The Australian Open is over, and after Angelique Kerber’s upset of Serena Williams in the final, women’s tennis has a lot to think about. A lot of people picked Williams to lose in the final, but that was supposed to be to Victoria Azarenka. Kerber, though, beat Azarenka in the quarterfinals and then handled Serena in the final. What should we take away from this tournament?
1. Garbine Muguruza, Simona Halep, And Victoria Azarenka Cannot Break Out Of Bad Patterns
One of the big-picture stories of the Australian Open on the women’s side is that a lot of big-name players just didn’t bring it when they needed to. This wasn’t limited to any one player. Muguruza lost in the third round. Halep lost in the first round. Azarenka lost in the quarterfinals. Yet, all of them were expected to advance multiple rounds beyond what they actually did. They all fell short of their goals. They all played more timidly than a lot of outside observers thought they would. They all failed to compete at the highest level. Certainly in the cases of Muguruza and Halep, the losing players were noticeably subdued. Azarenka was her normal emotional self, but her game was way off against Kerber. She had played so well in the first four rounds, but as soon as an opponent came out of the blocks in good form in the first set, Azarenka clearly flinched. All three of these players really need to go back to the drawing board and reconsider how they go about their business. They have to be able to win matches they are expected to win at the big tournaments.
2. Serena Williams Underestimated Angelique Kerber
This is a harsh verdict, but a fair one. A key point is to understand why it is accurate, which also invites a discussion of why it is not accurate. No, Serena should not be criticized for her effort. She played extremely hard and was ultimately beaten by a better player. Serena was not complacent. She was not necessarily overconfident. She did respect Kerber, and in many ways, Serena lost simply because she didn’t serve as well as she normally does. That’s not about mindset or attitude. She just didn’t execute as well as she could have.
However, here’s where it’s accurate that Serena underestimated Kerber: She hit to the center of the court on a lot of her approaches. She went to the net a lot, which is okay, but she needed to hit closer to the sidelines and the corners, and she just didn’t do it. Kerber was able to run down shots more easily near the center service notch. That mattered.
3. Jo Konta Is Going To Be A Top 20 Player
One of the breakout stories of the Australian Open was Jo Konta of Great Britain. She beat Venus Williams and Ekaterina Makarova at this event, showing how well she competes against players with big weapons and a lot of power. Konta keeps beating highly known players in the top 30, a sign that she’s going to establish herself among the sport’s higher-ranked performers. She doesn’t have many points to defend over the next few months, so she’s in position to move into the top 20, and then stay there.
4. Angelique Kerber Has Turned The Corner
This is not just a Grand Slam tournament victory, but one achieved against the player who was the pre-tournament pick for many (Azarenka in the quarterfinals) and then the best player of the 21st century (Serena Williams in the final). Kerber has made breakthroughs in terms of her mental game and in terms of learning how to win when everything isn’t going well for her. She overcame a 5-2 deficit in the second set against Azarenka to win that set. She overcame a loss in the second set to Serena by winning the third set. She didn’t play great in the semifinals against Konta, but made her way through. In the past, she’s had a really tough time overcoming mental hurdles when things have gone wrong but she appears to have turned a corner at the Australian Open. This is a different player, someone who has a great chance to win more major titles.
