New Year and new beginnings for me as a tennis watcher. 2023 ended with my favourite player Petra Kvitová, announcing her pregnancy on New Year’s Eve. While great news for Petra, at the age of 33 and her baby due in the summer. the chances are this might be it for her tennis career. At the moment I’m still in denial and hoping for a comeback.
Consequently, 2024 is a bit different for me in terms of watching tennis.
Also, with the breakup of my favourite doubles team, Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova, my list of favourites is changing somewhat. Both Krejcikova and Siniakova have had some success in singles, but also some losses in 2024.
Krejcikova reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and Siniakova recently had a really good win over Coco Gauff. However, neither have gone too deep in any tournament. The Australian Open also saw Krejcikova and Siniakova face off against each other in the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles with their new respective partners which was a weird sight to see. Ultimately, Siniakova and Storm Hunter won, only to lose an absolute fantastic semi-final to the eventual champions, Elise Mertens, and Hsieh Su-Wei. Krejcikova and the German, Laura Siegemund actually looked pretty good together, but an injury to Barbora during that match with Siniakova and Hunter definitely affected the result.
Since then Krejcikova has not had much of a run and is off the tour with an injury at the moment and unable to defend that Dubai title that she won so well in 2023.
So all around a strange and unusual start to my tennis watching year, but an opportunity to watch and cheer on other players! Expect my Aryna Sabalenka appreciation coming soon, and also a focus on the women’s double scene. Also in praise of Jelena Ostapenko, why I like Beatrice Haddad Maia and much, much more.
Stay tuned ..
(PS Congratulations to Petra Kvitova!)
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