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Saturday, January 13, 2024

Wk.2- A Bit of Thunder Down Under





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*WEEK 2 CHAMPIONS*
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA (WTA 500/Hard Court Outdoor)
S: Alona Ostapenko/LAT def. Dasha Kasatkina/RUS 6-3/6-2
D: Beatriz Haddad Maia/Taylor Townsend (BRA/USA) def. Caroline Garcia/Kristina Mladenovic (FRA/FRA) 7-5/6-3
HOBART, AUSTRALIA (WTA 250/Hard Court Outdoor)
S: Emma Navarro/USA def. Elise Mertens/BEL 6-1/4-6/7-5
D: Chan Hao-ching/Giuliana Olmos (TPE/MEX) def. Guo Hanyu/Jiang Xinyu (CHN/CHN) 6-3/6-3




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PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Alona Ostapenko/LAT
...starting off the new season by doing Latvian Thunder type things, Ostapenko aleady has two titles in 2024.

After taking the Brisbane doubles in Week 1, the Latvian improved upon her nice season-opening singles QF by hitting her way to her seventh career tour title and a return to the Top 10 for the first time since 2018 (sorry, Barbora).

After opening in Adelaide with three-set wins over Sorana Cirsta and Caroline Garcia, Ostapenko handled Marta Kostyuk, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Dasha Kasatina all in straights, defeating the latter in what was the Latvian's first singles final in Australia (in her 16th WTA final appearance).


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RISERS: Elise Mertens/BEL and Ekaterina Alexandrova/RUS
...Mertens has often risen to the occasion in Australia, and in Hobart in particular. The Belgian reached the AO semis in her tournament debut back in 2018, won back-to-back Hobart titles in 2017-18 and picked up the on-the-fly Gippsland crown early in the '21 campaign. She was back at it in Week 2, again in Hobart.

Mertens ran off wins over Danielle Collins, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Arantxa Rus and Dasha Saville to reach her 13th career WTA final. She staved off Emma Navarro's attempts to win in straights, saving six BP in game #9 of the 2nd to hold and then breaking to force a 3rd set. Mertens responded with a break back twice in the early going in the decider to keep things on serve, but after dropping serve to fall behind 6-5 couldn't do it a third time as Navarro prevailed.



Granted, Alexandrova's straight sets (6-3/6-3) win over Elena Rybakina in the Adelaide QF (career Top 10 win #12) might be looked upon with something of a raised eyebrow as the Kazakh was surely overdue to arrive in Melbourne after having already put in a full week of work in Week 1 in Brisbane, but the Hordette's semifinal run also saw her save four MP vs. '23 AO semifinalist Magda Linette and knock off fellow Russian Veronika Kudermetova en route to her first tour SF since her pre-U.S. Open runner-up result in The Land (as in Cleveland) last summer.

Alexandrova dropped her second straight match (w/ San Diego '23) to Alona Ostapenko, after having won five of their first seven encounters from 2015-22, but will still climb back into the Top 20 in the last pre-AO rankings.


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SURPRISE: Yuan Yue/CHN
...a late '23 first-time finalist in Seoul, Yuan has carried over the momentum into the new season. In Hobart, after a qualifying run that saw her knock off Diana Shnaider and Nadia Podoroska, she recorded MD wins over a slam champ (Sloane Stephens) via a 3rd set TB, the #4 seed (countrywoman Wang Xinyu) and Yulia Putintseva (saving 5 SP in the 2nd to win in straights) to reach her second tour-level semifinal.

Emma Navarro proved to be too much in the end, but Yuan stands at 6-2 in '24 as she'll next seek her first career AO MD win vs. Katie Boulter in a 1st Round encounter that could then lead to a 2nd Round match vs. #12-seeded countrywoman Zheng Qinwen.
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VETERANS: Laura Siegemund/GER and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova/RUS
...fresh from winning the deciding MX doubles via a pair of MTB for Germany in both the SF and Final at the United Cup, Siegemund arrived in Adelaide ready to pull double duty there in Week 2.

