Swiatek, Osaka and Kenin, Possibly, Will Form the WTA Triumverate For the Forseeable Future

[your best friend]

The WTA is well set up for their future with the crop of players coming up. The ATP not so much.
And I see Swiatek and Osaka, primarily taking the lead and maybe Kenin as a third choice from time to time.
If you love woke clones then you like Osaka but I much prefer the Polish player Iga Swiatek who has showed
promise for several years and is now coming into her own.
Sonia Kenin is the counter puncher who could beat either of the two but their power and dictating styles say
Osaka and Swiatek will set the pace, for the most part.

 

[2nd Serve Ace]

Osaka and Swiatek are at a whole higher level than Kenin. Barty would be my third pick. Just think she's rusty right now.

 

[King No1e]

Don't count out Andreescu

 

[dkmura]

And don't count out players like Barty, Muguruza, Halep, Pliskova, Serena Williams, Brady and others who will rise at different times and on different surfaces throughout the "forseeable future".

 

[fed1]

And don't count out players like Barty, Muguruza, Halep, Pliskova, Serena Williams, Brady and others who will rise at different times and on different surfaces throughout the "forseeable future".

Not sure I’d put Halep, Pliskova and Serena in the “future” category, they probably only have a few years left. Serena barely plays the regular tour. Other names to watch out for are Kostyuk and Rybakina.

 

[Slowtwitcher]

I don’t see Kenin being great. Brady is another thing altogether.

 

[Phoenix1983]

Osaka, Swiatek and Barty shall the closest thing to the Big 3 on the WTA.

So be it.

 

[fed1]

I don’t see Kenin being great. Brady is another thing altogether.

Kind of agree on Kenin but I’d be intrigued to see what would happen if she made a split from the father.

 

[Slowtwitcher]

Kind of agree on Kenin but I’d be intrigued to see what would happen if she made a split from the father.

Agree. But often these player's success is tied to their dysfunctional relationship.

 

[James P]

Kenin is so dogged and determined, I'd hate to count her out, but I also would rate Barty ahead of her. Swiatek, while a great prospect, and likely with a tremendous future ahead of her, still needs a touch more seasoning, so I'd rate her third (behind Osaka/Barty, if it wasn't obvious), Halep fourth (next 3 years anyway), then Kenin and Andreescu. Of course, this is all unscientific and speculative, just pure eye test, but hey, that's what we do here...

 

[Mainad]

I don’t see Kenin being great. Brady is another thing altogether.

Kenin has already won a Slam and made another Slam final. Brady has only just made her maiden Slam final so let's wait and see if she can match Kenin's results first.

 

[Raul_SJ]

What about the young phenom COCO?

 

[fed1]

What about the young phenom COCO?

Right now Coco is hype/hope. Swiatek is a teenager who already has a slam.

 

[Keizer]

Kenin being compared to the other two will soon be a joke.

 

[socallefty]

I don’t think Kenin belongs in the 1st tier group with Osaka and Swiatek. Barty has more of the game to belong with them. You need power and good movement to be in the topmost elite group and Barty has a killer slice that bothers most of the other players.

Kenin belongs in the next tier group with Muguruza, Williams and Halep. If she stays away from injuries, Andreescu might be in this tier also.

 

[dominikk1985]

Don't count out Andreescu

I think andreeescu could be just as good as swiatek and Osaka (and better than kenin) but she seems to be very injury prone.

 

[Slowtwitcher]

I think andreeescu could be just as good as swiatek and Osaka (and better than lenin)

 

[daggerman]

I like Gauff and Anisimova's upside more than Kenin's. Kostyuk, too, maybe.

 

[ibbi]

The only slight against Osaka right now is she's given us no reason to assume she's going to accomplish anything off a hard court. We ain't seen anything from any of them on grass yet, who's going to be nabbing Wimbledon every year?

Don't count out Andreescu

Now that right there really is just an injured person who plays tennis (occasionally).

 

[King No1e]

Now that right there really is just an injured person who plays tennis (occasionally).

LOL

 

[Crazy Finn]

The only slight against Osaka right now is she's given us no reason to assume she's going to accomplish anything off a hard court. We ain't seen anything from any of them on grass yet, who's going to be nabbing Wimbledon every year?

True.

I think Osaka is a given, because she's won 4 of the last 6 on hard courts. As is pointed out, she hasn't done much on grass. It's possible that she's mostly a hard court player, but if you're going to pick a surface, that's the one to pick as it's 2 slams. Still, she has to prove she can play on grass and clay.

Everyone else are single slam winners with more to prove. Kenin's been solid, but mostly just that other than AO and FO 2020 (one can debate how amazing she was there, I tend to think more, just very good than great). Swiatek obviously has a lot of skill, but still has only 1 slam. Andreescu has the one slam and has to see if she can remain healthy and can get back to her 2019 form. Barty is solid, obviously, but I wonder what her ceiling is. Muguruza isn't that old, either.

