Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 8, 2021 23:02:13 GMT 1
At the age of 18 - Emma Raducanu will be the new Women's British #1 once the updated rankings are released (heard she will be ranked at least around 50) but more importantly, she is in the semi final of the US Open after beating the current Olympic Champion Belinda Bencic in straight sets.
Again a shaky start from Emma in the 1st set, as she lost her serve and got outpowered by Bencic's groundstrokes. Soon after, it was a similar story to her previous encounters and broke back twice and completely outplayed her opponent.
She's played 8 matches at the US Open and so far hasn't dropped a set nor participated in a set tie break. Most likely she will play Karolina Pliskova tomorrow - a former US Open and Wimbledon finalist.
I wonder what the odds are for SPOTY this year in an already competitive year for Emma Raducanu should she win it. She'll be a hot favourite for Young SPOTY if she's not on the list.
|
|
Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 8, 2021 23:02:35 GMT 1
Following Krejcikova loss to Sabalenka last night, there will be a 1st time Grand Slam winner in the Women's singles and following the USO tradition of first time winners since Serena Williams won the last of USO titles in 2014. Only Angelique Kerber in 2016 and Naomi Osaka in 2020 became multi Grand Slam Champions in recent years.
In doubles news - Joe Salisbury / Rajeev Ram and Jamie Murray / Bruno Soares are in the semi finals of the Men's doubles. If they win their respective matches tomorrow, they will face each other in the final
Also Joe Salisbury has partnered with Desiree Krawczyk once again in the Mixed Doubles and is a match win away from another final.
|
|
rewardman
Member
*rock n roll juvenile*
Posts: 31,424
|
Post by rewardman on Sept 8, 2021 23:25:57 GMT 1
Absolutely outstanding performance by Emma Raducanu so far.
It would be amazing if she could make the final.
|
|
|
Post by Panda on Sept 9, 2021 0:21:23 GMT 1
I wonder what the odds are for SPOTY this year in an already competitive year for Emma Raducanu should she win it. She'll be a hot favourite for Young SPOTY if she's not on the list. Unless there's a change in the rules, she's not eligible for Young SPOTY as you have to be 17 or under at the start of the year. Raducanu turned 18 last November. For the main award she's now second favourite behind Tom Daley. Best price is 11/2 but she's as short as 7/2 in some places.
|
|
Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 9, 2021 1:51:15 GMT 1
Most likely she will play Karolina Pliskova tomorrow - a former US Open and Wimbledon finalist. Scrub what I said earlier about her meeting Karolina Pliskova.
Emma now plays in the semi final tomorrow against 17th seed Greek player Maria Sakkari - who herself was a French Open semi finalist this year.
|
|
|
Post by rubcale on Sept 9, 2021 10:28:55 GMT 1
Good to see Jamie Murray recovering some form in the doubles.
I really wasn't sure how Raduancu would go in the quarters - Bencic was definitely a big step up but she handled it well after an early wobble - she won her last two servive games from 0-30.
I've always looked on a Major semi as something of a benchmark - there is definitely a different feel to it from previous matches - I just hope she doesn't react adversely to it - although she's proved tough to date.
Sakarri actually had a match point in the French semi.
You'd have to think she is favourite but fingers crossed.
|
|
Tom
Member
*Of Royal Blood*
Posts: 15,419
|
Post by Tom on Sept 9, 2021 10:56:53 GMT 1
Will post some thoughts later but just to say thanks to Pablo for his updates. Some info there that I wasn't aware of before.
|
|
Tom
Member
*Of Royal Blood*
Posts: 15,419
|
Post by Tom on Sept 9, 2021 21:25:09 GMT 1
Will do this in two parts, the second one tomorrow.
Main draw Week 1
As soon as I discovered that Konta's retirement was a new injury I thought the end of her career was coming, so it wasn't a surprise to later read that she's now contemplating retirement.
I do agree with rubcale on Norrie actually, his results do seem to have dropped off since winning that title. Maybe the last year is just starting to catch up on him? Although his first round defeat didn't look as bad as it first appeared given what Alcaraz went on to do later.
I'm more optimistic about Murray too, though it doesn't change my view that if he's not back in the top 100 I'm still not sure he'll be around next year, and he'll now drop down the rankings as he had points from last year to defend. I think there's less motivation to continue if he's not getting the results, at least if he was injured he'd have something to look forward to when fit, especially given his surprisingly negative comments before the US Open. He was disappointed with how he was playing and said that if there were any physical issues then he could accept it but he felt fine. I'm sure he'll play Indian Wells which has been rescheduled for next month but otherwise he should scrap the Masters events and stick to the smaller events even play challengers if necessary.
Tsitsipas has history of doing that. Apparently in one of the events just before the US Open he took an 8 min break and was even accused by his opponent of texting. Murray even warned his team that it was likely to happen.
