Category: Grand Slam Results

American Women Record Wins at French Open

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This past weekend, Maria Sharapova and Rafael Nadal were crowned Men’s and Women’s Champions at the French Open. For the trio of Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal, this was their 32nd win in the last 36 Grand Slams. Total dominance. For Nadal, this was his record setting seventh French Open championship.

Sharapova’s victory was also historic. She ousted a determined Sara Errani, retained her #1 ranking in the world, and completed a career grand slam. In a classy, post-match interview Sharapova provided some words of wisdom for life on and off the court, “I’ll retire the day I wake up and don’t believe I can be a better player.”

Overall, the showing by the Americans in singles was mixed. The women results for the women were respectable, while the outcome of the men’s matches was ugly.

The singles results for Americans are listed below.

U.S. Men’s Results
Round of 128
The 8 U.S. men players had a weak start – 3 wins and 5 losses.
• Winners – Brian Baker, John Isner, and Jesse Levine.
• Losers – James Blake, Ryan Harrison, Sam Querrey, Andy Roddick, and Donald Young.

Round of 64
The American players were pathetic in the second round – 0 wins and 3 losses.
• Winners – NONE.
• Losers – Brian Baker, John Isner, and Jesse Levine.

Round of 32
At the Australian Open 1 of 11 American men made it to the round of 32, while none of 8 American men made it to the round of 32.

At the French Open, the 8 American men won 3 matches and lost 8.
At the Australian Open, the 11 American men won 7 matches and lost 11.

U.S. – Women’s Results
Round of 128
The 12 U.S. women players showed promise in the first round – 10 wins and 2 losses.
• Winners – Lauren Davis, Irina Falconi, Alexa Glatch, Vania King, Varvara Lepchenko, Christina McHale, Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Sloane Stephens, and Venus Williams.
• Losers – Jamie Hampton and Serena Williams.

Round of 64
The women didn’t fare as well in the second round – 3 wins and 7 losses, although 2 of the matches pitted American players against each other.
• Winners – Varvara Lepchenko, Christina McHale, and Sloane Stephens.
• Losers – Lauren Davis, Irina Falconi, Alexa Glatch, Vania King, Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, and Venus Williams.

Round of 32
The American women performed admirably in the third round – 2 wins and 1 loss.
• Winners – Varvara Lepchenko and Sloane Stephens.
• Losers – Christina McHale.

Round of 16
The American women lost to the 4th and 6th seeds – 0 wins and 2 losses.
• Losers – Sloane Stephens and Varvara Lepchenko lost.

The 12 American women won 15 matches and lost 12.
At the Australian Open, the 10 American women won 9 matches and lost 10.

The Grand Slams are not a team or country contest. Nevertheless, it is still interesting to look at the performance of the top players an countries.

France had 29 players with 30 wins and 29 losses.
Spain had 20 players with 30 wins and 19 losses.
USA also had 20 players with 18 wins and 20 losses.
Russia had 17 players with 10 wins and 16 losses.
Germany had 15 players with 13 wins and 15 losses.
Italy had 12 players with 15 wins and 12 losses.
The Czech Republic has 12 players with 14 wins and 12 losses.
USA Tennis is a solid performer, but clearly not a dominant factor in the sport.

American tennis fans can only hope that the women continue to play well at Wimbledon. With a little luck, some of the younger players will have a break-through tournament. While the American men are fabulous players, they demonstrated again that they are clearly not in the upper tier.

 

Three Reasons the U.S. Fails to Dominate Men’s Tennis

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If you were asked to list three reasons the United States does not dominate men’s tennis what would you say?

The politically charged response is, “The USTA is doing a horrible job with player development, America’s best athletes play other sports, and American kids choose to be well-rounded, rather than focused on individual sports.”

A less controversial response to the question is, “Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic.” The 3 Ss – (Swiss, Spaniard, and Serbian) have had an unprecedented death grip on the Grand Slam trophies since 2004. And they have a lot at stake in the upcoming French Open.

• If Federer captures the top prize, he will become the third player to complete a double career Slam. A win at Roland Garros would up his total of Grand Slams to 17.

• If Rafael Nadal wins he will surpass Bjorn Borg with seven French titles.

• Djokovic currently holds three consecutive Grand Slam titles. A win would make him the second player of the Open Era to hold all four titles at once. The only other player to do that was Rod Laver.

The following results show the dominance of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic in Grand Slams since 2000. (Each name is followed by a fraction. The top number represents the number of Grand Slam wins through that tournament and the number on the bottom is the total number of career Grand Slams won by the player. Players with only one win do not have a number listed by their name).

