Thoughts on Upcoming Women's QF's

Thoughts on Upcoming Women's QF's

Post by Christopher Smi » Tue, 25 Jan 1994 10:58:02


Here's the Australian Open women's QF lineup for Tuesday:

    Graf(1) vs. Davenport(16)
    Martinez(3) vs. Date(10)
    Novotna(5) vs. Sabatini(4)
    Maleeva-Fr.(8) vs. Sanchez Vicario(2)

All eight quarterfinalists have amassed impressive hard court records, so
if they play up to their capabilities, we should have some very interesting
matches.  IMO there is only one matchup where one of the competitors has a
clear advantage.  The emergence of Davenport and Date in the QF's could be
a signal that the changing of the guard may not be far away.  Or, perhaps
these two are just stepping into the vacancies left by Seles and Capriati.
Time will tell.  One thing for sure is that they have established themselves
as worthy competitors on the hard courts.

Here's some thoughts about each of the matchups:

  1. Graf(1) vs. Davenport(16)

  I'm not aware that these two have ever met before, but maybe they did
  very early in Davenport's career.  Graf should probably win this match,
  but it could be a good yardstick to gauge Davenport's progress.  Even
  if Davenport loses she will emerge a winner if she can give Graf a good
  fight (which I think she will).  Davenport's strength is her hard
  groundies, and her serve is apparently improving.  Her main weakness at
  this time seems to be lapses in concentration which result in clusters
  of unforced errors.

  2. Martinez(3) vs. Date(10)

  Here again, the (relatively) new kid on the block asserts herself.  As
  was pointed out earlier, Date humbled Martinez at the recent Sydney
  tournament, 6-3 6-0 (a match in which Martinez described herself as
  playing "beginner"-level tennis).  So the question is, has Martinez
  recaptured the form that has catapulted her to #4, or will Date prove
  that her win last week was no fluke?  

  There are indications that Martinez may be vulnerable, although she has
  had a fairly tough draw as I said before.  I think she is itching to
  turn the tables around on Date, but she will need to play a pretty clean
  match and avoid the nagging concentration lapses.  Otherwise, she may
  find herself on the losing end.

  3. Novotna(5) vs. Sabatini(4)

  The last time these two met on the hard courts (Lipton), Sabatini
  emerged the victor.  Sabatini has also won most of the matches
  between these two, although Novotna won their most recent encounter
  (Wimbledon).  Sabatini has already shown her usual signs of
  vulnerability, but Novotna has not really been tested yet this
  tournament.  Because there are no signs that Sabatini has emerged
  from her doldrums, I think Novotna will be the one to determine the
  winner of this match.  I slightly favor Novotna, but the outcome of
  this match is the toughest to call.  

  4. Maleeva-Fragniere(8) vs. Sanchez Vicario(2)

  I already talked a bit about this matchup.  The question in my mind is
  if, because of impending retirement, Maleeva-Fragniere is thus playing
  with a nothing-to-lose attitude.  Or will the weight of this last big
  occasion affect her performance?  And, how much did the grueling match
  with Sabine Hack take out of her emotionally?

  Sanchez Vicario seems to be sailing quietly through the draw, but there
  are small signs that she might be vulnerable.  She dropped a set to
  Magdalena Maleeva, and she needed 8 match points to close out against
  Shi-Ting Wang in the 2nd round.  If Maleeva-Fragniere plays the way she
  did in Zurich recently, I think she'll win the match.  Otherwise, Sanchez
  Vicario probably has the advantage.

--

 
 
 

Thoughts on Upcoming Women's QF's

Post by Allan McKill » Tue, 25 Jan 1994 14:42:14

Quote:
>  1. Graf(1) vs. Davenport(16)

>  I'm not aware that these two have ever met before, but maybe they did
>  very early in Davenport's career.  Graf should probably win this match,
>  but it could be a good yardstick to gauge Davenport's progress.  Even
>  if Davenport loses she will emerge a winner if she can give Graf a good
>  fight (which I think she will).  Davenport's strength is her hard
>  groundies, and her serve is apparently improving.  Her main weakness at
>  this time seems to be lapses in concentration which result in clusters
>  of unforced errors.

