Tennis News

1. Garbiñe Muguruza is the next big thing: The new World No.2 became just the second woman born in the 1990s to win a major title, joining two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in a, as it stands now, very exclusive club. Kvitova is 26 and well alongside a generation of players that includes Victoria Azarenka, Angelique Kerber, and Agnieszka Radwanska. But the 22-year-old Muguruza is the first representative of her generation of women, which includes Eugenie Bouchard, Sloane Stephens, and Madison Keys, to break through.

And there’s no reason to believe Roland Garros will be Muguruza’s only major title. The big-hitting Spaniard, already playing in her second major final in 12 months, was able to push Serena Williams around the court and power her way to a 7-5, 6-4 win in the final. She has the physicality to endure and a big all-court style that is built on solid technique. Most importantly, she has the ambition and mentality that is focused on not the spoils of success, but the success itself.

Read more about Muguruza’s meteoric rise from WTA Insider here.

2. The gap between Serena Williams and the field is shrinking: Heading into this season, Serena was riding a 15-match win-streak in tournament finals, dating back to 2013. In 2016 she has won one of the three finals she’s played so far, with two of the losses coming at Slams. It was Angelique Kerber getting the best of her in the Australian Open final, Victoria Azarenka beating her in the BNP Paribas Open final, and now Muguruza in Paris. You have to go back over a decade to 2004 to find the last time, and only other time, Serena has ever lost three finals in a season.

The debates over whether this is a result of Serena’s level dipping dramatically, how much injuries or fitness impact that dip, or how much the competition behind her has improved, will rage on. But this time a year ago, Serena held 11,291 ranking points, holding a 4,421 point lead on then-No.2 Kvitova. Today she holds 8,330 points, holding a 1,564 point lead on No.2 Muguruza.

3. Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic love the stage: Many French players have come and gone and many have said playing at home at Roland Garros can be an incredibly stressful time. With the expectations, attention, and crowd support, it can be difficult to just focus on the task at hand and play tennis.

But both Garcia and Mladenovic shook off any concerns this year in Paris. Coming off her title run in Strasbourg, Garcia played confident and inspired tennis despite going out to No.2 seed Radwanska in the second round. Mladenovic offered a fantastic challenge to Serena in the third round in one of the best matches of the tournament. And then the two paired up and rode their wave of confidence in doubles, becoming the first French pair to win the women’s title at Roland Garros since 1971.

4. Victoria Azarenka’s toughest rival: After dominating the hard court season, Azarenka sputtered on clay. Her biggest enemy continues to be her body. She pulled out of the Mutua Madrid Open with a back injury and then retired in the first round of Roland Garros due to a knee injury. Now she’s already withdrawn from this week’s Aegon Open Nottingham due to the same knee injury.

5. City of Milestones: No Slam has produced more first-time winners than Roland Garros. In the Open Era, there have been 45 different players to win a Grand Slam singles title. Roland Garros has produced the most first-time winners (16), followed by Australian Open (11), Wimbledon (9) and US Open (9).

But it wasn’t just about Muguruza joining the Slam club in Paris. Kiki Bertens, who had been past the second round of a Slam just once in her career, found herself in her first major semifinal. The unseeded Dutchwoman, ranked No.58 at the start of the tournament, won the title in Nürnberg as a qualifier and proceeded to mow down the field in Paris. She beat Angelique Kerber, Camila Giorgi, Daria Kasatkina, Madison Keys, and Timea Bacsinszky, tallying 12 consecutive wins over three weeks.

Then there was Shelby Rogers, ranked outside the Top 100 at the start of the tournament, who did he own heavy lifting to make her first Slam quarterfinal. Like Bertens, Rogers paved her own way, with wins over Karolina Pliskova, Elena Vesnina, Petra Kvitova, and Irina-Camelia Begu, before losing to the eventual champion.

