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Iga Swiatek

Oh so close but what a run though by the Aussies after they were unfortunately eliminated from the United Cup semi-finals in the early hours of Sunday morning by Germany, having lost the mixed deciding doubles match 1-2.

Ajla Tomjlanovic fired off really well in the first set, but couldn’t find a way to kick on and hold Angelique Kerber back who was amazing from the set down to bring home a two-set win at the tiebreak (6-4, 2-6 & 6-7 – 7-9 tie). Meanwhile, Alex De Minaur gave the home fans so much hope to keep that run alive. He too bounced back from that close opening set loss with the win v Alexander Zverev (5-7, 6-3, 6-4) to level the semi-final series at 1-1 for Australia where his individual brilliance on the court will see him being ranked World No.10 in the ATP ladder next week. Let’s hope he can have the best Australian Open campaign yet starting next Sunday.

The tables have then turned on Storm Hunter & Matt Ebden to bring it home against Zverev again & Laura Siegemund for a spot to face Poland in the Final who defeated France the other day in a 3-0 whitewash. Now this was such an unreal deciding mixed doubles tie to watch, even though it did go past midnight. They all won each set in the first two (Germany in Stage 1 & Australia in Stage 2) before it went all the way through the best of 10 as Zverev’s decision to stay on has paid off for Germany that broke the hearts of the Aussie team & their fans itself on home turf at Ken Rosewall Arena. The final score was 6-2 – 2-7 tie, 7-6 – 7-2 tie & 13-15.

And speaking on Team Germany, they too have went on to become this year’s United Cup Champions after USA. Yes, these series of finals ties v Poland did end up going just past midnight but gotta say that Zverev has saved the day once again. 

Now He almost lost the match and even the final at one stage by Hubert Hurkacz after Iga Swiatek was too for Kerber (6-3, 6-0) earlier in the evening before he kept his country’s hopes alive going into the championship-winning doubles decider after three hours of play (7-6 with 7-3 tie, 6-7 with 6-8 tie & 4-6). Not only he and Siegmund has played really well right through the every end v Swiatek and Hurkacz again, but they too found both the finish line & the United Cup trophy via the final set tiebreak (4-6, 7-5 & 4-10).

All that’s left to come this week is the Adelaide International, Kooyong Classic, Women’s Hobart International & Men’s Auckland ASB Classic in New Zealand before the main event arrives for the Australian Open at Melbourne Park that will take 15 days beginning on Sunday.

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Apart from the three Aussies being confirmed in the men’s singles fourth round with Alex De Minaur, Jason Kubler & Nick Kyrgios; We do only have one player left over at the women’s singles side – also in the fourth round – in none other than Ajla Tomljanovic. She too came from behind to eliminate the 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova from Czech Republic – 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 at Court No.12.

It’s not the exit the Czech wanted following a great start to this tie with an easy first set spell. She just couldn’t build on to bring herself home first ever since with two missed opportunities being taken away. She struggled to bridge that 2nd half consistency before Tomljanovic stepped in to tie at 1-1 apiece, brought it to a 3rd set decider where she later lost the lead & now it’s too late. She also hasn’t had a great grand slam record lately following her 1st round elimination recently at the French Open. But she’s 26 having made the Quarter-Finals earlier this year at the Australian Open, as it’s still possible for her to end her 2022 grand slam season on a high just like it was last year in the Final 8 at the US Open.

Meanwhile, Congratulations to Tomljanovic with the win she deserves against one of the past grand slam champions on-display. She may be disappointed with the poor start there by Krejcikova. However, she never gave up when Tomljanovic began to make up lost time as this tie goes on. Not only she was better than her opponent when it comes to the 2nd half pull, but also the persistence & fightback that helped gave herself another lifeline going into the 3rd set decider. From there, it allowed her a bit more time to read about Krejcikova’s on-court approach/body language before Tomljanovic smashed her way past the finish line first for the win.

It will be interesting to see if she can get past Alize Cornet from France on Monday – who just eliminated World No.1 Iga Swiatek from Poland – also in the third round tie – 4-6, 2-6. Should she win once again, it will be back-to-back Final 8s for another year here at Wimbledon.

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It’s been a quick and easy finish to the women’s singles’ final on Day 14 of this year’s French Open where Iga Swiatek just won her 2nd grand slam title since 2020 here on clay at Court Philippe Chatrier. She had no problem getting the job done fair and square against Coco Gauff in straight sets; 6-1, 6-2.

