By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Friday January 24, 2020
Wang Qiang's vision quest stopped Serena Williams in her tracks on Day 5. More in Aussie Musings.
Photo Source: Mark Peterson / Corleve
Five thoughts on the run of play of Day 5 at the 2020 Aussie Open.
More Aussie Musings: Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 |
Serena’s Next Step?
Serena Williams fell in three sets to Wang Qiang on Day 5 and afterwards was extremely critical of herself. “I mean, personally I made a lot of errors," she said. "I didn't hit any of those shots in New York or in general in a really long time. So that's good news. I just made far too many errors to be a professional athlete today.”
Certainly Williams' mistakes were a part of her downfall against Wang but does it not seem like there is a disconnect between Williams and the caliber of her play? With such a limited window to tie and break Margaret Court’s record the 23-time major champion has very little time to spare--it might behoove her to search for more drastic solutions. And as her aura gently dissipates, more and more players are going to be eager to step up to the plate and see if they can do what Wang did to Williams.
For Williams to say her tennis is inexcusable and to put the loss on herself is admirable, but it might not be the best approach to the challenge that lies in wait.
“Honestly, if we were just honest with ourselves, it's all on my shoulders,” she said. “I lost that match. So it is what it is. Like I said, it's not about the tournament, it's just like I can't play like that. Like, I literally can't do that again. That's unprofessional. It's not cool.”
But was it really on her shoulders, or was Williams forced to go for broke (and therefore make many of her 56 errors) on so many occasions because Wang had her on the back foot for much of the match? Slower courts played a role, as did Wang's tremendous ability to use her legs to absorb the pace of Williams strikes and turn it right back at her. By not taking into the account the fact that she was outplayed by Wang do a disservice to Williams and create a distorted picture of the true reality of her situation relative to the rest of the field?
Perhaps Williams needs too look that the loss in a different way? Rather than simply blaming herself for playing poorly, why not search for clues? What is really needed here, to break her out of this funk? New tactics? An addition to the team, such as a new coach or hitting partner?
If Patrick Mouratoglou was responsible with pulling Williams out of a rut when he first started working with her, could somebody else come in and join their team, perhaps to provide the type of spark that Williams needs to achieve her lofty goals in the next few seasons? Tennis is a long grind and Williams was playing the Australian Open more than two decades ago. Anything that she can do to keep it fresh and exciting would be a good thing, one would think.
Perhaps Williams is on the right path and it is just a matter of time. Maybe can just keep doing what she’s doing—it’s not like four major finals in her last eight Slams is horrible. But we know it’s not what Williams wants. And we also know that time is the enemy here—it is running out.
Wang Shows What Determination Can Do
On the other side of the coin is the momentous victory that Wang was able to earn against Williams. This is a player that was completely shellacked by Williams 6-1 6-0 in 44 minutes in the 2019 US Open quarterfinals. Wang could have celebrated the fact that she got so far in New York, reaching her first major quarterfinal in her 21st major appearance.
She would have been well within her rights to spend the offseason celebrating such a great accomplishment. But it just wouldn’t be good enough for Wang. Jolted by the loss to Williams, she vowed to get in the gym and become stronger so that she could deal with the pace and power of a player like Williams next time she had a chance.
What did she do this winter?
“Really hard work, hard work in the gym,” Wang told reporters on Friday after her victory. “I think I have more power than last year.”
It’s nice to see a player go on a vision quest and, with hard work and determination, turn themselves into a better player. That’s what Wang has clearly done this offseason and she was rewarded with another shot at Serena Williams, a chance to get the terrible taste of that beatdown out of her mouth. She took it and ran with it, and when the going got tough and Williams rallied to force a third set, she held her nerve like a veteran.
This was a well-deserved win if there ever was one.
Wozniacki’s Tears of Joy
Caroline Wozniacki’s Aussie Open run was ended by Ons Jabeur (good on Jabeur who has been a revelation) on Day 5, and while the loss was bittersweet the post-match celebration was uplifting as Wozniacki took center stage and got to address the crowd and her family in an emotional ceremony.
The match, and the result, faded into the distance as Wozniacki reflected wholeheartedly on her career and what the fans, her achievements and the support of her family meant to her.
Moments later her father came onto the court and swept her up in a big bear hug and walked her to the middle of the court—an iconic moment for two legends who have had the wisdom of their long-term pairing question on myriad occasions.
In the end Caroline and Piotr Wozniacki proved what they always knew—that the best and most effective way for Caroline to play and work was with him by her side. It was lovely to see them both celebrating at the place where their collective legacy was officially legitimized two years ago when Wozniacki finally broke through and won her only major title.
In press, later in the day, Wozniacki reflected on what she’s learned in her professional tennis journey:
“I think the main thing I've learned is no matter where you're from, no matter what color of your skin, no matter if you're tall or short, big or small, doesn't matter,” she said. “If you have a dream and you go for it and work hard, anything is possible. I had a dream when I was a kid. I wanted to win a Grand Slam. I wanted to be No. 1 in the world. People thought that I was crazy being from a small country. But I made it happen. I worked so hard for it every single day. I'm very, very proud of that.”
Bravo, Caroline, you’ll be missed.
Tennys the Menace
Don’t look now but World No.100 Tennys Sandgren is into the second week of a Grand Slam for the third time, and with Fabio Fognini as his round of 16 opponent, he could potentially take it one step further.
Sandgren’s last trip to the Australian Open quarter-finals was marred by minor controversy over his right-wing political leanings. Since then he has dialed way back—Tennys wants to let his tennis do the talking and he has been doing just that in Melbourne.
It’s actually hard to believe he’s ranked so low given how talented he is. Sandgren is extremely quick and athletic and in ridiculously good shape. If he ever finds a way to produce results consistently, he could work his way into the Top 20.
Kyrgios and Anisimova with the Win
The mixed doubles draw got underway on Friday in Melbourne and we were pleasantly surprised to see Nick Kyrgios and Amanda Anisimova getting a win in their first match as a team. Anisimova has been through a very difficult time, losing her father suddenly and unexpectedly prior to last year’s US Open, and after her first-round loss to Zarina Diyas she went to press and broke down in tears when the subject was broached.
She’s still grieving and it’s great to see her out there playing some pressure-free doubles with Kyrgios. They actually looked pretty daunting out there as a team.