Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Krajicek out in first round of Wimbledon


Michaella Krajicek was not seeded at Wimbledon, but her elimination in the first round today feels like the elimination of a seed. Krajicek was defeated 7-6, 7-6 by her Wimbledon doubles partner, Marina Erakovic. The pair had just won the doubles championship at the Ordina Open.

Of all the young talents, Krajicek is the one whose career has been frustratingly stalled so many times. She suffered a bad wrist injury in January, and only recently won her first match of 2008, which broke a 12-match losing streak. She was not match-tough, and it took her a long time to finally gain enough confidence to win again.

But even prior to this unfortunate injury, Krajicek had issues. She missed Wimbledon in 2005 because of surgery for a knee injury. And she has always been inconsistent. Grass is her best surface, but I have seen her play on green clay several times, and she handles it very well; I expect she is good on all the in-between surfaces, too. Krajicek is a good hitter and a good mover, but something happens--I suspect is it something psychological--that keeps her from moving up in the rankings. Her win loss record--110-72--simply does not reflect her talent.

Krajicek recently hired a new coach. If she stays healthy and gets the right help, she could still go far.

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