I think the key for how close Davenport can keep the match is how she
handles Graf's slice backhand to her two-handed backhand.  On rebound
ace, Graf's slice tends to bite rather than sit up.  I think it won't
be that close.

Quote:
>  2. Martinez(3) vs. Date(10)

>  There are indications that Martinez may be vulnerable, although she has
>  had a fairly tough draw as I said before.  I think she is itching to
>  turn the tables around on Date, but she will need to play a pretty clean
>  match and avoid the nagging concentration lapses.  Otherwise, she may
>  find herself on the losing end.

Martinez has had a tough draw, but I don't think she's done that well with
it.  I can understand the tough first round match against Zverva and I
thought she was hitting her stride when she clobbered Frazier rather convinc-
ingly, but then she has a tough time with Chanda Rubin (she really should
have lost the first set).  I actually think Date will get thru here in two
close sets.

Quote:
>  3. Novotna(5) vs. Sabatini(4)

>  The last time these two met on the hard courts (Lipton), Sabatini
>  emerged the victor.  Sabatini has also won most of the matches
>  between these two, although Novotna won their most recent encounter
>  (Wimbledon).  Sabatini has already shown her usual signs of
>  vulnerability, but Novotna has not really been tested yet this
>  tournament.  Because there are no signs that Sabatini has emerged
>  from her doldrums, I think Novotna will be the one to determine the
>  winner of this match.  I slightly favor Novotna, but the outcome of
>  this match is the toughest to call.  

This could be an interesting match.  We have to possibility of both players
attacking the net consistently (something all too rare these days in women's
tennis).  Sadly, it probably won't come out that way.  I'll agree with
Chris that the match probably rests on Novotna's shoulders.  If she plays
well, she'll win.  Novotna in 3 sets.

Quote:
>  4. Maleeva-Fragniere(8) vs. Sanchez Vicario(2)

>  Sanchez Vicario seems to be sailing quietly through the draw, but there
>  are small signs that she might be vulnerable.  She dropped a set to
>  Magdalena Maleeva, and she needed 8 match points to close out against
>  Shi-Ting Wang in the 2nd round.  If Maleeva-Fragniere plays the way she
>  did in Zurich recently, I think she'll win the match.  Otherwise, Sanchez
>  Vicario probably has the advantage.

I don't see what weapons Maleeva-Fragniere really has to hurt Sanchez-
Vicario (has there ever been a singles match with more hyphens in it?).
What she did so well in Zurich (against Navratilova) was to return brilliantly
at Navratilova's feet and pass her.  Sanchez-Vicario won't be approaching
the net nearly that much and I don't think Maleeva-Fragniere moves well
enough to keep up with Sanchez-Vicario.  Sanchez-Vicario in two sets.

---
--Allan McKillop                        "Where there's a will,


 
 
 

Thoughts on Upcoming Women's QF's

Post by Joseph J. Marcheso J » Tue, 25 Jan 1994 15:55:59


Quote:

>   1. Graf(1) vs. Davenport(16)

Well, I agree with an earlier post. Graf seems to be continuing her top
form and I would suspect that Graf will be willing to be more agressive
in terms of coming to the net and using a top backhand. Generally when
faced with "outside chances" (i.e Capriati, Pierce etc) Graf turns her
game up a notch and the result is quite anti-climatic. Graf 6-3, 6-3.

Quote:

>   2. Martinez(3) vs. Date(10):

This is a tough call. True Date won just over a week ago, true also she
won  handily. However, I think Martinez has learned her lesson, and
with the honor of a Grand Slam semi at stake, will overtake Date in a
tight tussle: 7-5, 7-5

Quote:

>   3. Novotna(5) vs. Sabatini(4)

Probably the most difficult to call. Gabriela's draw is the most
difficult of all. To ask her to defeat Pierce, Novotna, Sanchez-Vicario
and then Graf is a tall order for her at her best. Now it's impossible.
Novotna has Gabby's number and I suspect that she'll be able to edge
out Gabriela in three: 6-4, 5-7, 7-5.  
Quote:

>   4. Maleeva-Fragniere(8) vs. Sanchez Vicario(2)

Maleeva-Fragniere will probably have her swansong in this round.
Sanchez Vicario, despite uncharacteristic lapses (esp. the set dropped
to Magdalena) will no doubt prevail in this contest however Manuela
won't make it easy for her. 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.

