Hantuchova won't be an easy opponent for Laura as she also likes playing on grass but this is a tournament where Laura will rightly start as favourite in both round 2 and round 3. Quarter finals would represent a good tournament for Laura, anything less below par. If Laura plays really well here there is no reason why she can't win it - no one in the draw is to be feared and Laura is definitely a better player than Melanie Oudin who won it last year.

 

Last year we had some incredible British success in Round 1, would be nice to at least go some way towards a repeat performance. This is the best chance for some upsets against highly ranked opponents who are not properly prepared for a grass court match (due to lack of time since the French Open and/or a dislike of the surface)

 

 

-- Edited by tony_orient on Sunday 9th of June 2013 10:56:37 AM

Agreed, looking at the seeded players, there is nothing to fear for Laura. The big guns on grass are missing. If her back is sorted, then there is no reason why she cannot go a long way this week.

Hantuchova was a decent player, not sure her current form justifies a very tough match.

Are we just ignoring the result in Doha then? The one in February, where Hantuchova fairly well hammered Laura, 6-4 6-1, and took her game apart on pretty fast courts.

Laura can beat anyone, no doubt about it (You don't count Serena, because all indication is she can't be human.).
Crucially though, she can seemingly just as readily also lose in R1, to Putintseva (Dubai), in straight sets to Arvidsson (Indian Wells), Domingues Lino (Katowice), or a round later to Genie (Charleston).

Probably you'd have said, with good reason, that Laura was a better player than all of them, and "SHE OUGHT TO WIN THIS MATCH. Period." on each of those occasions, and very possibly you'd have had an argument.
But, she didn't. In fact neither does any player win, even nearly, every match they're supposed to win (again, not Serena).

Perhaps you can say that those performances were due to the fractious coaching set up, and everything has changed now that happiness has returned to the camp.
Well, that remains to be proven.

A good Madrid, certainly, and playing some very good intelligent tennis.
Rome, I personally don't place too much in the victory over Venus, because Venus is very clearly unable to train or compete for prolonged periods, or know what her condition is like on any given day, because of her illness. It was a good efficient win, it just shouldn't carry the cachet that beating that name alone would seem to indicate - a solid top 100 win. I equaly wouldn't look too much into the defeat to Serena (qv)
A pretty miserable French Open outing.

It seems to me that at the moment, we have to wait and see with Laura, whether she will beat herself on the day, almost roll a dice: Great Laura, Good Laura, Average Laura, Woeful Laura - any of them is likely to show up.
She is, currently Lisicki's Twin. Top 10 game and potential, but, roll that dice and... Damn.

Give her time.
If this time next year she's not sorted some of the kinks out, then perhaps start up. Perhaps.
Personally I don't expect too much for a couple of years at least - having looked generally at the progression of the top 10 and recent top 10 players, and when they hit their best form.
In fact, I'd be most happy if it didn't come until then, as I think it would stand her long term prospects in better stead than if she suddenly had a single great success now and had to deal with everyone thinking that she should now win every game. She might thrive on it, but I don't think so. Having to realise that she has to work as hard as someone like Errani does, just in order to compete wouldn't be a bad thing, even though she has more natural talent - Ah! hello Heather!

It may soon come to pass that younger players (or those fractionally older) pass her in the rankings, but if so, that is of no real concern.
Laura's doing just fine despite having almost every part of her game clearly still with great room for improvement - that's exciting, frustrating possibly, but exciting.
She'll get there in time.
Hopefully she, and those who advise and train her are more patient than some of us.

ABB. I don't disagree with what you are saying.

This is sport. I don't expect favourites to win every time (how boring would that be), and with a few exceptions (as you say Serena is almost superhuman at the moment), the passage to success is littered with progress and set-backs. Look at Petra Kvitova, for example.

All I would say is that there is a tendency by some to overplay the strengths of opponents ahead of matches where our men are women are obvious favourites. If both Laura and Daniela play their best tennis, Laura wins. That's what the rankings say. And that's probably what most pundits would argue. And that's why when the betting comes out, Laura will be a strong favourite for the match.

The reality, as we know, is that often Laura does NOT play her best tennis. I hope this consistency will come in time. But I'm not sure that's really a reflection of the danger of Ms Hantuchova, rather more the nature of Laura's game at present.

I think Laura will do well this week.

I believe she is a bit burn out? She's just 19! 

Pretty bad luck for our interests in the doubles:

Annie & JoKo will need to improve considerably upon their Nottingham showing.
Remembering a poisonously ill tempered match between Hev & Barthel in Quebec City last year, this first meeting since could be interesting. Kiki meanwhile is the hot new doubles star, now ranked 14.
Robmond face Hev's former partner - and once Laura's too, the winners to face the winners of the Ninja's match. So, the potential for either Laura vs. Ninja's, or Raymond vs. Huber!

R1: (WC) Anne KEOTHAVONG/Johanna KONTA (GBR/GBR) 626 vs. Raquel KOPS-JONES/Abigail SPEARS (USA/USA) 24 [1]
R1: Heather WATSON/Vera DUSHEVNA (GBR/RUS) 107 vs. Mona BARTHEL/Kristina MLADENOVIC (GER/FRA) 117
R1: Laura ROBSON/Lisa RAYMOND (GBR/USA) 105 vs. Cara BLACK/Marina ERAKOVIC (ZIM/NZL) 61
R1: (WC) Tara MOORE/Melanie SOUTH (GBR/GBR) 508 vs. Hao-Ching CHAN/Liezel HUBER (TPE/USA) 52 [2]

I kind of wish I hadn't put the stream on. It's not pretty viewing and Anne looks absolutely miserable

-- Edited by PaulM on Monday 10th of June 2013 12:51:24 PM