In her '24 singles debut, she took down Liudmila Samsonova in three sets (from 4-2 down in the 3rd), then defeated Ana Bogdan to reach the QF. Meanwhile, she teamed with Barbora Krejcikova to reach the WD quarters before pulling out of both events.

Krejcikova/Siegemund, who were the top two individual WD title-winners on tour in '23 (Siegemund w/ 5 and Krejcikova w/ 4, tied w/ Siegemund's regular partner Vera Zvonareva), are the #5 seeds at the AO.



Pavlyuchenkova rebounded from her 1st Round loss in Auckland with an Adelaide QF. The veteran Hordette qualified (def. Ana Bogdan), then posted MD wins over Beatriz Haddad Maia and Katerina Siniakova. Against Jessie Pegula, she took the 1st set TB but dropped the 2nd/3rd by 5 & 4 scores. Still, she'll climb back into the Top 50 in the final pre-AO rankings.

Also, Pavlyuchenkova earned the early season honor for the best pre-match moment of '24 (so far), as she sweetly didn't allow a young fan to be embarrassed in what could have been an awkward moment and simply went along with the Ask a Question/Get an Answer pact with an even better response than anyone could have anticipated.


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COMEBACK: Dasha Saville/AUS
...Saville has missed much time the last few years with knee injuries, but she hasn't labored when she's finally returned to the court, reaching at least the semifinals in one or more tour events in each of the last three seasons. She won a tour title (Granby) and reached another SF (Washington) in '22, and last year played in the semis in Hamburg.

Back again and at it in Hobart, the Aussie reached another semifinal after posting three consecutive Top 50 wins (a first in nearly two years) over Anna Blinkova, Sofia Kenin and Zhu Lin. She put up a fight vs. top seeded Elise Mertens, and was knotted at 5-5 in the 3rd set before the Belgian got the late break and held to secure the win.


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FRESH FACE: Emma Navarro/USA
...the quiet rise of Navarro (she went 19-4 to close out last season) gained still more speed in Week 2, as well as producing at least a low murmur in Hobart.

The 22-year old former NCAA champ ('21 as a freshman at Virginia), operated most of last season under the radar while lifting her ranking into the Top 40 by year's end. As the '24 season got underway, she secured her first slam seed for the AO, and opened with a semifinal in Auckland in Week 1. Week 2 was no different, and actually even better.

Navarro strung together wins over Clara Burel, Magdalena Frech, Viktoriya Tomova and Yuan Yue to reach her maiden tour final. Against two-time Hobart champ Elise Mertens, Navarro prevailed in three sets to claim her first tour-level singles title and crack the Top 30 for the first time (at #26) as she heads off to Melbourne. Navarro is out to a 7-1 start in '24, and is 26-5 since last fall.

Navarro is the third Bannerette (after Alycia Parks and Ashlyn Krueger) to become a first-time tour singles champion in the past year.



NOTE: Emma's father Ben owns this spring's Charleston Open, so one might say that (should she play) she'd have perhaps the biggest "home court advantage" of any player on tour there this season.
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DOWN: Liudmila Samsonova/RUS and Sara Sorribes Tormo/ESP
...while some players often burst out of the gate into the new season, that seems to be a foreign concept to Samsonova, who has put together multiple good seasons despite being consistently slow to find her form. Even while playing events in both of the '24 season's two opening weeks, the Hordette remains winless after falling 2 & 1 to 16-year old Mirra Andreeva in the Brisbane 1st Round and this week following that up with a three-set defeat at the hands of 35-year old Laura Siegemund in Adelaide.

So far, over the last four seasons, Samsonova had gone a combined 8-12 in Australia with 1r-2r-2r AO results. She'll open in Melbourne vs. Amanda Anisimova.

