Week 29 - WTA International ($250K) - Istanbul, Turkey

PaulM · Tennis legend

RE: Week 29 - WTA International ($250K) - Istanbul, Turkey

PaulM · Tennis legend

Easily the worst set of tennis I have ever seen from Jo, she loses it 6-2.

I'd be surprised if Jo finishes this match actually, she's not moving right since the fall, however Jo was playing terribly before that anyway.

PaulM · Tennis legend

Jo cannot hit her serve or forehand today. Her backhand is just about holding up but it's a bad day at the office all round.

After missing a break point, she misses 2 game points and is heading for the exit with a double fault where the second serve went off at a 45 degree angle and almost over the side fence.

0-4*

Grim viewing. Nara is the one being offensive and trying to dictate play.

PaulM · Tennis legend

Jo misses another break point and is broken from 40-15 with to lose 62 60 in very, very, poor style. Did anyone else watch that? It was like she gave up after the fall and she wasn't even paying attention to what she was doing. I doubt she even got 50% of returns in play.

Ankle should be ok in a couple of days I think, the fall didn't actually look too bad (more of a slip and a tumble as opposed to rolling over it). I'm loathe to use it as an excuse because if she was fine to continue she was fine to play better than that.

Given the early exchanges Nara looked the more likely winner today even without the fall. Nara was hitting the ball nicely while Jo couldn't find the court. Jo didn't seem to have any game plan at all, lots of safe shots which Nara happily took advantage of, and when Jo did try to be aggressive she made a hash of the final shot. An odd performance, very out of sorts but I guess these things happen, but for it to do so here where Jo had a real shot of going to the QF is extra disappointing. At time she did look almost ill, so I wonder if she was struggling with a tummy bug or something.

Still, a few points in the bag (albeit nothing close to what she is defending from Canada) and on to Baku. It's a brave scheduling choice given she would need to make the final of an International to cover her Vancouver points. I think it's unlikely she will still be top 100 come the US Open just with how the points now break down, but if she can have another good Asian swing she shouldn't be out of it for very long.

As an aside, clearly nobody beats Kurumi Nara 6 times in a row.

-- Edited by PaulM on Tuesday 15th of July 2014 01:51:41 PM

indiana · Tennis legend

It was a peculiar scenario going in, with a 5-0 winning record against a player who, based on her current WR 38, would have represented a matching of Jo's CH ranking scalp.

Thanks for all the info, Paul. While losing the match in itself was no big surprise, the manner certainly seems to have been very disappointing, if looking a still pretty even match at the time of the fall.

philwrig · Hall of fame

Didn't catch any of it, but clearly well out of sorts and in particular her 1st serve % winning stats nowhere near par. Looks like Nara came to play today so would have been tough anyway. Not indicative of her current form so probably not a huge worry. Shame she had to qualify and wasnt a direct entry.

PaulM · Tennis legend

philwrig wrote:
Didn't catch any of it, but clearly well out of sorts and in particular her 1st serve % winning stats nowhere near par. Looks like Nara came to play today so would have been tough anyway. Not indicative of her current form so probably not a huge worry. Shame she had to qualify and wasnt a direct entry.

To be fair the 18 points for qualifying aren't to be sniffed at if she is to keep herself around the 115-130 range at worst over the next 3 weeks.

philwrig · Hall of fame

True but QF points would have been better in an ideal world.

indiana · Tennis legend

It's not really an either / or is it ??

I can't see that being so far off today was due to Jo having to qualify, and she was somehow quite likely to make the QF otherwise.

philwrig · Hall of fame

Fair point, but I always think its a physiological boost when you make the MD via direct entry.

PaulM · Tennis legend

Bad news, Jo is out of Baku.