With the exception of a few top players, the Wimbledon quarterfinal draw is probably not what a lot of fans expected. The Williams sisters are there, a Belgian is there, and--no surprise to some of us--Li Na is there. A Russian is there--but probably not the one people were expecting to see:
Serena Williams (1) vs. Li Na (9)
They met in the semifinals of the Australian Open, and Williams won a 7-6, 7-6 thriller. Now they meet on grass, where Williams' serve is deadlier. Li won Birmingham, displaying her comfort with grass, and should be a good opponent for Williams. When Li gets into a groove, she can find the lines with ease.
Petra Kvitova vs. Kaia Kanepi (Q)
These two are big hitters, and this match has the potential to be very entertaining--even thrilling. Kanepi has a winning record against Kvitova, but this is a Kvitova we haven't seen before, so anything goes. Kanepi, a qualifier (though she has been ranked as high as 18) has already played seven matches, which could be a factor.
Kim Clijsters (8) vs. Vera Zvonareva (21)
Who knew that Zvonareva would be the last Russian standing? Getting into the quarterfinals at Wimbledon must feel really good for Zvonareva, who had to take such a long road back after her terrible accident in Charleston in 2009. On paper, this is Clijsters' match, but it could wind up closer than "paper" indicates.
Tsvetana Pironkova vs. Venus Williams (2)
In 2006, Pironkova upset Williams in the first round of the Australian Open. It's an interesting fact, but it won't bother the 2nd seed in the least.
Today was without a doubt the worst day of my tennis watching life. Venus being thrown out of Wimbledon by a player serving first and second serves at 79 mph. I kept looking at the IBM scoreboard and wondering to myself why she was unable to even break serve on a regular and consistent basis.
ReplyDeleteNo way should she have allowed Pironkova to junk ball her out of the tournament. Her volleys did not work, serve was AWOL, forehand gone and the vaunted backhand spent more at the bottom of the net and hitting the top of the tape than it spent going over the net. Truly an atrocious performance from Venus today. Let us hope she can keep it together for doubles.
But how about our NO.1 player. Holding firm and just holding period. Broken only 2 times through 5 rounds. That is a monumental effort. Yet to drop a set and doing double duty at singles and doubles. who would have thought that Serena would be the one who would consistently fly the flag of the WTA these days. Truly, we should be fortunate that she is still in it.
Kaia, 3 MPs, 8 break points, double break up in the third, and you lose. You lose the match. I have no words.
Clijsters, going out to a player that she owns. Her forehand kept going into the net rather than over it. I hope Serena takes it now. You just have to think she has 2 more matches in her this year, but man how about that Kvitova. Shame the commentators cannot even pronounce her name and some had no idea where Estonia was. That is what you get for not showing everyone's matches.
Vera should have beaten Kim long ago; this wasn't a shock to me.
ReplyDeleteBut Venus...