Sorribes Tormo went 0-2 in United Cup play in Week 1, with losses to Beatriz Haddad Maia and Iga Swiatek. Looking to rebound in Hobart, the Spaniard fell in her opening match to Magdalena Frech in three sets (after taking the 1st at love).
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JUNIOR STARS: Maya Joint/AUS and Melisa Ercan/AUS
...the Australian women, with the likes of Ajla Tomljanovic and Dasha Saville missing time with injury, didn't do well in singles over the course of the '23 season, with none finishing in the Top 100. But the next generation of Aussie stars are coming, from current girls' #9 Emeron Jones to teens Taylah Preston and Talia Gibson. Joint and Ercan are also part of that crew.

Both were involved as wild cards in Australian Open qualifying this week. Neither ultimately reached her maiden slam MD, but both performed admirably.

Joint, a University of Texas commit, arrived fresh off a WTA 125 QF in Canberra in Week 1 during which she defeated veteran Sara Errani and young German Ella Seidel. The 17-year old had posted a $60K SF in Sydney at the end of last season, as well as a $25K QF. In Melbourne, she reached the final round of qualifying, forcing a 3rd vs. top seed Dayana Yastremska before coming up just short in a 6-4 decider.



A year ago, another Aussie, 18-year old Ercan (while playing under the flag of Turkey) won the pre-AO junior crown at Traralgon, defeating both of the would-be Australian Open girls' finalists -- Alina Korneeva and Mirra Andreeva -- in her final two matches.

This week in Melbourne, Ercan posted her first slam match win on the women's tour with a Q1 defeat of Lily Miyazaki. The teenager led the Brit 6-4/4-1 before suffering cramps in her calf that nearly ended her run. She played with the pain, losing ten straight points, but pushed through to win a 2nd set TB and get the straight sets victory. Still, she was taken off the court in a wheelchair (but still stopped to say a few words).



Ercan left it all behind on that court, as she wasn't able to play her Q2 match. Even with a win, though, it likely could never have been more memorable than the heroics seen in her debut.

By the way, this year's big pre-AO junior event in Traralgon has already kicked off, with Brit Hannah Klugman and Aussie Jones the top two seeds.
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DOUBLES: Beatriz Haddad Maia/Taylor Townsend, BRA/USA and Chan Hao-ching/Giuliana Olmos, CHN/MEX
...Townsend has become quite adept at picking up doubles titles during her January trips to Australia & New Zealand. Back in 2012 she won the AO girls' doubles (and the singles, too). Eight years later, she claimed her maiden tour WD crown in Auckland, and last year she swept *both* versions of the tournament in Adelaide (w/ two different partners). This week she defended her title(s) with yet another partner, teaming with Haddad Maia to win their first title as a pair (#5 for Townsend, #7 for the Brazilian) with a 7-5/6-3 win in the final over Pastries Caroline Garcia & Kristina Mladenovic (who were playing in their first non-slam final together since 2016).



In Hobart, Chan teamed with Olmos to win their first title as a duo, knocking off Hozumi/Ninomiya in the semis, then Guo Hanyu/Jiang Xinyu in a 3 & 3 final. The pair previously reached a final in Beijing together last fall. It's Chan's 20th career title, while Olmos (ex-USC) now has six.


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WHEELCHAIR: Yui Kamiji/JPN
...while Diede de Groot took a pass on the event, Kamiji once again ruled the #1-free field at the Victorian Wheelchair Open, sweeping the s/d titles at the Series 1 tournament.

Kamiji posted four wins on the week, finishing off with a victory in the final over Aniek Van Koot. She and Kgothatso Montjane took the doubles crown.

Kamiji is 96-2 vs. non-de Groot competition the last three seasons.

De Groot makes her '24 debut, with her 127-match winning streak in ITF events (she actually added "unofficial" extra wins last month in the Dutch national championship), in the Super Series Melbourne Open event this week.
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1. Adelaide 1st Rd. - Ekaterina Alexandrova def. Magda Linette
...3-6/7-6(8)/7-5. Linette, an AO semifinalist a year ago, will have to make a big leap in Melbourne to back that result up.

