Tennis News for You!
“This Week’s Drop Shots” details the latest results, hot takes, and breaking news from around the tennis world in a quick and easy-to-read format.
Welcome back tennis fans…another Wednesday means another update from the tennis world by your CR team! The Aussie Open is in the books and college tennis is in full swing, so let’s get into the action:
Australian Open
Men’s
Why did we ever doubt the best hard court player of all time? Novak Djokovic returned to peak form to dismantle Daniil Medvedev in the final with a comprehensive 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 win. With this championship, Djokovic claimed his 9th Aussie Open title and 18th grand slam, putting him only two slams behind Federer and Nadal. While Djokovic has dominated the headlines for his victory (and rightfully so), there are several other players who emerged as winners from the event in our minds. Here are a few we have to mention:
Aslan Karatsev - the qualifier who made the semis in his Cinderella run and jumped 72 (!) spots in the ATP rankings
Stefanos Tsitsipas - while he ended up losing to Medvedev routinely, Tsitsipas made a statement with his win over Nadal in the quarters. He’s the youngest member of the top 10 and is now pushing his way toward top 5 in the world!
Daniil Medvedev - he may not have played his best tennis in the final vs. Djokovic, but this was a phenomenal 2-week stretch for Medvedev. With his result in Australia, he now moves to #3 in the ATP rankings!
Women’s
Although there were several upsets and unexpected results in this draw, is anyone really surprised that Osaka once again lifted the trophy? In a choppy final vs. American Jen Brady, Osaka showed her experience and grabbed her 4th slam title. Not bad for 23 years old! She is now #2 in the WTA rankings behind Ash Barty, who had a disappointing exit at the hands of Muchova in the quarters. Aside from the champ, here are some winners from the first slam of the year:
Hsieh Su-wei - the unseeded player who made the quarters before falling to eventual champ Osaka. She may have an unorthodox way of playing, but she found ways to win and capture the attention of fans in Australia!
Jessica Pegula - the American who upset title contenders Azarenka (1st round) and Svitolina (4th round) and made the quarters before her clash with Jen Brady. She is now in the top 50 of the WTA rankings.
Jen Brady - another American with a great tournament! Brady’s hard hitting got her all the way to the final vs. Osaka and once again asserted why she is so dangerous on a hard court. These deep runs at majors can be expected from the former UCLA standout!
College Tennis!
While COVID has affected and abbreviated tennis seasons across the country, we’re still lucky to see phenomenal competition! Both Men’s and Women’s National Indoor tournaments were held for D1, and both are being held this weekend for D2.
Since we’ve been able to step into the broadcast booth, we’re excited to announce our featured matches we’ll be on the call for this weekend! Live from Columbus, OH, we’ll be streaming on Saturday and Sunday while Ohio State competes. On Saturday, tune in to see the men take on Penn State at 3pm ET. The women will face off against Michigan on Sunday at 12pm ET. We’ll cover and host both, so check in here to watch!
Want to see the upcoming matches to look out for? Start here and you won’t be disappointed!