Has women's tennis found a dominant trio?
The WTA Tour Championship isn’t as glamorous or widely followed as the Grand Slams, but out of all the WTA tournaments of the year, this one ranks just below the Grand Slams; both in terms of level of competition and the quality of players participating. The last week at Istanbul offered a slice of what the best in women’s tennis can offer. Unlike the previous year, which had 8 different finalists for the 4 Grand Slams and the WTA championship, 2012 has had only 5 different names for this bracket of tournaments, and two out of those 5 will vie for the final hurrah of this season later today.
A 4th round Australian Open exit and a round-1 shock defeat at the French Open had critics and onlookers suggesting Serena Williams should retire, and that she is not being competitive enough on the circuit. Since the Paris tour, things have turned upside down, literally – Wimbledon glory, Olympics gold, US Open win and in the process, becoming the only player in the history (male or female) to complete a Career Golden Grand Slam in both the singles and doubles! With 15 Grand Slam titles, she is an undisputed legend of women’s tennis and this year has been extra special for her.
During the semi-final match against Radwanska, a stat read that during the road to the semis Randwanska had an on-court run of about 9 kilometers, while the number for Serena was about 4 kilometers. While this huge difference relates to the difference in the style of operation, the stats also speak about the utter dominance of Serena amongst the best in the business. These days you can expect Serena to be one of the finalists of any major tournament, and find a stiff contest for the second berth. You could say that Serena isn’t the greatest women’s tennis player, but stats and championship trophies apart, she has been the most consistent/dominant player on the circuit over the last decade or so. She has mastered the art of optimizing her performances to overhaul the strengths of the opponent; she has an answer to Randwanska’s court coverage, she finds a way to counter Azarenka’s angles and subtle variations and has a counter punch to Sharapova’s power and grit!
A couple of names mentioned above (other than Serena) have been in and around the limelight for some time in 2012. Apart from Serena, Sharapova has had 2012 as a renaissance year. Her worst performance of the year was a 4th round exit at Wimbledon and a year-end ranking of 2 is testimony to that. A clear uplift in her game has been the way she responds to a game or set down situation and a marked improvement in the ability to maneuver around the court. The year-end championship has seen her play some fine tennis but it is highly unlikely that she could obstruct Serena’s bulldozing run. There is Victoria Azarenka amid that mix and she is one who has gradually grown into a top-class player. A first Grand Slam (Australian Open) and a year-end ranking of 1 makes 2012 a successful year for Azarenka.
Like the trio in men’s tennis that has ruled the discipline, it appears that the trio of Serena-Azarenka-Sharapova has emerged during this season; one can’t say with certainty whether the 3 can dominate women’s tennis over a long period the way Federer-Nadal-Djokovic have done in the men’s circuit. Post-medical issues, Serena has hit a purple patch and has the potential to dominate another season. Azarenka is raising her game by every passing season and her rankings trend suggests that a few Slam finals will bear her name in 2013.
The dodgy name in that trio is Maria Sharapova. Though she has found a second wind to her career along with positive modifications to her technique, her game doesn’t assure consistency; the number 1 ranking followed by a 4th round exit at Wimbledon earlier this year reiterates this. Women’s tennis players and consistent champions haven’t fallen into the same bag traditionally; the likes of Randwanska, Kvitova, Errani and a few others would like to believe that 2013 will follow this trend! Until then, let us sit back and witness another Serena rollover or a resurgent Sharapova special later today.