2021 dueling WTA 500s, Gippsland & Yarra, 1/30-2/6

[spystud]

This is going to be fun. Simultaneous 54-player tourneys at Melbourne Park, top 10 have R1 byes in both. Play starts in about 4.5 hours (6:30 Eastern).

Gippsland draw pdf

Simona/Naomi/Elina/Aryna are top 4, Iga is 6.


Yarra's draw pdf is broken on the WTA site, so here's a pic.

Spoiler

Barty/Sofia/Karolina/Petra/Serena/Garbine are top 6, this one is dirty.


Let's freaking go, kids

 

[spystud]

Day 1 OoP is silly.

 

[spystud]

Hey, WTA finally fixed their site.

Yarra draw pdf

 

[James P]

I don't know if she's the only one, but Jennifer Brady is going to be in the odd position where she's playing a different singles (Grampian's Trophy) and doubles (Yarra Valley Classic) tournament at the same time.

 

[spystud]

Ha, that's funny.


Also, is that a strange auto-correct from Gippsland?

 

[James P]

There's actually 3 tournaments, not 2. The third hasn't been drawn, but it's all the people that were in hard quarantine (like Brady). So Brady is playing singles in the hard quarantine tournament and doubles with Barty in her tournament.

 

[spystud]

Oh yeah, I just referred to that one as the Covid Cup. We’ll start a thread for it next week.

 

[spystud]

Potapova v. Osuigwe gets us started on TC.

 

[spystud]

Sweet, much prefer Collins v. Bonaventure.

 

[nounforcederrors]

Garcia v. Rodionova and Buzarnescu v. Kasatkina just getting underway. Might be nice to see how much Garcia's come back to her best level...

 

[nounforcederrors]

Fickle odds shifts: Tsurenko up a break over Sasnovich, so now the odds switched Tsurenko's favor.
Same for Stojanovic v. Sherif. Sherif was the pre-match favorite, but Nina Stojanovic just took the first set, so odds have shifted to Nina.
Makes you realize pre-match odds should be taken with a large shaker of salt.

 

[spystud]

Danielle takes the first @ 3.

 

[nounforcederrors]

And Potapova's making mincemeat of Whitney Osuigwe, 5-0 in the second, having won the first at 6-3.

 

[nounforcederrors]

And it's too bad, because Whitney was such a super junior. But she's only 18, still a promising player.

 

[James P]

Lots of blowouts today

 

[spystud]

Love watching Danielle play, she makes me laugh.

 

[spystud]

3 & 3, good job.

 

[James P]

Sasnovich was down 4-0 in the 2nd and has rallied back to 4-3 on serve.

 

[nounforcederrors]

Sasnovich was down 4-0 in the 2nd and has rallied back to 4-3 on serve.

Just came back from 10-minute timeout to feed my dogs, and saw that Lesia may be losing the edge she had - this one may get tense!

 

[spystud]

Really not digging this Paolini/Marino match at all.

 

[James P]

Just came back from 10-minute timeout to feed my dogs, and saw that Lesia may be losing the edge she had - this one may get tense!

One set apiece on 6 straight games.

 

[spystud]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1355686906051260419

 

[nounforcederrors]

Nice win, 1 and 1, by Kasatkina over Buzarnescu, not an easy opponent. Kasatkina means business this season. Glad to see her emerge from her lethargy.

 

[nounforcederrors]

Never know what to expect from Shelby Rogers. Break up over Frenchwoman Ferro, seeded 12th here!

 

[nounforcederrors]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1355686906051260419

Tough for Doi. Hibino and Doi got a wild card for doubles.

 

[James P]

Tough for Doi. Hibino and Doi got a wild card for doubles.

Maybe Gauff and McNally sub in?

 

[spystud]

I don't know if she's the only one, but Jennifer Brady is going to be in the odd position where she's playing a different singles (Grampian's Trophy) and doubles (Yarra Valley Classic) tournament at the same time.

So now we have one playing in the opposite draws of the current two. Caty is in singles of Gippsland, was already in doubles with Coco in Yarra.

 

[nounforcederrors]

So now we have one playing in the opposite draws of the current two. Caty is in singles of Gippsland, was already in doubles with Coco in Yarra.

They'll have to do it with smoke and mirrors.

 

[nounforcederrors]

Lots of blowouts today

But Garcia wasn't one of them. Congrats on getting into R2 of GIP Sudden Death.

 

[James P]

So now we have one playing in the opposite draws of the current two. Caty is in singles of Gippsland, was already in doubles with Coco in Yarra.

Coco is also in Gippsland singles.

 

[spystud]

But Garcia wasn't one of them.

Still needs work on the post-match exchange though.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1355691255129206795

 

[nounforcederrors]

Still needs work on the post-match exchange though.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1355691255129206795

Yup.

 

[spystud]

Paolini mercifully ends that one.

 

[spystud]

Please serve this set out Shelby, this match is awful.

 

[spystud]

Thank you.

 

[James P]

Ostapenko-Errani just started...

 

[nounforcederrors]

Thank you.

Flippy is out, and Collins, your b/u, has already played. Should you find another Yarra pick BEFORE Shvedova plays the alternate?

 

[spystud]

No, that just means I advance with Danielle.

 

[spystud]

Holy hell, that was a long-ass MP that SST saved.

 

[nounforcederrors]

No, that just means I advance with Danielle.

Good to know it works that way. I thought your pick had to be someone who hadn't played yet, whether b/u or not.

 

[James P]

Holy hell, that was a long-ass MP that SST saved.

I have it on mute, so no idea if they announced it, but it seemed like 30-40 shots.

 

[spystud]

Sheesh, Errani took the first off JO.

 

[spystud]

Good to know it works that way. I thought your pick had to be someone who hadn't played yet, whether b/u or not.

I made my picks about 21.5 hours ago, so no one had played.

 

[spystud]

Really wasn’t rooting for a 3rd, Caty.

 

[James P]

Totally blew that 2nd set.

 

[nounforcederrors]

I made my picks about 21.5 hours ago, so no one had played.

Misfire of words. I thought you needed to replace Flippy's cancellation with either a your stated b/u IF she hadn't played yet, or a new pick who hadn't played yet. Didn't think your b/u (Collins) was valid since she had already played. But now I know better!

 

[spystud]

JO gonna send me home in Gippsland though.

 

[nounforcederrors]

JO gonna send me home in Gippsland though.

I'm in the same canoe. However, it ain't over until it's over. Very windy out there. Hang in there, JO may pull it out yet, and boot us both into R2 GIP.

 

[spystud]

We're playing 3.

 

[nounforcederrors]

We're playing 3.

Get ready to do a high five. JO's playing better now.