Women’s tennis has Major parity
Eight have won titles in the last two years of Grand Slam events
When Serena Williams was at her best, there was never much doubt that she’d be the favorite at pretty much any tournament she entered. While she was off the tour becoming a mom, women’s tennis was as wide open as ever.
Could the Australian Open, where play begins today (Monday in Australia), end the recent run in which eight women divvied up the past two years’ worth of Grand Slam championships, the first time that had happened since the 1930s?
It began with Williams taking home her seventh title from Melbourne, and 23rd major singles trophy overall, in January 2017. The world didn’t know it at the time, but she was pregnant then; her daughter, Olympia, was born on Sept. 1 of that year. Williams didn’t return to Grand Slam action until last year’s French Open, and while she reached the finals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, her title “drought” continues.
In the meantime, players such as No. 1-ranked Simona Halep, defending Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki, Sloane Stephens, Naomi Osaka and Jelena Ostapenko each claimed her first major, while
Angelique Kerber and Garbine Muguruza added to their collections.
“It’s a joke when people say, ‘Who is your pick?’ Well, I don’t have a pick, OK?” said Chris Evert, an 18-time major champion who now is an analyst for ESPN.
“The ability, I feel, and the talent is so even with the women,” Evert said, “it really will come down to the small intangibles, like maybe who wants it the most, maybe a little luck, who doesn’t have the really tough matches where they’re exhausted.”
Where — and whether — the top women face each other will be fascinating to keep an eye on. Williams could meet Halep, last year’s runner-up, in the fourth round.
“I don’t think we’ve ever had the depth that we have right now,” WTA CEO Steve Simon said.
Here are other things to know about the Australian Open, the year’s first Grand Slam tournament:
MURRAY’S HIP: This could be it for Andy Murray. At a news conference in Melbourne on Friday, the three-time major champion teared up as he explained that his surgically repaired right hip is too painful to allow him to compete at a top level and that he will be retiring after Wimbledon — if he even can make it that long. The 31-year-old from Scotland will give it a go at the Australian Open. He’s a five-time runner-up at the event but never won the title.
ROGER AND RAFA: Federer has won the past two titles at Melbourne Park and a total of six, like Djokovic; they could only meet in the final in two weeks’ time. Federer might be 37, but he’s healthy and still looks young on court. The same can’t necessarily be said for Nadal, who has dealt with injuries in Melbourne over the years and his hard-court record of late is discouraging. But if he can put aside the thigh strain that cropped up in early January, his game is good enough for another deep run.
NEW RULES: Among the changes this year are first-to-10-points, win-by-two tiebreakers at 6-all in men’s fifth sets and women’s third sets; a new way of measuring extreme heat and the allowance for 10-minute breaks ahead of men’s fourth sets.