Yes, it’s hard to look back on what it’s like to settle second best from 18-year-old American Coco Gauff. She had a brilliant restart into the second set in a bid to stay in this fight, having fired off poorly where Gauff fell way behind. However, she lacks the response & finishing needed to put the pressure back on Swiatek where Gauff was easily blown away by the World No.1 in the end. It’s her first grand slam final appearance, as there will be many more chances to savour if Gauff vows to come stronger for the next tournament at Wimbledon in a few weeks’ time.

And congratulations to Iga Swiatek with her 2nd grand slam championship since the 2020 French Open here. She just proved to be the top-ranked player out on-court today, who can deliver silverware, as she was too good for Gauff unchallenged from start to finish. It’s been another big moment for the 21-year-old from Poland today, having fell short in the semis by Danielle Collins at the Australian Open back in January before she took the World No.1 WTA ranking following Ash Barty’s retirement two months ago, and now won another grand slam with the No.1 on her side. Let’s see if she can dominate the next two Grand Slams at Wimbledon & US Open soon enough later this year.

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Looking back earlier yesterday on Day 11 of the 2022 French Open, we also saw another brilliant Quarter-Final over in the women’s singles tie between Veronika Kudermetova & Daria Kasatkina. Both of them played really well when they were on the same page but it’s Kasatkina who came out on top in straight sets; 4-6, 6-7 via 5-7 tiebreaker.

Unlucky from Kudermetova after she was eliminated in the Final 8 with the loss there. She got the build-up base going that helped her stay ahead in this fight throughout the whole time. However, she lacked the finishing needed to shut down Kasatkina where she fell short twice before her opponent stood out as the better player in the end. It’s her first grand slam quarter-finals appearance after a series of 3rd round finishes before in 2021-22 at the Australian Open, as well as the 2019 French Open. Although she can’t play at Wimbledon this year including Kasatkina due to the organisers’ ban on Russian & Belarusian players, but she hopes to build on that breakthrough and enter Top 10-15 if it means regular grand slam Final 8 appearances.

And speaking of Kasatkina, she responded to Kudermetova’s brilliant start with the patience & fightback that helped

close in and eventually deny her opponent with the opening set lead. The way Kasatkina shown her persistence when continuing her battles against a tough opponent summed up her incredible comeback, as the executions got the best of her towards the finish line first via the tiebreak. She has all the skills and tools needed to prepare ahead of her first ever grand slam semi-final tonight, having tried failed to move past Final 8 twice before in 2018 here at the French Open and Wimbledon. Let’s see if she can upset World No.1 Iga Swiatek & secure another breakthrough for Saturday’s Women’s singles’ final against either Coco Gauff or Martina Trevisian.

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We also saw another brilliant match-up over at Court Suzanne Lenglen in the 4th Round yesterday of this year’s French Open, but in the women’s singles draw between American Jessica Pegula & Irina-Camelia Begu from Romania. Begu did a great job shutting down Pegula following a very competitive battle that saw her lead the opening set. But it’s all about racing towards the finish line where Pegula proved too good to eliminate Begu, having tied 1-1 ahead of the 3rd set decider before she earned her spot in the Final 8; 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Begu would be disappointed not to advance into the Final 8 as her best grand slam finish is just outside any finals appearance so far for the third time since 2016 here. She fired off really well even though Pegula doesn’t give Begu an easier pass that secured the opening set lead from the Romainian but then the momentum dropped and couldn’t find a way to stay in this fight ever since. She’s 31 right now but there’s still some time left to improve if Begu wants to go one better and secure her first ever grand slam finals appearance at Wimbledon next month.

And what a rebound it has been from Jessica Pegula. Yes, she may have fallen so short during the opening set spell by a close two game difference, but Pegula just never gave up battling 100%. She credits the renewed momentum that helped her close in on Begu ahead of the 3rd set decider before Pegula pulled off comfortably with another Quarter-Finals appearance on top of the Australian Open so far this year. It’s also her first finals taste here at the French Open, but she will need to overcome World No.1 Iga Swiatek for the semi-final spot against either Veronika Kudermetova or Daria Kasatkina on Day 11 tomorrow.

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There’s another easy semi-final win from American Danielle Collins, who just knocked down 7th seed from Poland Iga Swiatek, in straight sets 6-4, 6-1, as she will meet Australian Ash Barty for Saturday’s Australian Open women’s singles final.

