Who can 'save us' from the monotony of the WTA?

[OrangeOne]

Just saw the list of players likely to win the French in another thread, and whilst I've never been a huge WTA fan, there has always been a shining light to save us from the ball-bashing-bolliteri-brigade.

We've had Seles with 2 from both sides, Hingis with touch and tennis-brains, Henin with the all court & the 1-hander, Graf...was so unique it's amazing... even the Serena and Venus (who cop a lot of flack) still brought something more to the game than most of the bolliteri (or bolliteri copies) seem to bring.

It's a shame that most just want to earn some big bucks, and don't aspire to be number 1 - as if they really aspired to be the greatest, they'd look and realise that the big number 1s all had much more than just a topspin forehand, a punched-2-hander and a flat-slice serve!

I certainly don't follow the WTA to any depth - anyone want to highlight any players to look out for?

 

[Alexandros]

It'd be too early to anoint her as a top player, but if you get a chance watch Carla Suarez Navarro. Her one handed backhand is a thing of beauty, it bears a similarity to Gasquet's with the high set up and the angles she can create with it. Very intelligent player with good point construction. I think she's the one that made it through qualifying for Roland Garros and is in the round of 16.

 

[gj011]

Ivanovic, Sharapova, Jankovic, Dementieva, Kuznetsova, ...

All great players, all unique in certain way, all worthy of #1. Great times ahead with possible rivalries in the upcoming years.

 

[OrangeOne]

It'd be too early to anoint her as a top player, but if you get a chance watch Carla Suarez Navarro. Her one handed backhand is a thing of beauty, it bears a similarity to Gasquet's with the high set up and the angles she can create with it. Very intelligent player with good point construction. I think she's the one that made it through qualifying for Roland Garros and is in the round of 16.

Sounds like she has potential - I mean - she creates angles? Even that is almost unheard of on the WTA, point construction sounds positive too. Thanks for the heads-up.

 

[bluetrain4]

Patty Schnyder.

She's great to watch when she's on. Lefty, spins, drives, drop shots, net play.

But, she's 29, and she is mentally sketchy - see seems to lose concentration at times and she can be inconsistent.

Could give Ivanovic a LOT of trouble in the next round. Or, she could lose 6-2, 6-2. You never know with her.

 

[OrangeOne]

Ivanovic, Sharapova, Jankovic, Dementieva, Kuznetsova, ...

All great players, all unique in certain way, all worthy of #1. Great times ahead with possible rivalries in the upcoming years.

I suppose I should have expected this sort of reply. I'd be very interested to see and hear a detailed analysis of how ivanovic and sharapova are not bolliteri-style ball-bashers.

I imagine it'd be around as possible as explaining how the French hate cheese, or how grass is not most-often green.

 

[bluetrain4]

It'd be too early to anoint her as a top player, but if you get a chance watch Carla Suarez Navarro. Her one handed backhand is a thing of beauty, it bears a similarity to Gasquet's with the high set up and the angles she can create with it. Very intelligent player with good point construction. I think she's the one that made it through qualifying for Roland Garros and is in the round of 16.

Yeah, I saw that match today with Panetta and thought, as we mourn the loss of Justine Henin's 1HBH, Suarez Navarro breaks through to the QFs with a beautiful one-hander. Problem is, we probably won't see much of her after the French.

 

[OrangeOne]

Patty Schnyder.

She's great to watch when she's on. Lefty, spins, drives, drop shots, net play.

But, she's 29, and she is mentally sketchy - see seems to lose concentration at times and she can be inconsistent.

Could give Ivanovic a LOT of trouble in the next round. Or, she would lose 6-2, 6-2. You never know with her.

Yeah, Patty plays uniquely, but as you say, she's not likely to be the next great hope.

I'm somewhat amazed she thumped Srebotnik so easily, really enjoyed watching her (Srebotnik) win a couple live at the AO this year, boy that girl can all-court it and volley.

 

[Tshooter]

Actually you sound you like it. Me, I didn't like watching Seles and find Sharapova just as annoying.

 

[OrangeOne]

Actually you sound you like it. Me, I didn't like watching Seles and find Sharapova just as annoying.

Huh? If I liked it, why would I post that I didn't.

For the record, of those I listed, I liked Seles the least (mostly for the grunting), but at least her game was different and MORE than basic forehands, flat backhands and flat-sliced serves.

 

[superstition]

Check out the topic in my signature. Racquet and court surface reform will go a long way toward making tennis more exciting by providing more balance of styles.

 

[RealityPolice]

Watch out for Azarenka--she's been the dominant player on the women's side of the tournament.

Szavay, Paszek (if she can get out of the slump she's in), Wozniacki, Cibulkova, and Cornet are the next wave.