6. Daria Kasatkina and Naomi Osaka continue their rise: Both 18-year-olds made the third round of the Australian Open in their tournament debut. They each replicated the feat in their Paris debuts. Osaka beat No.32 seed Jelena Ostapenko and Mirjana Lucic-Baroni before pushing No.6 seed Simona Halep to three sets. She’s now firmly in the Top 100 at No.87. Kasatkina, seeded in her first Roland Garros, had a good look to make the second week before a leg injury derailed her late in the third set against Bertens. The young Russian appears to have secured her singles spot on the Russian Olympic team, now up to No.31.

7. Weather is the ultimate equalizer: In a stunning turn of events in the second week, Samantha Stosur and Tsvetana Pironkova resumed their rain-interrupted matches to score big upsets, with Stosur ralling from 3-5 down at the break to roll to a 7-6(0), 6-3 win over Halep. Pironkova did one better, knocking out Radwanska after being down 6-3, 3-0 at the break. The Bulgarian reeled off 10 consecutive games on the restart and eventually won 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 to make her first French Open quarterfinal.

The cool, wet conditions in Paris were a big storyline in the second week. Roland Garros saw its first washout in 16 years on the second Monday, forcing a schedule shift that saw Serena play four straight days, including Saturday’s final, compared to Muguruza, who played two straight days.

Top players are understandably accustomed to playing in the best of conditions and circumstances. They get the best court assignments, but the preferred scheduling, and as a result they can be put off by even the slightest of disturbances. On the flip side, lower-ranked players, such as No.102 Pironkova are more seasoned in dealing with the litany of variables that can crop up on the ITF circuit or qualifying.

8. Olympic picture comes into focus: Roland Garros was the last opportunity for players to grab ranking points to put them into contention for their respective Olympic teams. A full explanation of the complex qualifying scheme can be found here.

Ranking aside, Bertens needed to make the fourth round in Paris due to specific rules put into place by the Dutch Federation, and secured her spot by beating Kasatkina 10-8 in the third. Pironkova also went from being an Olympic afterthought to landing right on the bubble at No.71. Her spot will come down to how many players ranked ahead of her are ruled out of Rio. The ITF will confirm the composition of the field on June 30th.

9. Familiar faces on the Road to Singapore: With the clay season complete and two of the four Slams in the books, the RTS Leaderboard is now starting to take shape. Here’s where we stand at the halfway point:

1. Serena Williams (Rome champion, Australian Open finalist, Indian Wells finalist, French Open finalist).
2. Angelique Kerber (Australian Open champion, Stuttgart champion, Miami semifinalist, Charleston semifinalist).
3. Victoria Azarenka (Brisbane champion, Indian Wells champion, Miami champion).
4. Garbiñe Muguruza (Roland Garros champion, Rome semifinalist).
5. Agnieszka Radwanska (Shenzhen champion, Australian Open semifinalist, Doha semifinalist, Indian Wells semifinalist, Stuttgart semifinalist).
6. Carla Suárez Navarro (Doha champion, Brisbane semifinalist, Australian Open quarterfinalist).
7. Simona Halep (Madrid champion, Indian Wells quarterfinalist, Miami quarterfinalist).
8. Svetlana Kuznetsova (Sydney champion, Miami finalist).

10. Internationals matter: Bertens played Nuremberg the week before Roland Garros, won the tournament as a qualifier, and proceeded to knock off No.3 seed Kerber in the first round en route to the semifinals. Rogers made her second WTA final in February, on clay at the Rio Open. Stosur’s run to the Prague Open final, losing narrowly to Lucie Safarova, was a confidence building week for a woman who was playing far better on clay than people realized before Paris. And Cagla Buyukakcay, who became the first Turkish woman to qualify for the main draw at a Slam and win match, won the Istanbul Cup in April.

While the results throughout the fortnight in Paris were surprising at times, you would have seen the results coming if you were keeping an eye on the tour’s International tournaments. They may not be the biggest tournaments on tour, but they’re prime scouting ground to discover who may just be on the verge of a breakout week.

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

PARIS, France – Hours had passed by the time Garbiñe Muguruza walked into the interview room following her 7-5, 6-4 win over Serena Williams to win her first major title at Roland Garros. Throughout the week the now World No.2 was primarily greeted by a half-full room of Spanish reporters — there had been a combined six English questions for her in her two previous press conferences.

