Week 35 - US Open Main Draw Hard

AliBlahBlah · All-time great

Week 35 - US Open Main Draw Hard

AliBlahBlah · All-time great

Still nothing really working, Sevastova mixing things up and keeping Jo off rhythm. The Latvian can pull the trigger when needed to - almost lulls you in to a sense of false security in rallies.
Really, really, feels like the Kucova match now. Hope for a different outcome, but can't see it happening; one of 'those' days.
4-6

Etienne · Club Coach

Yes. Drifting gently but inexorably away.

thejester · Satellite level

Anybody have a decent stream? The one I'm watching keeps stopping and going back to two points ago.

AliBlahBlah · All-time great

Match point saved to stay alive, but Jo has been broken 6 times already, so holding serve is no easy ask. 4-6 *4-5

AliBlahBlah · All-time great

From *40-0 lost four points in a row to concede a second MP, but saved it and held. 4-6 5-5*

thejester · Satellite level

Well, I really didn't see that coming today. Jo just couldn't get up to the heights of the Bencic match and Sevastova deserves full credit for her performance.

Etienne · Club Coach

For all the psychological improvements she has made, Konta's first serve is still highly susceptible to cracking under pressure.

kundalini · Specialist Reporter + Intermediate Club Player

Sevastova played some nice tennis and probably should have won more comfortably but for her nerves towards the end of each set. Both players were clearly finding it very difficult when serving at the sunny end of the court. Jo looked ok when she could get into her rhythm on a rally but as soon as she was forced to chase the ball, she was in trouble.

Average 1st serve speed 96 compared to 103, 101, 104 in previous matches. First serve percentage 56, compared to 59, 63, 61 in previous matches. Average 2nd serve speed similar 82 compared to 83, 84, 79.

-- Edited by kundalini on Sunday 4th of September 2016 05:45:55 PM

AliBlahBlah · All-time great

Hard to understand why sometimes Jo has days like this in amongst great form, against players where she's favourite. A piece of the puzzle still to be found.
Disappointing...
But, what a roller-coaster year its been, the US Open points are defended, and she's generally performed well again, and for the whole year.
A massive achievement despite today.
I still pinch myself often-times when she does so well, again, not to expect everything at once.
Looking at a player like Kerber - about the only real analogue for Jo's story - it took her several years after her initial breakthrough to really settle in to it. Hopefully Jo can do the same over the coming years.

So, well done Johanna, have a rest.

And, congratulations, to Ms. Sevastova, quite some story of it's own.

kundalini · Specialist Reporter + Intermediate Club Player

AliBlahBlah wrote:
Hard to understand why sometimes Jo has days like this in amongst great form, against players where she's favourite. A piece of the puzzle still to be found.

Surely the answer is provided amongst the comments in this match thread, including your own "Sevastova mixing things up and keeping Jo off rhythm", airsmashers' "Jo not getting the consistent pace she likes" and the various comments about the conditions including one end being sunny, while the other was in shade.

If ever there was a rhythm player, it's Jo Konta. She performs much better on hard courts than on other surfaces. She likes consistent bounces.

-- Edited by kundalini on Sunday 4th of September 2016 05:34:35 PM

PaulM · Tennis legend

I think Jo just ran out of gas. Her serve had no punch, her groundstokes were pretty weak for her. Hit a ton of errors.

Should have won this easily but it happens. She was stunning against Bencic and thats the level we'll see over the rest of the year.

Didn't expect Jo to defend 4r this year. She did well.

Congrats to Sevastova.

-- Edited by PaulM on Sunday 4th of September 2016 05:38:09 PM

indiana · Tennis legend

Pity. But seems a combination of Jo not at her best and a bad match up in that Jo is more happy with a straight rythym striking match.

But from where she was against Pironkova reaching the same stage as last year, so matching her seeding and defending all but her qualifying points, is no bad outcome.

And if tennis matches routinely went the way that was expected we wouldn't be having such a ball of a US Open.

tony_orient · ATP qualifying

A curious tournament for Jo, and only by Jo's standards in 2016 would a R16 result be considered anything other than a fantastic effort for a British woman.

Very solid 1st round against a potentially dangerous opponent, then that match against Pironkova and Jo suddenly being so unwell then miraculously recovering. 3rd round against Bencic was Jo's peak and a world class performance which was remarkable after the Pironkova match and then also made today's match a bit surprising, just as it looked like a really deep run was possible.

On to the Asian swing and interest in both chasing a top 10 ranking and the year end championships. A lot will depend on how much left Jo has to give this year, does she have enough energy for another push where conditions do suit her?

AliBlahBlah · All-time great

kundalini wrote:
AliBlahBlah wrote:
Hard to understand why sometimes Jo has days like this in amongst great form, against players where she's favourite. A piece of the puzzle still to be found.

Surely the answer is provided amongst the comments in this match thread, including your own "Sevastova mixing things up and keeping Jo off rhythm", airsmashers' "Jo not getting the consistent pace she likes" and the various comments about the conditions including one end being sunny, while the other was in shade.
If ever there was a rhythm player, it's Jo Konta. She performs much better on hard courts than on other surfaces. She likes consistent bounces.

There's probably something in that, despite her having beaten players like that, even quite deep into big tournaments, in the last year (Saisai twice, Niculescu, Shuai Zhang).