Date: 4/7/2011
Result: Charleston R3, Elena Vesnina def. Sam Stosur 6-4 6-1
Why it matters:
- Remember when Stosur tore apart the field in Charleston last year? Remember how she then went on to put together one of the finer clay court seasons of the last few years by reach the final in Stuttgart and Roland Garros? Well once the tennis calendar moved away from clay, Stosur's results started to level off. Sure, she was still playing well enough to maintain her top 10 ranking, but away from the clay, she's not the same threat to the top players. So we all gave her a pass. We didn't really worry about how it wasn't just the surface, but things about her serve mechanics and mental state that were keeping her from racking up more and more wins. But this kind of result makes you begin to question whether she's still suffering from a hangover from her French Open loss. Sure it's the first tournament on clay, so maybe she hasn't adjusted yet. But it was the first tournament for her on clay last year and she had no problems. And maybe Stosur has won so few titles in her career that she doesn't have a lot of experience with the pressure of defending a title. Unfortunately for her, she doesn't have a big cushion of ranking points to learn how to deal with that kind of pressure over time. She needs a quick fix. Her coach should really encourage her to go back to enjoying her tennis without expectations. If she can play freely and let go, then maybe she can make another big push on the clay.
- Vesnina is underranked. She was 22nd in late 2009 before an injury plagued 2010 and a lack of rhythm from it caused her ranking to plummet. These types of wins will help her get herself back where she belongs in the rankings - around 30. Her game is limited, and she's probably best described as "solid", but on days when the top players are off their best, a solid performance can be enough, especially on clay courts. If Vesnina ever wants to actually make a move to the elite, she'll need to take a page from someone like Zvonareva, who has enough firepower to break open rallies when necessary, while solid play is usually enough the rest of the time. Unfortunately, the window of opportunity for such improvement might already be shut.
Honorable Mentions:
- Charleston R3, Caroline Wozniacki def. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova - 76 76 - If you watched this match, you know Strycova had ample opportunity to pull off the shock result. She's talented, fiery, and has variety - everything that should make her a threat on any given day on clay. But the real reason this was so close was that Wozniacki was so inconsistent. For someone who has built their game on the solid foundation of consistently good groundstrokes and movement, Wozniacki left a lot to be desired. She was the default favorite for the French Open for many, but a performance like this makes me wonder whether or not clay suits her game as well as it should seem to on paper.
- Houston R2, Kei Nishikori def. Igor Andreev - 63 63 - What a turn of events! After Andreev, whose results on hardcourt have always been middling, beat Nishikori on a surface that seemed to favor the Japanese player, Nishikori turned the tables on Andreev's most successful surface. Now Houston's clay is frankly not the same quality as European clay, and maybe on a more authentic, slower surface Andreev would have the advantage. But either way, another important win for Nishikori in his evolution to becoming an all-surface threat.
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