Joe Salisbury/Ram and Jamie Murray/Bruno Soares won their matches earlier so that all British final will now happen.
|
|
Robbie
Member
*Funky!*
Posts: 24,990
|
Post by Robbie on Sept 10, 2021 10:04:32 GMT 1
Great result for Emma Raducanu. I watched all but the first three games and thought she played very well. Fingers crossed for the final.
|
|
Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 10, 2021 11:12:44 GMT 1
Fantastic result for Emma to win against Sakkari. It will be some achievement if she wins on Saturday.
Hard to call who is favourite for the final. I haven't even heard of Laylah Fernandez prior to the USO but she has beaten some top names in the run up to the final, whereas Emma has arguably beaten her opponents more comfortably. Could fatigue play a factor too for Emma due to playing more matches?
Whatever the case is, best of luck to Emma!
|
|
|
Post by rubcale on Sept 10, 2021 11:40:06 GMT 1
As soon as I discovered that Konta's retirement was a new injury I thought the end of her career was coming, so it wasn't a surprise to later read that she's now contemplating retirement. I hadn't heard that Konta was thinking of retirement but it is probably the right decision especially since it is a new injury.
I persoanlly feel the boat has sailed for her - I never felt she was just as good as her high ranking at one stage.
She definitely had a few chances at the Slams but when it mattered like Tim Henman didn't have that inner core of steel which Andy Murray posses.
Still she'll always have Miami.
|
|
|
Post by rubcale on Sept 10, 2021 11:51:43 GMT 1
I fell this is some sort of fantasy - hard to believe.
Of course I want her to win and sometimes you only get the one chance but in some ways it has happened so fast it might just be better for the moment if she was the runner-up.
More so than any other country we put too much pressure on players and the whole country will be depressed if she loses -think of the expectations of previous players who only achieved modest success compared to what Emma has aleady done.
Let's hope her background team can keep her grounded.
Five Live had a phone-in about her this morning.
Her semi was nerve-wracking -I really felt that if Sakarri had got the break-back she pushed hard for, Radanacu's game would have crumbled but she hung tough.
Hard to call who is the favourite tomorrow - you'd have expected Bencic and Sakkari to have come through the previous matches.
|
|
Tom
Member
*Of Royal Blood*
Posts: 15,419
|
Post by Tom on Sept 10, 2021 19:25:41 GMT 1
As soon as I discovered that Konta's retirement was a new injury I thought the end of her career was coming, so it wasn't a surprise to later read that she's now contemplating retirement. I hadn't heard that Konta was thinking of retirement but it is probably the right decision especially since it is a new injury.
I persoanlly feel the boat has sailed for her - I never felt she was just as good as her high ranking at one stage.
She definitely had a few chances at the Slams but when it mattered like Tim Henman didn't have that inner core of steel which Andy Murray posses.
Still she'll always have Miami.
She maybe did overachieve to a degree, (which generally I felt Henman did too), but not reaching the French Open final in 2019 will be the one that got away. Once she got to the semis I was convinced she'd make it, and IIRC she had set points. And Wimbledon 2017 when she beat Vekic in R2, in a match that could have gone either way it was such a high quality match it was worthy of being the final. She definitely deserved to make the top 10, there was a period when she was playing top 10 tennis, I'm sure I posted that at the time. When she was on form she was an absolute joy to watch, the problem was if someone worked her out or the weight of expectation got to her. If someone had said in 2014 she'd reach the latter stages of all the slams plus Olympics and reach the top 5 I wouldn't have thought it possible, she never looked more than a top 50 player at best. But I remember seeing Kerber and Halep suddenly surge up the rankings and wondering why a British player couldn't do that too, so I'm glad Konta managed it.
|
|
Tom
Member
*Of Royal Blood*
Posts: 15,419
|
Post by Tom on Sept 10, 2021 20:47:55 GMT 1
I fell this is some sort of fantasy - hard to believe. Of course I want her to win and sometimes you only get the one chance but in some ways it has happened so fast it might just be better for the moment if she was the runner-up. More so than any other country we put too much pressure on players and the whole country will be depressed if she loses -think of the expectations of previous players who only achieved modest success compared to what Emma has aleady done. Let's hope her background team can keep her grounded. Five Live had a phone-in about her this morning. Her semi was nerve-wracking -I really felt that if Sakarri had got the break-back she pushed hard for, Radanacu's game would have crumbled but she hung tough. Hard to call who is the favourite tomorrow - you'd have expected Bencic and Sakkari to have come through the previous matches. Know what you mean about it being a fantasy, what she's achieved hasn't sunk in yet, although apart from the Rogers match I've not listened or seen any of them. Good that the BBC will be showing highlights of the final on Sunday afternoon but will probably have listened to the match on 5 Live before that. My slight concern about the final is that she's playing another teenager who she may have come across in juniors and so is someone who may know her game well. The player she lost to in the challenger final just before qualifying was someone who had beaten her in juniors before.
|
|
Tom
Member
*Of Royal Blood*
Posts: 15,419
|
Post by Tom on Sept 10, 2021 21:13:02 GMT 1
Week 2 - will post more about Raducanu after the final.
