Petrova, the #1 Russian?

[lum]

So as of the rankings just released today, Nadia Petrova has surpassed Sharapova in the rankings, claiming the 3rd best spot, and is the highest ranked Russian. Maybe I just haven't seen her play enough, but I'm quite surprised. I always thought she just had a powerful serve and forehand. But anytime I've seen her play against someone who can match her power, she barely barely keeps her own in the rally and seems to make a tonne of UFEs. She kind of reminds me of Davenport in that she's a big girl that doesn't really move all that well.

She's been doing really well on clay lately, and it seems like her best surface. Maybe it just gives her time to set up her shots, as oppose to a fast surface. But it's still surprising that she had no titles until last year, yet she's already won 4 titles this year (most, if not all, on clay). After being beaten by Petrova last week, Henin-Hardenne singled her out as one of the favourites for the French Open. Anyone else surprised by Petrova's play?

 

[Topaz]

Nope, not surprised. She works hard and plays a lot. Steady, consistent, and always improving.

Edited to add: And, she also *shows up* week after week to play. Imagine that!

 

[lucky leprechaun]

Kudos to her. I don't think anyone a year ago could have predicted her transformation. I really think this is for real, not a good run or something like that.

 

[tiamat]

A little surprised with the pace of her progress, but I think her results are starting to match her talent.

She has power in her groundstrokes, plays well at the net and posesses a huge serve. If you check the stats from any grand slam you would see that she is only second to the Williams sisters in terms of max and average serve speed. And she is definitely much quicker around the court than Davenport. Her major problem used to be in her head - she would be up, say, 40-15, then mishit an easy ball, get upset about it, and lose a few games in a row. Now she's got a new coach, an old friend of hers, and seems to have her mental issues straightened out.

 

[J-man]

she get's alot of easy draws but she is a hard worker and has shown that she can beat some top players

 

[slice bh compliment]

#1 ranked Russian? Petrova? Despite how happy her legions of fans are (the Petrova's Witnesses) about her highest rank to date, I think Davydenko could beat her lefthanded. While wearing Safin's Sunday get-up from Hamburg. Maxply included.

Kidding.

ANyway, I think she has had a hell of a good claycourt season and has a legit shot at the finals of Roland Garros. Sharapova, JHH, Lindsay and company will do better later this summer.

 

[lacoster]

The new coach is definitely a good influence on her. She's riding on a 22-1 match record sweeping 4 of her last 5 tourneys. Another tidbit....Historically, with the exception of Iva Majoli, the player who wins at least one Tier I Clay title (Charleston, Berlin, or Rome) will also be the Roland Garros champ that year.

Have you guys also noticed all the extracurricular stuff that Sharapova has been doing since Miami?
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Helmut panke

 

[Jack Romeo]

petrova deserves to be the number 1 russian. i think overall, her game is better than her countrywomen - more variety than sharapova, more consistent than kuznetsova and no glaring weaknesses as dementieva. she has very good court coverage because she moves efficiently and anticipates well. her problems in the past had more to do with her confidence and mental toughness. she seems to have resolved some issues for the time being. but it remains to be seen whether she can continue believing in herself. there's a big difference between being the hunter and being the hunted. if you recall, kuznetsova went on a big run after her US open title in 2004, riding on the wave of confidence. then she realized she had become the prey instead of the predator. she couldn't handle the pressure and had a miserable 2005 from which she hasn't fully recovered yet.