Swiatek would be gutted with the semi-final loss, she fought so hard to keep in contention having won back some games in the opening set that almost derailed Collins’s strong start. She just couldn’t match what her opponent offered where the strong start build-up play, building a decent lead and being afforded ample time to execute saw her eventual elimination out of the Final 4.

And Collins was unbelievable on the court tonight, not only did she credit the closed roof while the rain was there but also the hard track surface where she produced the better game than Swiatek. Collins used her early lead with patience which paid off in the opening set before she went full-on after the break & that proved easy to nail down in just over an hour of play.

All eyes on the main event this Saturday, can Collins win her first grand slam or will it be Ash Barty, who can end the 43-year long drought, and be the next Australian to win on home soil since Chris O’Neil in 1978?

For now, the tables turn on the men’s semi-finals day tomorrow with Matteo Berrettini v Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas v Daniil Medvedev as four will turn to two by the Men’s singles final on Sunday.

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What a brilliant fightback from Poland’s Iga Swiatek when she came from behind after the opening set down, worked her way back in contention as this match-up goes & eliminated Estonian Kaia Kanepi in the end. Swiatek’s next opponent will be American Danielle Collins where they duel for Saturday’s final slot during the 2nd semi-final tomorrow night.

She was always on the top of her game even though Swiatek fell short of Kanepi’s strong start, nonetheless, the Pole knows she came here against a difficult opponent like Kanepi, who has plenty of experience, in previous grand slam Quarter-Finals before at 36. And knowing her strengths and weaknesses got the better hand of Swiatek where she held back the Estonian during the 2nd set tiebreak, then the 3rd set decider came in at the perfect time & pulled off without a fuss.

And Kanepi would be disappointed with the quarter-final elimination, who still has yet to crack seven times past this stage, so far in her singles career. She got that build-up base going which gave her time to get the job done through the opening set spell, although she never gave up holding off top spot but couldn’t find the home base when Kanepi began to falter during the 2nd set tiebreaker before eventually running out of solutions in the end. Kanepi still hopes to go one better & be an elite grand slam star as a late bloomer, she still drives trucks back home on a part-time basis but is sure to walk home with $538,500 USD prize money with more to come throughout this year.

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It was a first half close battle between Iga Swiatek v Simona Halep in Section 8 of this R4 Clash. Both players tied 3-3 through the initial halfway mark. But Swiatek pulled off the 2nd half portion lead away from Halep. As Switatek who is the 15th seed wins Stage 1 6-3.

But the second stage saw Halep bounce back real quick to prevent Swiatek from winning in straight sets. Where this portion was too good for the World No.2. With Swiatek only registered a point when she was behind 3-1. And not much progress there to hold Halep up 6-1 after the 2nd stage. Having just passed the one hour mark that will go into the 3rd & final stage of this tie. The winner will get to face the 10th seed Serena Williams in the 4th Quarter-Final.

Halep has the upper hand to take the overall lead ahead of Swiatek for the first time 2-0. Swiatek is doing everything possible to save her game. When she duels a lot with Halep. Especially in the deuces section. So Swiatek can close in on the Romanian before she can weather the storm. The Pole was a game away from being eliminated at the first attempt 3-5. Where Swiatek won a point to go 4-5. But just felt a tad short by two points in the end. Simona Halep wrapped this game up in one hour & 50 mins, 6-3, 1-6, 4-6.

Oh so close for Iga Swiatek who is aged 19 from Poland have played so well. She has the ability to fire off as demonstrated with her natural talent. As well as some close battles to hold Simona Halep back. Halep is a tough opponent where Swiatek does not let opponents walk past her easily. The only weakness is maintaining the momentum & executing these conversions. Swiatek has a big future ahead though with as a future grand slam champion.

While Halep might have lost some ground during the 2nd half of the 1st set. Where she lost to Swiatek 3-6. But Halep compensated this slow start with a very easy 2nd set run. Where she denied Swiatek a straight sets chance into the 3rd set. Before Halep profited her reprieve by escaping the 15th seed unscathed. With a Quarter-Finals meeting awaits v Serena Williams. It was a very close match tonight that was not easy. But Halep is glad to continue her journey here.

We look forward to the second week of the Grand Slam in Melbourne. Having ticked off the 1st week. With the remaining Round 4 games to wrap up before the Quarter Finals begin. And we hope by Day 11 when the fans are allowed to attend these games.

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