 

[RealityPolice]

By the way, it's worth noting that many of the players in the OP--Seles, Sharapova, the Williamses--became more multi-faceted as their careers went on. It seems to be that a lot of the girls get to the top with a one-dimensional game, but discover that they have to add to it if they want to stay there.

 

[zagor]

Huh? If I liked it, why would I post that I didn't.

For the record, of those I listed, I liked Seles the least (mostly for the grunting), but at least her game was different and MORE than basic forehands, flat backhands and flat-sliced serves.

Seles in her prime(not post-stabbing Seles) had far better groundstrokes then Sharapova or any other woman ever IMO,the amazing angles,the power,the precision,the consistancy were unmatched IMO,she was also one of the mentally toughest players ever in her prime(far cry from today's WTA).

On the topic what about that girl Chakvetadze? I really like her game although I don't know if she is a slam contender although she did reach USO semis last year.

 

[Polaris]

By the way, it's worth noting that many of the players in the OP--Seles, Sharapova, the Williamses--became more multi-faceted as their careers went on. It seems to be that a lot of the girls get to the top with a one-dimensional game, but discover that they have to add to it if they want to stay there.

"Sharapova" and "multi-faceted" do not belong in the same sentence. She is the very definition of one-dimensional. That was one of the points the OP was trying to make.

Zagor, I like Chaki's game as well. She has excellent touch (reminiscent of Hingis) but seems fragile mentally. I have to look at this new one-handed player that people were talking about in the beginning of this thread.

 

[Deleted member 21996]

i say mirka comeback. so we can slam her for other reason than just for being there like novak's parents....

 

[skip1969]

i think the much bally-hooed "big babe tennis" spelled the end of point construction, angles, variety, net play . . . it became all the rage to stand at the baseline and try to bash winner after winner. the result has been the kind of tennis that is on display most days on the wta: cookie-cutter baseliners who, more often than not, end up bashing more errors than winners.

i still watch the women, though not as much as i used to. it's not a thinking man's game anymore (so to speak). even this week, i am surprised how many poor quality matches there have been. seems like the women have lost the patience that clay-court tennis demands. though, what do i know.

 

[flyer]

i like watching the women play and think they should be televised but i must admit i do get somewhat annoyed and bored at times hoping the women will just end in two quick sets so the men can play

 

[pound cat]

Safina/Sharapova is very exciting to watch.

 

[Teyko]

I watch women's tennis all the time, but the major difference is that I think I tire more quickly of the match. On the women's side it seems that the ladies' mistakes throughout the match decide the match rather than the winners, etc.

 

[Fedexeon]

I like to watch matches between the top WTA players.. but when they are against players outside of top 20, its just sore for the eyes. And its annoying watching Sharapova serving. She will adjust her hair, bounce the balls twice, then serve. If she misses the first serve, she has to do the whole routine once again, then serve. Its annoying!

 

[zagor]

Zagor, I like Chaki's game as well. She has excellent touch (reminiscent of Hingis) but seems fragile mentally. I have to look at this new one-handed player that people were talking about in the beginning of this thread.

Yeah,I'll be sure to check out Navarro's game as well when she plays Jelena as I never watched her play and people here got me interested in her game.

 

[obow]

I also posted some comment about Carla Suarez-Navarro yesterday on another thread "Does any pro actually have a consistent match winning 1HBH? - is it dieing out?" at http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=200645&page=4

On the WTA side, with Henin retired recently and Mauresmo teething on the edge of calling it a day, one upcoming and promising young girl is Carla Suarez-Navarro of Spain and she has just made into the quarter-final of the French Open. The Spanish lass has a very good 1HBH, however the lack of height may hinder her progress into a very top player.

 

[Kaptain Karl]

I don't get to view the Tennis Channel. Thursday I turned-on ESPN2 and ... Shriekapova-the-staller. Saturday I tuned-in ... Shriekapova-the-staller. (Now, the French is the tourney I care the least about. What some see as "great point construction and stamina" I just see as monotonous baseline blasting ... Men or Women.)

Sunday I tuned-in ... Nadal the staller!

Ugh!


I *did* have some hope for Ivanovic developing an all-around game. I haven't seen any of her matches for months, so I don't know if she's making any progress in that direction....

- KK

 

[OrangeOne]

^^When you say 'all-round-game', do you mean looking in the mirror while hitting to ensure she stays looking pretty? There's some chance of her reaching that level....

 

[grafrules]

Womens tennis has never been in more pitiful shape.

 

[grafrules]

Ivanovic, Sharapova, Jankovic, Dementieva, Kuznetsova, ...

This is the group that is supposed to impress, LOL!

