*Another article on this year's third grand slam-Wimbledon. I have posted two articles in a row on tennis because the short interval between French and Wimbledon. For sure, there will be a new topic in my next article. There will be no more new tennis articles till the next slam. In the meantime, I hope you guys enjoy my thoughts and analysis on the recent concluded Wimbledon!
For the British, it’s a long-awaited Wimbledon. For Andy Murray, it’s a remarkable Wimbledon. For Federer and Nadal, it’s a horrible Wimbledon. For Sabine Lisicki, it’s an emotional Wimbledon. For Sharapova and Azarenka, it’s a disappointing Wimbledon. For Jerzy Janowicz, it’s a historical Wimbledon. Not to forget, for the tennis neutrals out there, it’s a roller-coaster Wimbledon.
You can put a number of adjectives to describe how this year’s Wimbledon went depends on which side you are looking from, but you can’t deny it was a pretty dramatic 2013 Wimbledon.
(Just a brief summary of what happened just in case some of you didn’t watch it)
Right on the first day, one of the top favorites-Rafael Nadal suffered his first ever first round defeat at a grand slam event. 2 days later, Roger Federer created the biggest shock of the tournament by losing to a Ukraine player that was ranked No.116 in the second round. On the same day, 2004 winner Maria Sharapova lost to a Portugese qualifier. 7 players pulled out because of injuries on that day making the day one of the most eventful days in tennis history.
Then it became peaceful for a few days until red-hot favorite Serena Williams got knocked out by Germany’s Sabine Lisicki in the fourth round. Lisicki went on her impressive run beating Kanepi and Radwanska before falling to Bartoli in the final failing to control her nerves and emotions on the court. In the meantime, Murray struggles to find his form against Verdasco in the quarter-finals; while Djokovic sailed through comfortably into the semi-finals where he suffered his biggest test of tournament against Del Potro. Eventually, Djokovic disposed Del Potro in a hard-fought 5 setter. A nerve-wrecking encounter that was widely considered as the match of the tournament. In the final, Murray came out differently and rose to the occasion to realize the British’s biggest dream in tennis. All credit to him for handling the pressure well to perform brilliantly to end Britain’s 77 years wait on July 7 by beating Novak Djokovic in straight sets.
(Now, time for some comments)
I’m always critical about Andy Murray’s performance and results in grand slam tournaments. I used to call the top 4 as “3+1”. (3 as in Federer, Nadal and Djokovic plus Murray) But I was fully impressed with the performance shown by Murray on Center Court during Sunday’s final. Of all aspects of his game, his footwork was the one that caught my eye. His footwork had improved tremendously under the guidance of Ivan Lendl. The swift movements around the court enable him to put pressure of Djokovic’s powerful groundstrokes and forcing him to commit tons of unforced errors. Of course, let’s not forget to mention about his much-improved groundstrokes and good serves.
Looking back at his decision not to participate at the French Open and fully concentrated on the grass courts gives him more time to prepare ahead of Wimbledon. Murray always looked like the fresher of the two as it is always a tricky period for tennis players as they are given just two weeks’ time to switch from clay court to grass court.
Both Djokovic and Murray had reached three out of the last four grand slam finals, giving a strong indication that they are in to win a dozens of grand slam titles. This year’s last remaining grand slam-US Open will be a vital one in terms of giving any indication on how the men’s tennis world is heading. Will Murray and Djokovic make to the final once again or will Nadal, Federer or Del Potro be the one lifting the trophy at Flushing Meadows come this September? Is this the end of a great era of Federer and Nadal? Does Nadal capable of winning slams apart from the clay? Will Federer be able to add another title to his grand slam trophy cabinet? A lot of questions, but most important of all: Who will stand out on top among the men in New York City? We’ll find out this coming September!
The interesting thing is that unlike the other three grand slams, all title contenders in this year’s US Open are former winners of the tournament. So in terms of experience, everybody is almost equally good at how to prepare for the tournament, handling the pressure and not to forget the sudden change of weather. (There’s still no roof over Arthur Ashe Stadium!)
But, if you want me to pick a favorite, I have to pick Murray for the title. (Btw, I’m a Nadal fan!) I just think after he won Wimbledon, the pressure of him winning slams is eased, allowing him to play the big ones without much added pressure and with added confidence. Del Potro will be my second favorite of the tournament because of his steady and improved progress since recovering from that horrific injury, followed by Djokovic, Nadal and Federer.
Enough of the guys, let’s talk about the ladies. Before the start of the tournament, I was fully expecting Serena Williams to destroy the rest of the field given her strong performance in the past Wimbledon and her current form. Sharapova and Azarenka were the only ones I believed that might have a chance to win. But I’m totally wrong! Nobody would thought all three of them would fail to make it past the quarter-finals! Just when I thought the ladies had found their consistency in their game, came a surprising twist as 6 out of the 8 quarterfinalist had not won a single slam before!
We can’t forget to mention Sabine Lisicki, the person who knocked out Serena Williams. She continued her impressive run against French Open reigning champion. (2009 Kutznetsova, 2011 Li Na, 2012 Sharapova, 2013 Serena) Anyhow, I’m still pretty speechless on her performance in the final. We all know that a grand slam final is not an easy match to play, but certainly nobody would expect her to suffer mental breakdown halfway into the match. Bartoli, perhaps considered as the most “luckiest” Wimbledon champion the fact that she had never played a top 10 player in all her matches en route in winning her maiden grand slam. No matter how tennis fans thinks, you can’t deny she seize the opportunity well to win the title.
I don’t expect similar things to happen again in New York. Serena Williams will definitely be the firm favorite in this tournament as she has won the tournament 4 times before. As usual, Azarenka and Sharapova will be the ones that are going to threaten Serena’s assault on the title. At the moment, I still don’t see the other ladies that are able to make an assault on this year’s remaining slam based on this year’s hard court results.
Wimbledon had always been my favorite grand slam tournament as it always produced high quality tennis with entertaining long rallies. It’s a bit disappointing to see many top favorites bowed out of the tournament at the early rounds, but I’m glad to see more players stepping up to the mark to prove their capability of winning the majors. Right now, tennis fans all around the world could probably get some rest before the two major warm-up tournaments for the US Open at Toronto and Cincinnati begins in early August. Surely, it’s going to be an exciting dash towards the end to the season.
By,
Zhe Xu
10th July 2013
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