Now, after a commanding win over the World No.1, she faced a standing-room only crowd of reporters. As reporters applauded, she strolled up to the dais and placed the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen next to her and sat down. And then she scooted the trophy just a little bit closer and smiled. It was hers. No really, it was hers.

Here’s what the 22-year-old Spaniard had to say to both the English press and Spanish press after her big win on Saturday.

Moderator: Questions in English?

Q. When you had those four match points and then you had to serve for it, what was going through your mind? You looked so composed. I guess inside it wasn’t that easy.
MUGURUZA: Yeah, it was very difficult to see you have four match points and doesn’t go your way. But it’s a final. There’s no room for being disappointed or for excuses, Oh, I had four match points.

I still had another chance serving, and even after. I just tried to be calm even though inside, I was like, Oh, there’s no way. Then I managed to be calm and just think about what I have to do every point, and don’t think about match point or championship point.

Q. Can you try and describe your feelings on the match point that you did win, that lob? Took you a second to realize you won. Can you tell us what went through your mind?
MUGURUZA: It was really weird. Serena was in front of the ball so I didn’t know if it was in or out. I looked at the chair umpire and chair umpire doesn’t want to say anything. Line judge doesn’t want to say anything.

I was like, Did I win Roland Garros? What happened? When he said, Game, set, and match, I was like, No way. I won. It was like amazing.

Q. I saw you got a tweet from Rafa. When you watched him winning all those titles did you think that one day it would be you?
MUGURUZA: You know what I thought? Like how can he win nine times? Right away I’m like, That’s impossible to do it again. (Smiling.)

But, you know, reading that tweet about Rafa, it’s great for us. For Spanish people this is the tournament. When you’re a kid and you practice on clay you always, Oh, I wish I could win Roland Garros. Today is a great day.

Q. This is the first clay title for you, which is Roland Garros. How do you explain about that?
MUGURUZA: Well, for sure not bad. The previous years here I felt good in French Open playing. I reached two times quarterfinals, so I was there. But, I mean, to start [my] clay [career] with this title, for sure it’s impossible to be better.

Q. How could you not cry?
MUGURUZA: No. I was crying, but I was like, — I was putting my tears away. I was crying. But I’m like, No way. No way I won. I did cry. (Smiling.)

But I have to say I was trying to be composed. As I started the tournament my objective was to not very emotional and to go every match. Doesn’t matter which round it was, but to be calm.

I didn’t know what to do, honestly. To jump, to go to the floor. At the moment, I’m like heart attack almost.

Q. Did you surprise yourself at all how you handled the final?
MUGURUZA: Well, every match I played until I reached the final I was a little bit improving. You know, today was just that challenge. You got to face the best player in the final. You know you’ve got to perform well. Your chances of winning playing bad are very low.

I knew, Come on, Garbiñe. This is your chance again. Go for it. Just go for it. And breathe. I did it kind of. (Smiling.)

Q. With the tough start to this year that you had, when did you think that winning this year’s French Open could be even possible?
MUGURUZA: Well, I had it in mind. It’s not that I can’t imagine, because I reached good rounds. I believe I can do it. Just didn’t go my way at the beginning of the year.

But that doesn’t mean that it’s not going to go after. So I have been practicing and working hard. I knew eventually I will start to feel better, so that’s the way of tennis. It’s so long. One tournament you win; the next one you lose in first round. So it’s hard.

Q. You obviously beat Serena at this tournament, but you also played her in a Grand Slam final in the last year, which is a different occasion. What did you learn from that first final and were you able to draw on that or use that in this match today?
MUGURUZA: Yeah, for sure. But not only that match, all the matches I played against her. I felt I had a lot of opportunities against her, and I just thought in Wimbledon I was very nervous. I couldn’t really control that. I can’t think about, Oh, I wish I could be less nervous, but that’s hard to say.

I just put that aside today. I was like, Come on. Let’s go for it. Forget about the nerves, even though it’s hard. I just had a little different mindset today.