The Pole served for the match at 6-3/6-5. After failing to put it away, she turned around a 3-1 TB deficit to lead 6-4, holding four MP before Alexandrova won 10-8 to force a deciding 3rd set. Linette led 5-3 there, too, and served at 5-4, 30/30 before dropping 11 straight points and 14 of the last 15 in the match.

Linette won the ace/DF ratio battle 9/2 to Alexandrova's 3/10, but it was the Hordette who moved on.
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2. Hobart 1st Rd. - Yulia Putintseva def. Elisabetta Cocciaretto
...0-6/7-5/7-6(4). Usually it's Putintseva losing matches from MP up, but this time the Kazakh turned the tables.

Cocciaretto raced out to a 6-0/4-0 lead, holding a MP and serving up 5-2 after having trailed 15/40. Putintseva got the break on her fifth BP. The Italian served for the match again at 5-4, 30/30 in the 2nd, and yet again at 5-4 in the 3rd.



Putintseva danced her way into the QF with a three-set win over Marie Bouzkova.


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3. Hobart QF - Yuan Yue def. Yulia Putintseva
...7-5/7-6(4). Putintseva then faltered vs. Yuan two rounds later, falling in straights though she had numerous chances to push things to three. Putintseva led 5-3 in the 2nd, had her first SP in game 9, then four more (three in a row up 40/love) in game 10 before eventually going out in a TB.
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4. Hobart Final - Emma Navarro def. Elise Mertens
...6-1/4-6/7-5. In denying Mertens her third Hobart crown, Navarro becomes the first maiden tour singles champ to be crowned in January since Ekaterina Alexandrova in 2020's Week 1 in Shenzhen, and the first to do it in Australia since Sofia Kenin (Hobart) in 2019.


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5. Adelaide 2nd Rd. - Dasha Kasatkina def. Anna Kalinskaya
...5-7/6-4/7-5. Another long Week 2 comeback, as Kasatkina fell behind 7-5/4-0 and saw Kalinskaya hold a GP for 5-0. Kalinskaya led 5-3 in the 3rd, as well.

Of note, 9 of the 12 games in the 3rd featured breaks of serve, as well as 14 of 22 games in the final two sets.


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6. Adelaide Final - Alona Ostapenko def. Dasha Kasatkina
...6-3/6-2. In their first meeting in a final since 2017 in Charleston (won by Kasatkina 6-3/6-1), Ostapenko flips the script (and the scoreboard).

While Ostapenko put in a full week to reach the final, Kasatkina had gotten a win over Claire Liu, then rallied from a set and 4-0 down vs. Anna Kalinskaya to reach her second QF in two weeks. After that... ummm... she got walkovers in the QF (Laura Siegmund) *and* SF (Jessie Pegula) to reach her second straight Adelaide final. She lost in last year's title match (in Adelaide #2) to Belinda Bencic by a 6-0/6-2 score.



Meanwhile, who says she's not self-aware (or a master of understatement)?


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7. Hobart 1st Rd. - Yuan Yue def. Sloane Stephens
...6-4/3-6/7-6(5). Yuan led 4-1 in the 3rd, but Stephens flipped the switch and found herself serving at 6-5. She got within two of the win three times in game 12, but Yuan ultimately forced a TB. Stephens led 5-4 there, but Yuan swept the final three points.

A good sign for Sloane? She was mighty PO'd at blowing those leads. (Hey, sometimes you have to search when it comes to Stephens.)


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8. Adelaide 1st Rd. - Laura Siegemund def. Liudmila Samsonova
...6-7(1)/6-4/6-4. Days after helping to win deciding MX matches in the United Cup SF and Final for Germany, Siegemund makes her '24 singles debut, roaring back from 4-2 down in the 3rd to keep Samsonova winless on the season.


