3rd as Bogdan served for the match at 5-4, getting as close as 30/30 to the victory.
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15. Rome 2nd Rd. - Marie Bouzkova def. Caty McNally 6-4/6-3
Rome 3rd Rd. - Marie Bouzkova def. Coco Gauff 4-6/6-2/6-2
...Bouzkova completes the rare "McCoco double" in singles.


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16. Rome 3rd Rd. - Elena Rybakina def. Anna Kalinskaya
...4-3, ret. After wins over Dayana Yastremska and Elise Mertens, Kalinskaya was one big win away from a second week run in her Italian Open debut, bringing up the question of whether or not -- if she could make it through the weekend -- she could possibly physically make it through an *entire* two-week event without pulling up lame-...

Then she retired seven games into the 1st set vs. Rybakina. Because... naturally.
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17. Rome 1st Rd. - Anett Kontaveit def. Alycia Parks
...6-1/6-1. Kontaveit gets her first tour win (not counting her BJK victories) since February, before falling a round later to Liudmila Samsonova.


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18. $25K Bastad SWE Final - Maria Carle def. Ipek Oz
...6-4/6-3. The 23-year old Argentine, following in the path of countrywoman Julia Riera over the past few weeks, picks up her first challenger title of the season. Carle is 10-2 in career ITF finals.
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[Rome 1r-3r]



1. Rome 1st Rd. - Gabriela Ruse def. Linda Fruhvirtova
...6-1/6-0. Fruhvirtova's worst loss in a tour-level event.

Since her AO Round of 16 in January, Linda has gone 6-8 and hasn't posted consecutive wins in any tournament.
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2. Rome Q2 - Magdalena Frech def. Polina Kudermetova
...6-1/6-2. Veronika's 19-year old sister comes up short in her attempt to reach her maiden 1000 MD.

Kudermetova failed in previous WTA event Q-attempts in Moscow (2019) and Saint Petersburg (2020-21), but qualified and made her slam MD debut in Melbourne earlier this year.
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3. Rome 3rd Rd. - Veronika Kudermetova def. Anastasia Potapova
...7-5/3-6/6-1. Arriving off her Madrid SF, the senior Kudermetova sister is into the second week in Rome.

A year after her maiden slam QF in Paris, might Veronika's timing be perfect for her first real run at an upper-tier (SF+) result in a major?


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Regarding last weekend's doubles trophy ceremony in Madrid , where "Cakegate" (a minor offense) likely led to the decision to muzzle the women's finalists (quite a bit more offensive) to avoid any more messy "women's controversy." Hmmm, how'd that work out?



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Aka "The Logo"...




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I'm sure there's a tennis-related joke in there somewhere, right?


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Blah-blah-blah... HawkEye isn't 100%...blah-blah-blah. Yet it's acceptable that this embarrassing clownshow-ish annual rite of spring continues to go on year after year after year? How exactly is committing to something that (admittedly) isn't *100%* accurate -- but is an agreed-upon lesser-of-two-evils judge -- *not* a better choice that continuing to employ the current system, which also isn't 100% accurate, but single-handedly and without fail makes everyone look like an incompetent buffoon?

Just askin'.

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And that's a good thing, to a point (especially in the face of a rather fumbling tour apparatus when it comes to the issue). But -- and maybe it's just me -- I'd *also* like a world #1 who supports *all* her fellow players rather than publicly plotting against a group of them for something that they have nothing to do with.

Just sayin'.





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*RECENT WTA THREE-PEATS*
[singles]
2012-14 U.S. Open - Serena Williams
2012-14 WTA Finals - Serena Williams
2012-14 Stuttgart - Maria Sharapova
2013-15 Miami - Serena Williams
[doubles]
2012-14 Washington - Shuko Aoyama
2016-18 Linz - Johanna Larsson
2017-19 WTA Finals - Timea Babos
[mixed]
2019-21 Australian Open - Barbora Krejcikova
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NOTE: Swiatek going for third con. Rome WS title

*BADOSA TOP 10 WINS*
2021 (6)
#1 Barty, #2 Sabalenka, #3 Sabalenka, #5 Krejcikova, #6 Sakkari, #8 Swiatek
2022 (2)
#4 Krejcikova, #10 Jabeur
2023 (3)
#5 Gauff, #7 Jabeur, #8 Kasatkina

*2023 $100K FINALS*
Oeiras, POR (rc) - Danka Kovinic/MNE d. Rebeka Masarova/ESP
Charleston, USA (gc) - Emma Navarro/USA d. Peyton Stearns/USA
Bonita Springs, USA (gc) - Kayla Day/USA d. Ann Li/USA
Wiesbaden, GER (rc) - Elina Avanesyan/RUS d. Jaimee Fourlis/AUS
Trnava, SVK (rc) - Yanina Wickmayer/BEL def. Greet Minnen/BEL





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All for now.
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