Australian Open
2000 Andre Agassi (6/8)
2001 Andre Agassi (7/8)
2002 Thomas Johansson
2003 Andre Agassi (8/8)
2004 Roger Federer (2/16)
2005 Marat Safin (2/2)
2006 Roger Federer (7/16)
2007 Roger Federer (10/16)
2008 Novak Djokovic (1/5)
2009 Rafael Nadal (6/10)
2010 Roger Federer (16/16)
2011 Novak Djokovic (2/5)
2012 Novak Djokovic (5/5)
Since 2004 the trio has won every Australian Open except 2005. Federer has won four Australian Opens.

French Open
2000 Gustavo Kuerten (2/3)
2001 Gustavo Kuerten (3/3)
2002 Albert Costa
2003 Juan Carlos Ferrero
2004 Gastón Gaudio
2005 Rafael Nadal (1/10)
2006 Rafael Nadal (2/10)
2007 Rafael Nadal (3/10)
2008 Rafael Nadal (4/10)
2009 Roger Federer (14/16)
2010 Rafael Nadal (7/10)
2011 Rafael Nadal (10/10)
Since 2005 Nadal and Federer have won every French Open. Nadal has won six total wins.

Wimbledon
2000 Pete Sampras (13/14)
2001 Goran Ivanišević
2002 Lleyton Hewitt (2/2)
2003 Roger Federer (1/16)
2004 Roger Federer (3/16)
2005 Roger Federer (5/16)
2006 Roger Federer (8/16)
2007 Roger Federer (11/16)
2008 Rafael Nadal (5/10)
2009 Roger Federer (15/16)
2010 Rafael Nadal (8/10)
2011 Novak Djokovic (3/5)
Since 2003 the trio has won every Wimbledon tournament. Federer has won six.

U.S. Open
2000 Marat Safin (1/2)
2001 Lleyton Hewitt (1/2)
2002 Pete Sampras (14/14)
2003 Andy Roddick
2004 Roger Federer (4/16)
2005 Roger Federer (6/16)
2006 Roger Federer (9/16)
2007 Roger Federer (12/16)
2008 Roger Federer (13/16)
2009 Juan Martín del Potro
2010 Rafael Nadal (9/10)
2011 Novak Djokovic (4/5
Since 2004 the threesome has won every U.S. Open. Federer has won five U.S. Opens.

Beginning with Wimbledon in 2003 through the Australian Open in 2012, Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic have won 31 of 35 Grand Slams.

Although American purists may long for the days of Sampras vs. Agassi or Connors vs. McEnroe, the remaining 2012 Grand Slams will be tennis at its finest. In three months we will know if the 3Ss continue their stranglehold on the sport and make it 34 of 38 Grand Slams.

 

Australian Open – Promise for American Women’s Tennis

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With the exception of John Isner (2-1) and Serena Williams (3-1), the 21 American men and women made a weak showing at the Australian Open.

Fortunately, the results were better on the junior side. In total the 13 boys and girls posted combined winning records.

There is a glimmer of hope that the next generation of U.S. tennis greats is on the horizon, particularly for those worried about who is going to be the face of American women’s tennis when the Williams sisters retire.

Typically American juniors don’t flock to the Australian Open. It is a long and expensive trip.Such was the case in the Boys’ Singles.

Three Americans entered. Conner Farren and Trey Strobel were ousted in the first round. McKenzie McDonald had a much better showing. He had four wins and 1 loss (semifinals).

Ten American girls entered the singles draw. Their results are listed below.

Round of 64
The girls had a combined record of 7-3.
Winners: Stephanie Nanta, Julie Elbaba, Krista Hardebeck, Taylor Townsend, Samantha Crawford, Kyle McPhillips,

Christina Makarova.
Losers: Sachia Vickery, Catherine Harrison, Gabrielle Andrews.

Round of 32
The girls had a combined record of 5-2.
Winners: Krista Hardebeck, Taylor Townsend, Samantha Crawford, Kyle McPhillips, Christina Makarova.
Losers: Stephanie Nanta, Julie Elbaba.

Round of 16
The girls had a combined record of 2-3.
Winners: Krista Hardebeck, Taylor Townsend.
Losers: Samantha Crawford, Kyle McPhillips, Christina Makarova.

Quarterfinals
The girls had a combined record of 2-0.
Winners: Krista Hardebeck, Taylor Townsend.
Losers: None.

Semifinals
The girls had a combined record of 1-1. Townsend beat Hardebeck in the semifinals.
Winners: Krista Hardebeck, Taylor Townsend.
Losers: None.