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1. Hobart 1st Rd. - Anna Karolina Schmiedlova def. Camila Osorio
...1-6/7-6(4)/7-5. Osorio has an impressive career record in three-set matches, but not this time. The Colombian led AKS 6-1/3-1, as well as 5-1 in the 3rd (holding a MP), but limped over the finish line (w/ a wrapped left thigh) as the Slovak pulled away for the win.
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*TOP Q-PLAYERS*

1. Alina Korneeva, RUS (16, #180) ...a year after winning the AO junior crown, Korneeva returns to qualify and become the youngest member of the women's MD.

In her slam debut, the 16-year old battled back from a break down twice in the 3rd in the Q1 vs. #31-seed Sachia Vickery, saved two MP against Ma Yexin in the Q2, then upset #11 Anna Bondar in the final round.


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2. Renata Zarazua, MEX (26, #98) ...there's always a "first to..." waiting to happen somewhere, and Zarazua's Q-run makes her the first Mexican to find a place in the AO women's draw since 2000 (Angélica Gavaldón, a two-time AO quarterfinalist who reached the 2nd Round that year).

Zarazua struggled to get past Jule Niemeier in the Q2, failing to put the German away in straights and nearly squandering a 5-0 3rd set (she won a deciding MTB on MP #5), then took out Aussie Destanee Aiava in three in the Q3 after dropping a 1st set TB.


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3. Storm Hunter, AUS (29, #179) ...the world doubles #1 has once again found her way into a slam singles MD. After defeating veteran Kaia Kanepi and #30-seeded teen Celine Naef, Hunter outlasted Czech Dominika Salkova in three sets to secure her spot. In the last five slams, Hunter has come in ranked well off the automatic entry list but reached the MD each time via a WC-Q-Q-WC-Q string of open doors. In her other five slam MD appearances (stretched out from 2014-22), she's been a WC four times and a qualifier once.

So far, she's 0-5 in career AO 1st Rounds, and 1-10 overall in slam MD singles matches.


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4. Yulia Starodubtseva, UKR (23, #157) ...the Ukrainian carried over her '23 challenger success to Melbourne. The Old Dominion University product, after not playing a pro event for four years, went 4-2 in ITF finals last season and nearly cracked the Top 150. In Melbourne, she secured her slam MD debut with wins over Maria Capurro Taborda, #12 Harriet Dart (Canberra 125 finalist in Week 1) and Gabriela Knutson (a U.S.-born Czech who also played NCAA ball, at Syracuse).


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5. Ella Seidel, GER (18, #172) ...the fourth (and oldest) teen to pull off a successful AO qualifying run this week, Seidel opened with an upset of #8 Elli Mandlik, then survived Francesca Jones (who was felled by cramps after holding a commanding lead) before taking down #19 Hailey Baptiste to reach her maiden slam MD.


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*OTHER AO QUALIFIERS*

Sara Bejlek, CZE (17/#134)
Fiona Ferro, FRA (26/#154)
Brenda Fruhvirtova, CZE (16/#110)
Leolia Jeanjean, FRA (28/#145)
Rebecca Marino, CAN (33/#182)
Daria Snigur, UKR (21/#136)
Lulu Sun, SUI (22/#189)
Maria Timofeeva, RUS (20/#144)
Katie Volynets, USA (22/#103)
Dayana Yastremska, UKR (23/#96)
Anastasia Zakharova, RUS (21/#191)

AO Q1 - #11 Anna Bondar def. (PR) Hsieh Su-wei 7-6(3)/6-4
...Hsieh had announced that she would end her singles career with this Australian Open. A quarterfinalist in her last appearance in Melbourne in 2021, her solo goodbye only lasted a single qualifying round. She's continuing on in doubles (she won two slams in '23).


