Azarenka, Barbora, Sophia Kennen discussed on The Passing Shot Tennis Podcast
Automatic TRANSCRIPT
It's pretty unstoppable, but having said that, I feel like if there is one person that could stop it, it's probably ash bharti in front of her in front of a home crowd on rod laver arena. So yeah, that is certainly one I'm looking forward to. I mean, moving on Kim to the second quarter. We have barbora critique of her as the fourth seed Paula but doses in there is the 8 seed, you've got Azarenka, Switzer, Sophia kennen, again, there's lots of, I feel interesting players here who potentially I'm not really sure who's going to end up out of this quarter as the one in the semifinals. Just talking about critique of, I think she's playing this week at the moment. She's got petkovic in the first round. I don't really know who to speak about, because I just feel again. Seedings here. I don't think they really matter in this part of the draw because I just think it could be anyone. Yeah, I'm the same. I've instinctively, I feel like critique of her, but then I just actually just done quite well this week, but hasn't really had to play, I would say the highest caliber of opponents. So it's really hard to gauge I mean Sofia Kennedy is still in there somehow as the 11th seed. I don't know how she's still that seeding. But she's got Madison keys, which I fully expect keys to make that work very much. Yeah, it is a great first round, very interesting, but I think keys would have the edge. Switzerland, I'm not expecting anything from her. She's had an awful start to the season, but also doing well at the moment. Kim, I could arguably see Lena Kenan amber dosa or losing in the first round. I mean, but doses got Tommy and I know she's not the greatest closer, but I think again a player who's very dangerous and not really one you want to face. I mean, we also give Halep a run for money last season and I think that's a tough test for badosa kind of first up. And so yeah, I think this draw is very interesting and quite wide open. I think Citadel is going to dare I say it's probably against Fiona Ferro who is quite a can be quite a feisty player on quite I just think that is her going to be a tough match up. When you're out of form and not really feeling it on a quote, I don't think you really want to come up against someone like a Fiona pharaoh. So who knows what that means for fitter and her chances at the Australian open. I mean, you've also got Kim, I think coco goss been playing quite well at the moment. I know, I think, again, we are off because she lost ash party after being a set and a breakup. But I think she's been playing some pretty good tennis since then. And I wonder whether she could be that player who could potentially kind of come through and regardless of her seeding is number 18. I think maybe she could spring a surprise. You know, we've seen other teenagers do crazy things at grand Sam's recently like emirati kondu and I wonder if that's given inspiration to other people like other teenagers like cocoa coffee like, hey, you know, don't forget about me. And I think the way she's been playing from what I've seen anyway over the last week or so. I think potentially she could be one to watch. Yeah, she's like, yeah, I was there first. I was the first DNA show. You were all talking about me a few seasons ago. She's in the semifinals in Adelaide. So is Madison keys and a badosa and critique or in semis in Sydney? So they are all doing fairly well in the run up Azarenka. Can't forget about Azarenka. I mean, it's just like as always that the women's draw is so wide open. I mean, let's look at the next quarter and the third quarter. I mean, top seeds here would be muguruza and they were the finalists at the WTA finals last season. So I finished the end of the season with a lot of great form. Margaret lost today to Kazakh keener, which is sort of thrown my perception of what she could have done at the AO slightly off. But perhaps the player we should be looking at in this section is Simona Halep, because she obviously won Melbourne, one of the Melbourne events last week. And seems a bit kind of rejuvenated. She seems to be back. And I don't know, she's never really done too well at this tournament, but I feel she's got actually a decent a decent draw until potentially muguruza in the fourth round. I mean, Robert Keenan has been doing very well. She did pull out of that match this week after she beat radican who, but I think hopefully that was just a preventative thing. So I'm cruel informed. I mean, she's informed contemplating well, very tough section. This is. Yeah, there's a lot of informed players. I think players who have shown great form like from a standing start, this season like Simona Halep, but there's also plays who I think are carrying on their form from last season like Annette. And I think will be interesting to see how cultivate does as the succeed. You know, she broke in with that crazy streak at the end of last season into the top ten. So that's a position she's not been in before and she'll feel perhaps she'll be under a little bit more pressure as marked person I think in the tour is one of the players who has been playing some serious seriously good ball over the last few months. So be interesting to see how she potentially handles that pressure. She could come up against Clara torsen in the second round, which I'd be quite interested to see. Another youngster who was making very good inroads I felt last season, I'd like to see that kind of match up. Talking of other youngsters came, we've got Emma roddy Kanye as well in this section of the draw. And we've got a Grand Slam champion versus Grand Slam champion in first round, which I feel just happens naturally now in any in any sort of Grand Slam jaw for the women. We've got Sloane Stephens versus emirati Carney. I mean, what do you make of that? Because I could be really harsh about the saint Stevens, but it feels like we've had a car knew that there are obviously people out there being like, is she a one slam wonder? She's already peaked. And that brutal loss against rybi keener, what love and one in her first match out will add credence to that. Yes, it wasn't pretty. I know she's had COVID recently and not had many practice hours on court. But looking at someone like stone Stephens on the other side of the net, you know, dare I say, is that sort of looking a little bit potentially into what your future could be as a Grand Slam champion unseeded.