Finals
Townsend won the championship and finished 6-0.

Combined, the 10 American girls had an 18-9 record.

Given these results, American tennis fans can look forward to the French Open with anticipation.

 

Weak Showing by American Singles Players – Australian Open

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This past weekend, Victoria Azarenka and Novak Djokovic were crowned Men’s and Women’s Champions at the Australian Open. The showing by the American players was dismal – with Serena Williams reaching the round of 16 and John Isner the round of 32. While they are wonderful players, neither Williams (30) nor Isner (almost 27) are in the prime of their careers.

The lack of success of the top players, in yet another Grand Slam event raises a number of questions.
• Many of the top players in the world train and practice in the United States. We have great coaches and great facilities, why don’t we have more of the top players? Why can foreign players come to the U.S. and become elite and the same doesn’t happen with American players?
• During the time the USTA Player Development Program has been in place there have been few successes, as measured by Grand Slam singles wins. There are roughly 25 million U.S. tennis players. With hundreds of millions of dollars invested in player development, why hasn’t the USTA program produced more elite players?
• Are American youth really interested in playing tennis at a highly competitive level? Are they willing to dedicate themselves to tennis between the ages of 8 and 18 or would they rather participate in a variety of activities while they are growing up?
• Has the sport become too structured with lessons, leagues, drill sessions, camps, and tournaments? Are players participating in these activities without learning how to practice or to tactically and mentally play the sport?
• The day of riding your bike to the park and playing all day is gone. Back in the day, players learned from playing pick-up games and adults. Was that possibly a better way to learn the sport?
• Is it too expensive for America’s youth to become elite tennis players? Are there too few clubs or recreation facilities where they can afford to learn to play?
• Are youth too consumed with computers, television, game boys, social media, and the electronic age to play tennis?
• Tennis is a challenging sport to master. Has the age of instant gratification made tennis less appealing?
• There are a number of sports options, including extreme sports. Is tennis too boring or is it perceived to be too boring?
• Is tennis properly marketed to America’s youth? Are introductory programs engaging youth or are they turning them off to the sport?
• Are America’s best athletes playing team sports where they can receive greater notoriety?
• Has the level of competition risen to the point that it is unrealistic to expect the U.S. to dominate the way they once did? If so, why are the Russian and Eastern European players having such success?
• Is the lack of success a sign that Americans have lost their drive to excel?
• Just as the U.S. is not the top country in sports such as cricket, does it really matter anymore that we no longer dominate tennis?

The results for Americans are listed below.

U.S. Men’s Results
Round of 128
The ten U.S. men players had a promising start – 6 wins and 5 losses.
• Winners – Andy Roddick, Ryan Sweeting, Mardy Fish, Sam Querrey, John Isner, Denis Kudia, and Donald Young.
• Losers – Michael Russell, Ryan Harrison, Jesse Levine, and Alex Kuznetsov.
Round of 64
The American players were not up to the task in the second round – 1 win and 5 losses.
• Winners – John Isner.
• Losers – Andy Roddick, Ryan Sweeting, Mardy Fish, Sam Querrey, and Donald Young.
Round of 32
The lone American player lost. NO AMERICAN MEN ADVANCED PAST THE ROUND OF 32 – 0 wins and 1 loss.
• Losers – John Isner.

The 11 American men won 7 matches and lost 11.

U.S. – Women’s Results
Round of 128
The 10 U.S. women players broke even in the first round – 5 wins and 5 losses.
• Winners – Christina McHale, Serena Williams, Sloane Stephens, Jamie Hampton, and Vania King.
• Losers – Varvara Lepchenko, Irina Falconi, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Alison Riske, and Madison Keys.
Round of 64
The remaining American women posted a winning record in the second round – 3 wins and 2 losses.
• Winners – Christina McHale, Serena Williams, and Vania King.
• Losers – Sloane Stephens and Jamie Hampton.
Round of 32
Competition was tougher in the round of 32 – 1 win and 2 losses.
• Winners – Serena Williams.
• Losers – Christina McHale and Vania King.
Round of 16
This was the end of the tournament for the American women.  NO AMERICAN WOMEN ADVANCED PAST THE ROUND OF 16 – 0 wins and 1 loss.
• Loser – Serena Williams.

The 10 American women won 9 matches and lost 10.

The U.S. had 21 singles entrants – 16 wins 21 losses. Only John Isner (2-1) and Serena Williams (3-1) had winning records.

American tennis fans can only hope for a better showing at the French Open in 4 months.