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AO Q1 - Ankita Raina def. Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6-4/5-7/7-6(4)
...in what is now something of a "tradition," Raina and Bouzas Maneiro met yet again in the opening round of slam qualifying. Bouzas Maneiro got the three-set win last year at Wimbledon, but it was Raina who prevailed this time despite the Spaniard being up a break twice in the 3rd and holding a MP on the Indian's serve at 5-3. Bouzas Maneiro had 5 BP chances at 5-5, but Raina converted on her 8th GP to hold.

Bouzas Maneiro saved a MP at 5-6 to force the deciding breaker, but then lost a 3-0 MTB lead as Raina won it 10-4.


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AO Q1 - (WC) Maya Joint def. Natalija Stevanovic 6-3/1-6/7-5
AO Q1 - (WC) Melica Ercan def. Lily Miyazaki 6-4/7-6(5)
AO Q1 - (WC) Talia Gibson def. Andreea Mitu 6-3/1-6/6-2
...the next wave of Aussie teens make their mark in the opening round of qualifying, accounting for three of the nine Q1 wins (the most in 36 years) for the home contingent. It's the first time since 1999 that three AUS teens won Q1 matches.

Due to servere cramping, Ercan nearly lost a 6-4/4-1 lead vs. Miyazaki, playing on while losing ten straight points. She ultimately won a 2nd set TB to take the match, then was taken off the court in a wheelchair.



Ercan didn't play her Q2 match, while Gibson fell to Czech teen Linda Fruhvirtova in the second round. Joint lost out to #1 seed Dayana Yastremska in the final round.
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AO Q2 - #2 Renata Zarazua def. Jule Niemeier 6-4/5-7/7-6(9)
...former Wimbledon quarterfinalist (2021) Niemeier falls in qualifying at a second straight slam, but not without a fight. The German forced a 2nd set TB from 6-4/2-0 back, then sent things to a 3rd set MTB after having trailed 5-0 with Zarazua serving for the match three times. In the breaker, the Mexican led 9-5 but it took until MP #5 for her to finally win 11-9.
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AO Q2 - Polina Kudermetova def. #5 Erika Andreeva 6-3/6-2
...Polina K. wins in the all-Hordette clash of lesser-known younger sisters. Younger sibling Mirra Andreeva was set to be youngest player in the women's MD at a fourth straight slam, until fellow Russian Alina Korneeva (who defeated her in last year's AO junior final) made her way through qualifying to top her once again.


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AO Q2 - Ella Seidel def. (PR) Francesca Jones 6-3/6-7(5)/4-4 ret.
...Jones continues to battle a series of medical and injury-related challenges in her tennis career. Here she led Seidel 4-0 in the 3rd before debilitating cramps caused her to crash out without winning another game. After receiving a point penalty at 4-3 because she wasn't ready to play, the Brit retired at the end of the next game.


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AO Q1 - Alina Korneeva def. #31 Sachia Vickery 6-4/3-6/7-5
AO Q2 - Alina Korneeva def. Ma Yexin 6-7/6-4/7-6(5)
...after rallying from a break down twice in the 3rd set in her women's slam debut vs. Vickery, '23 AO girls' champ saves two MP en route to downing Ma.


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AO Q3 - #3 Katie Volynets def. #25 Julia Riera 3-6/7-6(4)/7-5
...Volynets complete her *third* straight Australian Open qualifying run, and second in a row (w/ U.S.) in slam competition.

Now, to be ranked high enough to not *have* to go through qualifying at *every* major. She reached the AO 3rd Round last year.
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AO Q3 - Leolia Jeanjean def. #26 Eva Lys 2-6/7-6(4)/6-3
...Lys rallied from 4-1 back in the 2nd set to reach MP at 6-5, and then led 3-1 in 2nd set TB. After that, her chances slipped away.
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AO Q3 - #10 Brenda Fruhvirtova def. Wei Sijia 6-2/6-4
AO Q3 - #22 Sara Bejlek def. Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove 6-3/6-4
...a Czech Crusher with a slam Q-run? Check, and check.