I think there are other players who haven't won slams that might enter this picture at some point. A poster brought up Gauff and Anisimova, which are solid picks.

It'll be fun to follow. Unlike the ATP, the youngsters have actually accomplished things in slams.

 

[your best friend]

Kenin recently reached the quarters of one of the Australian tournaments with an inflamed appendix. How impressive is that?
And she already has a Grand Slam to her credit.

Yes Barty is impressive. But my trio represent the coming WTA and what could be.
Barty is in her prime and can only go down from here. Same with Muguruza.

 

[dominikk1985]

The only slight against Osaka right now is she's given us no reason to assume she's going to accomplish anything off a hard court. We ain't seen anything from any of them on grass yet, who's going to be nabbing Wimbledon every year?


Now that right there really is just an injured person who plays tennis (occasionally).

The issue is more the type of injury. If it was just an unfortunate collection of injuries I would say bad luck but especially the shoulder injury is scary, that is ending many pitcher careers in baseball

 

[socallefty]

It will be interesting to see who the bookies favor the most at Wimbledon. Barty? Williams?

 

[marc45]

"If you love woke clones then you like Osaka"

nice touch

 

[zvelf]

Everyone else are single slam winners with more to prove. Kenin's been solid, but mostly just that other than AO and FO 2020 (one can debate how amazing she was there, I tend to think more, just very good than great). Swiatek obviously has a lot of skill, but still has only 1 slam.

"But still"? You talk as if she should have won many by now. Swiatek is only 19 and has only been playing majors for 2 years. I am confident more majors are to come for her but I don't think she's the second coming of Monica Seles.

 

[clout]

Osaka, Swiatek and Barty shall the closest thing to the Big 3 on the WTA.

So be it.

If healthy, I can see Osaka, Barty, Andreescu and Swiatsk as the new big 4 for the foreseeable future.

Kenin is not on their level imo but who knows maybe she’ll prove me wrong

 

[Vanhalen]

What is that arm tatt on Swiatek?

 

[Vanhalen]

Ok, now I see it looks like tape.

 

[Slasher]

Pick those most likely to succeed on the specific surfaces.

The lighter / shorter players like Swiatek and Barty should go reasonably on clay.

It is interesting to note the Adelaide event was won by Barty last year after she won the immediately preceding French Open and this year the Adelaide event was won by Swiatek after she won the immediately preceding French Open. You wouldn't think the two venues and the two different balls used would combine to create any similarities - but there must be something similar.

Osaka is the obvious standout on hard courts.

It is difficult to predict the grass court grand slam winner. All we know is that they are always good powerful ball strikers.

Muguruza is capable of beating any player on any surface and is a potential holder of one of each of the four grand slam titles.

Most of you must've missed it - but I don't think you realise how close Muguruza was to knocking out Osaka from the Australian Open 2021.

Muguruza could prove herself to be the player which is better than any other player.

 

[Crazy Finn]

"But still"? You talk as if she should have won many by now. Swiatek is only 19 and has only been playing majors for 2 years. I am confident more majors are to come for her but I don't think she's the second coming of Monica Seles.

No, that's not what I meant. I guess I meant that it's a bit too soon to anoint her with too many lofty expectations, that's all. Winning more majors wouldn't surprise me, as she seems like she's got something, but let's let her just play and win a bit before we put too on her. Most people didn't know who she was before the French (including me), let's give her some space before we start expecting 5-8 slams from her.

That goes for the other 1 slammers, as well. I'm excited to see how they fare, hopefully they stay or remain healthy, but let's not burden them with "They're the next.... (whatever) this soon.

Muguruza is capable of beating any player on any surface and is a potential holder of one of each of the four grand slam titles.

Most of you must've missed it - but I don't think you realise how close Muguruza was to knocking out Osaka from the Australian Open 2021.

Muguruza could prove herself to be the player which is better than any other player.

Yeah, that match was closer that people realize. Yeah. It could happen. She's very good and then sometimes she's very not. I'm hoping for more good.

 

[socallefty]

When I saw Iga in 3 matches at the FO on the slow clay of Paris in the autumn, I thought that she didn‘t have big holes in her game. But after seeing her play matches on the fast AO court, I feel like she has two holes still to be fixed.

- She hits mostly a spin serve around 100mph as her 1st serve and while it can be a good choice for slow courts, many of her main rivals will have bigger serves around 110-115 mph on fast courts.
- I find that her recovery footwork is not very fundamentally sound particularly on her FH and when she is slightly pressed for time on a fast court, she hits many FHs with her body and feet in an awkward position and ends up making errors. While her FH is more of a weapon due to the heavy spin, her BH looks more textbook and consistent. Hopefully, she fixes this so that she can become a better defender on fast courts when she plays the main rivals like Osaka.

I was wondering why she had not won any titles before the FO and these technique issues might be part of the issue. Of course, she is still very young and with the confidence of a Slam win and the heavy topspin she hits, she is still going to be a major threat during the clay and slow hard court season.

