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NEW YORK – Karolina Muchova had her likelihood to win the tournament already within the bag when she turned in an early contender for one of the best performance of the US Open to this point.
Muchova's 6-3, 7-6(5) victory over Naomi Osaka last Thursday night was a masterpiece of variety and technique. In a service game within the second set, Muchova held her serve due to two volley winners, an ace and a devilish slice that a dismayed Osaka could only hit into the web.
Osaka was not at her best, but recovered within the second set and briefly threatened to overwhelm her opponent. As a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium showed, she stays considered one of tennis' biggest attractions despite her wildcard status. An equally packed Louis Armstrong Stadium saw her overwhelm No. 10 seed Jelena Ostapenko on Tuesday, and on the French Open in late spring, her encounter with world primary and eventual winner Iga Swiatek added excitement to a dreary first week.
Still, there was disappointment. Osaka said her “heart dies” when she loses, and her team had touted the American hardcourt swing because the moment her return to tennis would explode.
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On Saturday, Muchova stormed into the round of 16, beating Anastasia Potapova 6-4, 6-2, one other demonstration of her sophisticated tennis game. And on Monday, she faced the ladies's story of the yr, Italy's Jasmine Paolini. Paolini had reached two Grand Slam finals in a row and played a confident, smiling brand of tennis that took advantage of her stature moderately than working around it.
Muchova beat her 6-3, 6-3, storming down the court once more. Having already put one contender within the running for the tournament's best performance, she now has one other. And despite their various levels of success in New York this yr, the return of Muchova and Osaka is a big achievement for girls's tennis. Especially in the event that they can stay fit.
Both players are on their way back to competition this yr. Muchova finally ended a nine-month absence following surgery on a serious wrist injury and Osaka returned to the tour earlier this yr after announcing her pregnancy 19 months ago. The WTA Tour is in an interesting phase, with Swiatek dominating Roland Garros, Aryna Sabalenka doing the identical in Melbourne and the opposite two Grand Slams remaining more open. The top of ladies's tennis welcomes back two more contenders.
Muchova has reached a minimum of the quarterfinals in all 4 Grand Slams, but her absurdly high potential for achievement has dropped even further attributable to terrible bad luck with injuries.
The current world No. 52, a 28-year-old Czech, is a tennis player of the very best caliber. Seven-time Grand Slam champion Justine Henin said in June that Muchova was considered one of her favorite players due to her versatility and imagination. Osaka expressed similar sentiments after seeing her up close on Thursday.
Karolina Muchova's skillful play is a trademark of her tennis (Robert Prange / Getty Images)
“She's very athletic. She's very versatile,” Osaka said. “I like watching her play and playing against her, even if sometimes things don't go the way I want them to.”
In an interview before Wimbledon, Muchova analyzed her own game: “It's who I am and how I like to play that makes me happy on the court. That's just how I am. I don't want to play any other way – even if it's too much sometimes. I enjoy it and I've spoken to my team and we're trying to improve these things and I'll try to keep going like this.”
On Thursday, she said she just enjoys playing this fashion. “It's fun,” she said.
For those not so accustomed to Muchova's game, Thursday night provided a crash course. She stormed the web and volleyed much more continuously and efficiently than the overwhelming majority of players on tour are able to. Muchova finished the match by winning 13 of 19 (68 percent) points at the web, serving and volleying at crucial moments. She was also successful from the baseline, earning the primary break of the match with a featherweight drop shot within the seventh game and shutting the set with two thunderous forehand return winners when Osaka next served.
Muchova and Osaka's second-round match electrified the US Open after a slow start (Luke Hales / Getty Images)
In the second set, Muchova hit some incredible volley winners within the closing stages and gave way when Osaka served to take the match to a decider. In the tiebreak, she threw Osaka off her rhythm together with her relentless retrieval and use of a slice, causing a terrible error on match point that ended the sport.
Muchova now has a spot within the round of 16 and comes from a spot no tennis player wants to go away. After the February operation on the a part of the body that tennis players fear most, she fearful she might never play the game again. At first she couldn't get away from bed or brush her teeth, but progressively her strength returned and her mood improved. It helped her to usually attend concert events in her native Czech Republic, where a performance by English rock band Nothing But Thieves was a highlight.
She returned to the tour at Eastbourne, the British coastal grass-court tournament, but withdrew after two matches to guard her wrist. She then lost in straight sets to Paula Badosa in the primary round of Wimbledon. Badosa, one other player who has been badly hit by injuries, said her primary advice to Muchova was to “be patient.”
“I might say something different to another player, but she is so talented. She will get back to her level.”
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So it's proven. Less than two months later, Muchova has thrillingly knocked out a two-time US Open champion after which a two-time Grand Slam finalist. She's moving into the quarterfinals where she'll face Caroline Wozniacki or Beatriz Haddad Maia, neither of whom shall be looking forward to seeing Muchova at the web.
As an unseeded player, the Czech shall be a dangerous consider tournament draws even before her rating improves (Luke Hales / Getty Images)
For Osaka, as she memorably puts it, the outcomes during her comeback weren’t convincing. However, the flashes of her top level are a testament to what Badosa told Muchova about patience and the necessity for time and replays to lift the extent to the incredible level of performance. “She is an incredible player and I am really happy to see her back,” Muchova said after her win.
The challenge for each players now’s to place together a series of fine performances and improve their rankings (from No. 52 for Muchova and No. 88 for Osaka) in order that they don't face opponents of the identical caliber so early in tournaments. Osaka has never made it past the quarterfinals of an event since her comeback on New Year's Eve, while Muchova, who has only played just a few WTA matches since her return, has all the time been capable of impress against elite players without translating that into titles. According to Opta, of the nine lively WTA players who’ve beaten five former world No. 1s at Grand Slams, Muchova is the just one who has not yet won a Major or Masters 1000 title.
Whether Muchova or Osaka will soon win major tournaments will not be the primary issue. The indisputable fact that they’re playing on the tour in any respect is a victory for tennis, as the game advantages enormously from it.
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