For 16-year old Fruhvirtova, it's her second straight in Melbourne and third in the last five slams; for 17-year old Bejlek, it's two straight AO and four of the last six slams.


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AO Q3 - Maria Timofeeva def. Priscilla Hon 6-2/4-6/6-1
...last season, Timofeeva won her maiden tour title in her very first tour-level MD appearance (as a LL, no less). She now makes her slam MD debut after knocking off a second straight Aussie (Q2 def. #16 Astra Sharma). She'll face Alize Cornet, in the veteran Pastry's WTA record 68th consecutive slam MD appearance.
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via GIPHY




NOTE: Due to the overwhelming time difference and new AO schedule, I'll be experimenting a bit with the Daily Backspin for this Australian Open, as it'll likely be an "Almost Daily" edition, at least in the early going. With the 1st Round spread out over three days for the first time (and a Sunday start, which is Saturday night at Backspin HQ), there won't necessarily be a post for each day (at least not the usual *full* version). The first might go up in the middle of Day 2, and/or there may be simply a recap of the *overall* 1st Round rather than a rehash of all three days in the early morning hours.

Of course, who knows, since the NFL is either trying to hide games during its opening playoff weekend (N-O to Peacock), postponing them altogether and rescheduling at a stupid time that now makes a mockery of the so-called "Super Wild Card Weekend," the AO may be a port of normalcy in the storm and things will end up adhering pretty close to the regular schedule.

I'll play it by ear, according to what happens.






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2014 AO semifinalist...




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An Australian Open Vika restrospective. First, the day-glo yellow outfit that could (I was certain) be seen from space, and the Original Shorts...



When they talk about the Australian "love" of Vika, remember the early days when she wasn't the underdog and won back-to-back titles. She was more like Public Enemy #1 than Fan Favorite Down Under back then. The MTO (vs. Stephens in the '13 semis) and "Cheaterenka" label (which wasn't just one isolated fan carrying a sign) that brought that relationship to its nadir, which "celebrates" its 11th anniversary this year...



Azarenka won her only two career slam singles titles in Melbourne. The hope back then was for a third (but the wait has never been answered)...






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**U.S. WOMAN WINS MAIDEN WTA TITLE - active**
1998: Venus Williams (Memphis)
2014: Madison Keys (Eastbourne)
2014: Alison Riske-A. (Tianjin)
2015: Sloane Stephens (Washington)
2017: Lauren Davis (Auckland)
2019: Sonya Kenin (Hobart)
2019: Amanda Anisimova (Bogota)
2019: Jessica Pegula (Washington)
2019: Coco Gauff (Linz)
2020: Jennifer Brady (Lexington)
2021: Danielle Collins (Palermo)
2021: Ann Li (Tenerife)
2022: Bernarda Pera (Budapest)
2023: Alycia Parks (Lyon)
2023: Ashlyn Krueger (Osaka)
2024: Emma Navarro (Hobart)

**MOST RECENT FIRST-TIME CHAMPS IN JANUARY**
=2014 Week 2=
Tsvetana Pironkova (SYDNEY), Garbine Muguruza (HOBART)
=2017 Week 1=
Katerina Siniakova (SHENZHEN), Lauren Davis (AUCKLAND)
=2017 Week 2=
Elise Mertens (HOBART)
=2019 Week 2=
Sonia Kenin (HOBART)
=2020 Week 1=
Ekaterina Alexandrova (SHENZHEN)
=2024 Week 2=
Emma Navarro (HOBART)

*RECENT AUSTRALIAN OPEN "Q-PLAYER OF THE WEEK" WINNERS*
2016 Naomi Osaka, JPN
2017 Elizaveta Kulichkova, RUS
2018 Marta Kostyuk, UKR
2019 Astra Sharma, AUS
2020 Ann Li, USA
2021 Francesca Jones, GBR
2022 Hailey Baptiste, USA
2023 Katherine Sebov, CAN
2024 Alina Korneeva, RUS