Joe Marcheso

 
 
 

Thoughts on Upcoming Women's QF's

Post by shun.cheu » Tue, 25 Jan 1994 21:12:40

Quote:

>>  1. Graf(1) vs. Davenport(16)

>>  I'm not aware that these two have ever met before, but maybe they did
>>  very early in Davenport's career.  Graf should probably win this match,
>>  but it could be a good yardstick to gauge Davenport's progress.  Even
>>  if Davenport loses she will emerge a winner if she can give Graf a good
>>  fight (which I think she will).  Davenport's strength is her hard
>I think the key for how close Davenport can keep the match is how she
>handles Graf's slice backhand to her two-handed backhand.  On rebound
>ace, Graf's slice tends to bite rather than sit up.  I think it won't
>be that close.

Davenport is an emerging good player. Graf will probably beat her
without that much trouble, but this match will indeed be a good
yeardstick on how good Davenport is. Another problem for her is that
Davenport is 6'2", which is very tall for a female tennis player.
If Graf moves her from side to side, Davenport's mobility could
be a problem.

Quote:
>>  2. Martinez(3) vs. Date(10)

>>  There are indications that Martinez may be vulnerable, although she has
>>  had a fairly tough draw as I said before.  I think she is itching to
>>  turn the tables around on Date, but she will need to play a pretty clean
>>  match and avoid the nagging concentration lapses.  Otherwise, she may
>>  find herself on the losing end.

Date won Sydney. This match may be a confirmation of how well
she is doing lately.

Quote:
>>  3. Novotna(5) vs. Sabatini(4)

>>  The last time these two met on the hard courts (Lipton), Sabatini
>>  emerged the victor.  Sabatini has also won most of the matches
>>  between these two, although Novotna won their most recent encounter
>>  (Wimbledon).  Sabatini has already shown her usual signs of
>>  vulnerability, but Novotna has not really been tested yet this
>>  tournament.  Because there are no signs that Sabatini has emerged
>>  from her doldrums, I think Novotna will be the one to determine the
>>  winner of this match.  I slightly favor Novotna, but the outcome of
>>  this match is the toughest to call.  

>This could be an interesting match.  We have to possibility of both players
>attacking the net consistently (something all too rare these days in women's
>tennis).  Sadly, it probably won't come out that way.  I'll agree with
>Chris that the match probably rests on Novotna's shoulders.  If she plays
>well, she'll win.  Novotna in 3 sets.

Anything can happen in this match; no prodiction from me. However,
coming to the net is still unnatual for Sabatini. I dobut that she'll
do it very often here.

Quote:
>>  4. Maleeva-Fragniere(8) vs. Sanchez Vicario(2)

>>  Sanchez Vicario seems to be sailing quietly through the draw, but there
>>  are small signs that she might be vulnerable.  She dropped a set to
>>  Magdalena Maleeva, and she needed 8 match points to close out against
>>  Shi-Ting Wang in the 2nd round.  If Maleeva-Fragniere plays the way she
>>  did in Zurich recently, I think she'll win the match.  Otherwise, Sanchez
>>  Vicario probably has the advantage.

>I don't see what weapons Maleeva-Fragniere really has to hurt Sanchez-
>Vicario (has there ever been a singles match with more hyphens in it?).
>What she did so well in Zurich (against Navratilova) was to return brilliantly
>at Navratilova's feet and pass her.  Sanchez-Vicario won't be approaching
>the net nearly that much and I don't think Maleeva-Fragniere moves well
>enough to keep up with Sanchez-Vicario.  Sanchez-Vicario in two sets.

Maleeva-F. also had a tough tought time beating Hack in the R16.
The strange thing is that Maleeva-F. has reached GS event SF only
twice, at the US Open in the last two years. I doubt very much
that her very last tournament will be the third. I hate to say this,
but this is likely to be Maleeva-F. last match in her career.
--

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