Evans, as I suspected, said he was still suffering from Covid and was also struggling to find the motivation to train, so to achieve his best ever run at the USO was absolutely massive. He's reached R4 at the Australian Open but I thought his best slam was actually the USO, so this confirmed it for me.
Joe Salisbury and Rajeev Ram beat Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares in the final 3-6 6-2 6-2.
|
|
Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 11, 2021 0:32:50 GMT 1
If someone had said in 2014 she'd reach the latter stages of all the slams plus Olympics and reach the top 5 I wouldn't have thought it possible, she never looked more than a top 50 player at best. But I remember seeing Kerber and Halep suddenly surge up the rankings and wondering why a British player couldn't do that too, so I'm glad Konta managed it. If someone said this to me back then, I would have said you are mistaking her with Laura Robson. I vaguely remember on one of the Today at Wimbledon shows prior to 2014, whilst they were doing the round ups of British players and showing a raft of players, including Konta losing in the 1st round, John Inverdale asked the question to the guests (think it was John McEnroe and Sam Smith) on where Watson and Robson will end up at their peak of their career and the future of British women's tennis. They said Robson should comfortably be in the top 10 and Watson in the top 30. Konta was mentioned and as you say, they didn't believe she will go far either. Looking back at her career now, I feel what Konta has achieved during her career from a British point of view has largely been understated - probably due to Andy Murray's success. British women's tennis in the 2000s never really lifted off until Robson came on the scene back in 2012(?). After Laura's wrist injury and her troubles, Konta took the British game to another level and entering into the top 100 or progressing through to a 2nd round of a Grand Slam tournament was no longer just an achievement, it was an expectation. I feel the women's game is still an open field where there isn't a dominant set of players who consistently perform well and win Grand Slams, like we see in the men's game with Nadal, Federer and Djokovic. I thought we saw it with Naomi Osaka or Ash Barty and maybe we will. That's why I'm not writing off Konta just yet and the optimist I am - I hope she can recover from these setbacks. What concerns me is how many coaches she's had over the last few years. Something isn't working.
|
|
Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 11, 2021 2:11:09 GMT 1
I fell this is some sort of fantasy - hard to believe. Of course I want her to win and sometimes you only get the one chance but in some ways it has happened so fast it might just be better for the moment if she was the runner-up. More so than any other country we put too much pressure on players and the whole country will be depressed if she loses -think of the expectations of previous players who only achieved modest success compared to what Emma has aleady done. Let's hope her background team can keep her grounded. It's a tricky one and yes, any sniff of success in any sport but in particular, tennis and the British media are all over it like a rash. Probably because success in tennis is so uncommon. The fact that Virginia Wade is still being asked for interviews about speaks volumes. Whatever the outcome is of the final, she will have expectation throughout next season of achieving similar results.
Should Emma win the final, I hope her career doesn't take a dip as a result or become complacent like we've seen with other GS champions like Bianca Andresccu or Jelena Ostapenko. I know opponents will start to understand her game, what she is capable of and identify any weaknesses in her game but it seems to be a trait amongst the younger players. If she's finishes the runner up, I fear the "Piers Morgan" wannabe brigade will pipe up all over the world and it will be like living through Andy Murray again.
Excellent result for Joe Salisbury and Rajeev Ram to cap off a successful season for them. Equally it's good to see Jamie and Bruno back in a GS final after a disappointing season.
Joe Salisbury is also in the Mixed double finals too and hoping for a USO double.
|
|
|
Post by suedehead on Sept 11, 2021 10:01:20 GMT 1
The final will be shown live on Channel 4.
|
|
Pablo
Member
*With Great Power comes Great Responsibilty*
Posts: 8,096
|
Post by Pablo on Sept 11, 2021 12:34:50 GMT 1
My slight concern about the final is that she's playing another teenager who she may have come across in juniors and so is someone who may know her game well. The player she lost to in the challenger final just before qualifying was someone who had beaten her in juniors before. There's a match posted on the LTA / Wimbledon social media pages where they did play each other back in 2018 at Wimbledon in the juniors. Emma won it 6-4 6-2.
Leylah was beaten by Heather Watson in Feb last year at the Mexican Open. (perhaps a cheeky message from Emma to her asking for some hints once she's recovered from the steel chair? ).
On reflection since the semi finals - On paper, I would put Fernandez as favourite but it should be an entertaining final tonight.
|
|
rewardman
Member
*rock n roll juvenile*
Posts: 31,424
|
Post by rewardman on Sept 11, 2021 13:03:09 GMT 1
Hope Djokovic can win the final.
|
|