All great players

Ummm no.

all unique in certain way

nothing could be further from the truth.

all worthy of #1.

Now that is just plain scary.

 

[superstition]

I watch women's tennis all the time, but the major difference is that I think I tire more quickly of the match. On the women's side it seems that the ladies' mistakes throughout the match decide the match rather than the winners, etc.

Well, it can be argued that no one hits winners unless their opponent makes the mistake of giving them shots they can hit winners off of.

 

[sureshs]

i think the much bally-hooed "big babe tennis" spelled the end of point construction, angles, variety, net play . . . it became all the rage to stand at the baseline and try to bash winner after winner. the result has been the kind of tennis that is on display most days on the wta: cookie-cutter baseliners who, more often than not, end up bashing more errors than winners.

i still watch the women, though not as much as i used to. it's not a thinking man's game anymore (so to speak). even this week, i am surprised how many poor quality matches there have been. seems like the women have lost the patience that clay-court tennis demands. though, what do i know.

Yeah, but "thinking women" like Schiavone and Hingis are not doing well either. One is losing and the other retired. So did the other thinking woman, Henin. Thinking is great but 1. you should be still playing and 2. you should be winning. Tennis was invented as a baseline game and continued to be so even in Tilden's time. What matters is who wins. While it is great fun to see a thinking player like Santoro beat a huge baseline basher, it is also a fact that he was never a top player.

 

[Kaptain Karl]

^^When you say 'all-round-game', do you mean looking in the mirror while hitting to ensure she stays looking pretty? There's some chance of her reaching that level....

Wow! I don't know where your distaste for Ivanovic is rooted, but I seriously thought she looked like a "contender" in the USO '07. Was that a "flash in the pan" tourney for her? Is she still growing her game? Or is it stagnating?

- KK

 

[Defcon]

Henin was a once in a lifetime player. It will take genius level talent, as well as a very tough mentality to go against the crowd when you are developing your game as a kid, and not become another baseline basher clone, since thats the surest and easiest path to early results and success. Henin had both in plenty.

The players today who have variety and an unorthodox game (Schnyder, Mauresmo, Navarro etc) can win if they don't get outhit. Henin was special in that she had the power and athleticism to beat the big babes at their own game, and many other options as well. Its a pity she never won Wimbledon, since she had by far the best volleys in the WTA.

She was sort of a female Federer and those don't come along very often.

 

[Defcon]

Ok lets look at the 'contenders', shall we..

Ivanovic, Sharapova - plan A - hit the ball. plan B - hit it harder. Flat strokes with little margin for error. No ability to adapt. No all court play to speak of.

Jankovic, Dementieva, Radhswanska - counterpunchers. Mentally weak. No weapons

Kuznetsova - solid groundies, let down by movement and the Nalbandian approach to fitness

 

[RealityPolice]

Zagor, I like Chaki's game as well. She has excellent touch (reminiscent of Hingis) but seems fragile mentally. I have to look at this new one-handed player that people were talking about in the beginning of this thread.

You might be interested to know that La Chak was the winner in the Carlos Rodriguez sweepstakes. Evidently he won't be traveling with her--she'll be accompanied by one of his right-hand men--but he'll be working with her when she's not on the road.

She's always been fragile mentally (ironic, then, that she's almost done with her psych degree). One wonders how much the robbery affected her, or if that's even a valid excuse. She evidently has suffered some slight nerve damage in her hands as the result of being tied up, though, and went through a lot of medical opinions before Tarpischev got her to try accupuncture (Chakupuncture?).

 

[celina]

sharapova, will be the reigning champion for awhile in the WTA

 

[RealityPolice]

sharapova, will be the reigning champion for awhile in the WTA

Or until the end of the week, should one of the Serbs or Kuznetsova win the French.

 

[jmsx521]

Petra Kvitova is one of my new favorite players to watch, because of her Mecir-like smooth style of play.

 

[OrangeOne]

Wow! I don't know where your distaste for Ivanovic is rooted, but I seriously thought she looked like a "contender" in the USO '07. Was that a "flash in the pan" tourney for her? Is she still growing her game? Or is it stagnating?

- KK

Well, I was partly tongue-in-cheek, and I haven't seen enough of her to know, all I do know is that from the practice sessions I saw in australia, it was just bolliteri-esque and not that impressive. Also seemed the common tennis "entourage", where she is surrounded by people that will tell her how good she really is, and probably mean she'll never really improve beyond now.

The more I look at the WTA now, the more I see it in the same "holding pattern" that the ATP was in after Sampras left. Hewitt was/is a great player, but he'd not have been number 1 in the decade before or after that 'lucky time' he landed on. He was the caretaker number 1 until fed came along, as I think Ivano or Shara will be until the next great WTA player arrives.