Week 12 - ITF (W25) - Kofu, Japan - Hard

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Week 12 - ITF (W25) - Kofu, Japan - Hard

Michael D · All-time great

Well Marino was extremely successful at the start of last year. She started with no ranking and won 3-4 15ks in a row, and is now verging on the edge of the top 200. She may have stalled a bit of late, but that's pretty successful in my book...

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Michael D wrote:
Well Marino was extremely successful at the start of last year. She started with no ranking and won 3-4 15ks in a row, and is now verging on the edge of the top 200. She may have stalled a bit of late, but that's pretty successful in my book...

Maybe a bit harsh, as well as being too early to judge with it being just 15 months back, but I was mainly meaning from the perspective of someone who has been in the top 40, in the top 100 for over a year and reached the 3rd round of a slam.

I don't know what her motivations are for coming back and what her expectations are and if she ever had any (ambitious) hopes of getting anywhere near her previous level, but she has had some fairly poor results since Hev beat her in WTA Quebec, although I have since read she did have some back issues since around October which clearly won't have helped.

Again, maybe harsh to compare her to Sevastova who only had 2 years out of the game rather than 5, and is now one of the best players in the world, but they are the same age and their early days are fairly similar. Both had been a top 100 player for over a year with a similar CH of 36 and 39 and both moved on from the game around the age of 22, but in 10 months from Jan 2015 to Oct 2015, Sevastova went from UNR to 111, although she was of course 3 years younger at the time.

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Bet365's odds are up:

Jodie 8/13 vs Hibi 6/5 (can stream)
Gabi 1/9 vs 5/1 Luangnam (no stream)

and perhaps interestingly:

Loptetska 8/13 vs Kumkhum 6/5 - a 15 year old favourite to beat someone in the top 100

and from Gabi's POV, assuming she wins, (Q) Wagner 4/5 vs (3) Han 10/11. So a 24 year old (and not a phenom) currently ranked 472 is a slight fave to beat the 3rd seed who is currently in the top 200. Kind of tells you where Han is.

Plenty of work to do and obviously can't take anything for granted, but judging by that, you'd think Gabi would have a great chance to make the quarter final.

Michael D · All-time great

And given she has 9 points coming off on 8/4, Gabi needs that QF finally to stabilise her position at the 280 mark, with all her major points from her successful run in late 17 and early 18 now having come off. She has 10 more points coming off in early May and then nothing until FO qualifying. She is not scheduled to play for the two weeks after this week, but if she can put together a few wins this week, I really hope she doesn't leave it too long to play again, as she needs now to start building back the other way again.

indiana · Tennis legend

Michael D wrote:
Tara and Emina have had another first round win, albeit on a MTB against a CHN/HKG alt pair 6-0 2-6 10-2

Sam and her Italian partner have just won the first set 7-5

The alt pair that Tara & Emina beat were a combination of doubles WR 60 and WR 560.

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Tara has actually just replaced 2nd seed Glushko as a LL and is on court now. She is playing home qualifier Imanishi who beat Jodie in the Indian final the other week. She has dropped the first set 3-6 and is *0-1 in the second. You can stream it. Glushko was the highest seed in Gabi and Jodie's half.

Kumkhums odds slightly came in pre match from 6/5 to 10/11 and she is now serving for yhe first set at *5-4 against the 15 year old.

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Lopa broke to 15 and has held to 15, so is now 6-5* up. Not going too well for Tara. *0-3 in the second.

Lopa breaks again to take the first set 7-5. There's actually been 9 breaks in that set.

I assume Tara is going out, 0-4* in the second. Off to sleep now, hoping to wake up to wins for Gabi and Jodie, oh and Lopatetska too, if it's not too much to ask...

-- Edited by Ace Ventura on Wednesday 20th of March 2019 02:13:08 AM

Ace Ventura · Tennis legend

Tara lost 3-6 0-6. Bit of a shame because she won the last two meetings between them reasonably comfortably. 6-2 6-3 at Nottingham last year and 6-3 6-3 in Hong Kong at the start of the year, but I guess the short notice and the fact the opponent is not long off winning a 25k title shifted the pendulum in her favour. Nothing lost I suppose.

In hindsight, that Imanishi Q spot would have been the best by some distance for Jodie - LL Tara in the first round who she already beat and then a guaranteed fellow qualifier in the last 16 for the winner of the all Brit clash.

-- Edited by Ace Ventura on Wednesday 20th of March 2019 02:29:18 AM

Babfive · Satellite level

Gabi won the first set 7-6(3) and is *1-0 in the second.

Jodie is 0-3*.

Babfive · Satellite level

Gabi is now 7-6(3) 4-6 4-2*

Jodie is 0-6 5-4*

Michael D · All-time great

Phew, a wonderful win for Gabi there. She held it together very well in the final set after holding only 2 of her service games in each of the first two sets. Gabi went 3-0 up in the 3rd set, lost one of the two breaks up she'd gone, but then held her final 3 service games, including serving for the set at *5-4, so it was a good win under pressure for her.

R32: TAYLOR, Gabriella (GBR) 282 beat LUANGNAM, Nudnida (THA) IR 710 CH=195 2013 7-6(3) 4-6 6-4

And Gabi will face Stephanie Wagner next, who beat Han the 3rd seed, but as Ace noted was favourite to do so. Wagner won very easily suggesting Gabi will need to stay at her best in that match.

-- Edited by Michael D on Wednesday 20th of March 2019 07:16:45 AM

Michael D · All-time great

Jodie a great second set comeback, but now a break down in the final set unfortunately 0-6 6-4 1-2*

wolf · Tennis legend

Jodie lost 2-6 in the 3rd.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Emily WS and Ankita get a win in the doubles