When a player is quite talented but just can't seem to mentally get it together to be a consistent force on the tour (e.a., a certain charming German with an unusual forehand), I sometimes say that she suffers from the Cirstea Syndrome. Sorana Cirstea is a really good tennis player who is not a very good competitor. It's frustrating. But in Toronto this week, she's getting some attention. The Romanian had already knocked Caroline Wozniacki and Jelena Jankovic out of the Rogers Cup, and today, she showed defending champion Petra Kvitova the exit.
Yes, she had plenty of help from Kvitova, who lost nine games in a row and double-faulted at the worst times possible. Those of us who began to feel a bit relieved about our favorite Czech player can stop relaxing, I guess. But credit to Cirstea, who's having a great run. Next up for her is Li Na, last year's runner-up, who beat Dominika Cibulkova in straight sets in today's quarterfinals.
Also winning were top seed Serena Williams (def. Magdalena Rybarikova) and Agnieszka Radwanska (def. Sara Errani 7-6, 7-5).
In doubles, Stanford and Carlsbad champions Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears lost to Jelena Jankovic and Katarina Srebotnik. And top seeds Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci were defeated 6-7, 6-2, 10-5 by unseeded Canadians Gabriela Dabrowski and Sharon Fichman. Wow.
In Suzhou, Shahar Peer and Zjeng Saisai reached the final, defeating top seed Timea Babos and 2nd seed Misaki Doi, respectively.
At www.tennis.com, there's a terrific little piece that details what Darren Cahill said to Sorana when she was falling apart, just as Kvitova had come all the way back from a 0-4 hole. This is a good coach, and she, unlike so many players, LISTENED carefully to what he said. Hmm... for those of a literary bent, there's a terrific short story with a similar tack. It's "Two Words," by Isabel Allende. Cahill needed a few more, but ... you'll get the picture.
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ReplyDeleteI'm glad she responded to that. She's too good to keep losing matches she should win.
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