 

[TagUrIt]

I agree with the OP about Osaka and Swiatek they both have great games and great teams beheins them as well. Something that is often under appreciated by a lot of tennis players. Kenin although one of my favorites is mentally weak. There’s no doubting her on court skills, I think she needs to dump her dad as her coach and get a team behind her. One name that wasn’t mentioned is Aryna Sabalenka. The “Warrior Princess” is not very far behind from breaking though to a title run. She certainly has the firepower to contend with ANY of the players mentioned. With a little more diversity to her game she can take a major.

 

[Slowtwitcher]

Kenin recently reached the quarters of one of the Australian tournaments with an inflamed appendix. How impressive is that?

Depends on which appendix we're talking about.

 

[Slasher]

Swiatek seems to roughly resemble Henin. Could she be as good? I don't see why not.

Muguruza has had some cascading injuries since her last grand slam title.

She may be finally getting a run again now without injuries.

Swiatek tried to play on the GreenSet in Melbourne as she did at Roland Garros which was never going to work against Halep - not with those trajectories and angles and pace off the surface and those balls.

Halep wasn't at her best in Melbourne, but turned it around against Swiatek.

Swiatek hasn't really beaten big power hitters Kerber or Serena Williams or Karolina Pliskova or Muguruza or Osaka or Kvitova - but then again - neither has Barty against big power hitters Serena Williams or Muguruza or Osaka or Kvitova - but has against Kerber and Karolina Pliskova - for whatever they are worth.

Swiatek didn't beat any really reputable big names in Adelaide either.

 

[CYGS]

To be honest, most of us are only interested in whoever beats Serena at a slam.

 

[steenkash]

Katie Boulter too dont forget about her

 

[Swingmaster]

I like Gauff and Anisimova's upside more than Kenin's. Kostyuk, too, maybe.

But man, Anisimova’s career really hit the brakes. But now I remember her father passed away, so now I feel bad.

 

[Swingmaster]

I agree with the OP about Osaka and Swiatek they both have great games and great teams beheins them as well. Something that is often under appreciated by a lot of tennis players. Kenin although one of my favorites is mentally weak. There’s no doubting her on court skills, I think she needs to dump her dad as her coach and get a team behind her. One name that wasn’t mentioned is Aryna Sabalenka. The “Warrior Princess” is not very far behind from breaking though to a title run. She certainly has the firepower to contend with ANY of the players mentioned. With a little more diversity to her game she can take a major.

I thought Kenin was known for being mentally tough, though kind of crazy like her father. Overall, I think she has outplayed her skill level/weaponry.

 

[Slasher]

Katie Boulter

The English Kournikova?

Already forgotten.

Will be gone soon enough.

 

[steenkash]

The English Kournikova?

Already forgotten.

Will be gone soon enough.

maybe I'm just blinded by how much of a babe she is

 

[Slasher]

The only way Boulter will make money from tennis is through endorsements or posing wearing bikini or nude.

Bouchard is another one. As soon as Saviano elected not to be her tour coach and they parted ways, her results fell off a cliff. Now she needs endorsements or pose wearing bikini or nude to earn any decent money from tennis. Without him, she should not be competing on the tour.

They are not as good looking as you think.

I have met a few of them in person. Their bodies are out of proportion in one way or another and they look deformed.

Osaka is flabby around the belly - as is Bouchard.

Their glamour posing photographs have been heavily modified.

Although they are twins, the other Bouchard twin is better looking.

 

[Slowtwitcher]

They are not as good looking as you think.

I bet you're as good looking as I think you are...

 

[Slasher]

You really think so?

I'm a handsome devil.

 

[your best friend]

maybe I'm just blinded by how much of a babe she is

Snapped up already by Jack Sock. Isn't that always the way.

 

[AmericanTwist]

Lol...some women players also date their trainers, which I find to be unprofessional...Bencic and Gorges come to mind. You would think these ladies can do better. I am sure there are other examples that I don't know of.

 

[atatu]

Coco isn't even 17 and people are writing her off, that's kind of funny.

 

[Crazy Finn]

Coco isn't even 17 and people are writing her off, that's kind of funny.

For sure. Public attention span is the length of a TikTok.

It's probably the wonky 2020 season that didn't help. No momentum. No tennis for months and then a few events and slams and then it's pretty much over.

She's fun, she's super young, she's not quite ready to be top 20, yet. That's fine. I wouldn't be shocked if she got more and more competitive this season.

 

[atatu]

Well 18 months later and Swiatek is a clear #1, but Osaka is #44 and might be done playing and Kenin is nowhere to be seen in the rankings. Barty has retired and Andreescu is still struggling to make it back. Nobody even mentioned Kontaveit, Sakarri, Badosa, Jabeur, or Sabalenka. Raducanu, Goff and Fernandez are in the top 15. The WTA is tough to predict.