=MAKING SLAM MD DEBUT AT AO=
McCartney Kessler, USA (WC, 24)
Alina Korneeva, RUS (Q, 16)
Taylah Preston, AUS (WC, 18)
Ella Seidel, GER (Q, 18)
Yulia Starodubtseva, UKR (Q, 23)
Luly Sun, SUI (Q, 22)
Maria Timofeeva, RUS (Q, 20)
Anastasia Zakharova, RUS (Q, 21)

=LOW-RANKED 2024 AO QUALIFIERS=
#191 - Anastasia Zakharova, RUS
#189 - Lulu Sun, SUI
#182 - Rebecca Marino, CAN
#180 - Alina Korneeva, RUS

*2024 AUSTRALIAN OPEN...*
=WILD CARDS=
Kimberly Birrell, AUS (25)
Alice Cornet, FRA (33)
Olivia Gadecki, AUS (21)
Mai Hontama, JPN (24)
McCartney Kessler, USA (24)
Taylah Preston, AUS (18)
Dasha Saville, AUS (29)
Caroline Wozniacki, DEN (33)
=MD w/ PROTECTED RANKING=
Amanda Anisimova, USA (22)
Angelique Kerber, GER (35)
Aleksandra Krunic, SRB (30)
Naomi Osaka, JPN (26)
Emma Raducanu, GBR (21)
Shelby Rogers, USA (31)
Ajla Tomljanovic, AUS (30)

*2024 AUSTRALIAN OPEN...*
=youngest in MD=
16 - Aline Korneeva, RUS (Q) - DOB: June 23, 2007
16 - Mirra Andreeva, RUS - DOB: April 29, 2007
16 - Brenda Fruhvirtova, CZE (Q) - DOB: April 2, 2007
17 - Sara Bejlek, CZE (Q) - DOB: January 31, 2006
18 - Taylah Preston, AUS (WC) - DOB: October 27, 2005
18 - Linda Fruhvirtova, CZE - DOB: May 1, 2005
18 - Ella Seidel, GER (Q) - DOB: February 14, 2005
19 - Linda Noskova, CZE - DOB: November 17, 2004
19 - Ashlyn Krueger, USA (WC) - DOB: May 7, 2004
19 - Diana Shnaider, RUS - DOB: April 2, 2004
19 - Coco Gauff, USA - DOB: March 13, 2004
=oldest=
36 - Sara Errani, ITA - DOB: April 29, 1987
36 - Tatjana Maria, GER - DOB: August 8, 1987
35 - Angelique Kerber, GER (PR) - DOB: January 18, 1988
35 - Laura Siegemund, GER - DOB: March 4, 1988
34 - Lesia Tsurenko, UKR - DOB: May 30, 1989
34 - Victoria Azarenka, BLR - DOB: July 31, 1989
34 - Yanina Wickmayer, BEL - DOB: October 20, 1989

*IN WOMEN'S SLAM SINGLES MD...*
[oldest]
=2022=
AO: Samantha Stosur, AUS (37)
RG: Kaia Kanepi, EST (36)
WI: Serena Williams, USA (40)
US: Venus Williams, USA (42)
=2023=
AO: Kaia Kanepi, EST (37)
RG: Kaia Kanepi, EST (37)
WI: Venus Williams, USA (43)
US: Venus Williams, USA (43)
=2024=
AO: Sara Errani, ITA (36)
[youngest]
=2022=
AO: Coco Gauff, USA (17)
RG: Linda Noskova, CZE (17)
WI: Coco Gauff, USA (18)
US: Sara Bejlek, CZE (16)
=2023=
AO: Brenda Fruhvirtova, CZE (15)
RG: Mirra Andreeva, RUS (16)
WI: Mirra Andreeva, RUS (16)
US: Mirra Andreeva, RUS (16)
=2024=
AO: Alina Korneeva, RUS (16)






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