Q. You have become the 11th player from Spain to win a Grand Slam. Do you think your victory will serve as an inspiration for people in Venezuela even though you identify yourself as a Spaniard?
MUGURUZA: Well, I hope so. That’s the best when you inspire people, when people tell you, Oh, I wish I could play like you and to be like that. I think that’s great to hear, especially for kids. They are so excited it’s like, Oh, so cool.

So, yeah, I hope so. Venezuela, I always have it in my heart even though there is a Spanish flag under my name. I have a lot of support from there similar to Spanish, which is amazing. I not only play for Spain. I play for both.

Q. What was the one quality that brought you through the tournament this year, do you think?
MUGURUZA: I have been saying during the whole week to be less emotional. To believe more that I’m here because I deserve my place here. I earned it. You know, I played well. I earned to be here in the final.

I think just to don’t think about other stuff. Just give it all in the court and doesn’t matter who’s in front, which round it is. Just to control the emotions I think is the key sometimes, especially in a Grand Slam where you’re very nervous and excited.

Q. Sam Sumyk, what advice did he give you, in particular?
MUGURUZA: Well, I always say that Sam is a great professional because he has been in the top level, and that’s not easy to find on people, because not all the people reach top level.

But I think experience. I think it’s the voice of experience telling me sometimes, Hey, I think this is better. Been there; I felt it. Well, he’s not have been there, but with the team and with their players. It’s great to hear something that is real, because it has reasons behind that. I’m like, Oh, great. I’ll try to do it.

So experience.

Q. It seems like the crowd likes you here. Do you think it’s because your coach is French or…
MUGURUZA: Oh, no. I wish that’s not the reason. (Smiling.)

Well, for sure. But honestly I don’t know. I felt during the whole two weeks a lot of support. I just think maybe they want a Spanish woman to win the tournament. They are like, Come on. Always Nadal. How about a Spanish woman? I’m very surprised with the crowd, yeah.

Q. Do you think you played lights out, best that you could have possibly played? Do you feel like you were a level below what you would consider your best? How would you rate how well you played today?
MUGURUZA: I think I played well considering the circumstances. It was difficult to get into the match, because we are very powerful players, so it was very hard to have a point with three shots. It was all about the serve, return, first two groundstrokes.

I think I played very well. I think I could serve better. But for sure I’m pretty happy with my performance, yeah.

Q. You were already No.3 in the world in October last year. How come you only won two tournaments in your life? How do you explain that? That’s difficult for us to understand, especially today.
MUGURUZA: Well, the first question, I think the important tournaments are the ones you’ve got to play well, the ones that really count, the ones that really take you to the top level.

At the end I was like – last year I’m like, Well, I did a final in Grand Slam; I won that tournament. But they’re important, so that means a lot of points and a lot of to the top level, I guess.

Q. What do you think was the technical key to win today?
MUGURUZA: I just have a very aggressive game. I go for my shots with no regrets, even if I play to the fence. I don’t think I did nothing special today. Just a lot of confidence. Just a lot of — like how can I explain? Like attack mindset, you know, to her. That worked.

Q. Do you think watching Kerber winning against Serena in Melbourne has given you a bit more belief for this final? Was it in your mind, Okay, she did it? Maybe that means the opening can be for me, too?
MUGURUZA: Yeah, I thought about it. I thought about it yesterday. I’m like, Come on. You can do it.

When you see people that are winning and there’s new faces, makes you think like, I can be one of those faces. I can be the one who — Hey, if Kerber can I can, or whoever is there. Yeah, for sure, it helps to see new faces.

Moderator: Questions in Spanish.

Q. What did you feel during the last game when the chair umpire said, Game, set, match?
MUGURUZA: Well, there was a moment when nobody knew and would say that I had won the match. People are asking me what I feel, but it’s several things that I’m feeling. It’s a dream come true. It’s a tournament that I’ve always wanted to win. It’s done now. I’ve done it. It’s on my list.

Q. People are talking about your ambition and the fact that you like competition. Can you tell us more about this, how you intend to compete and how this has helped you in Paris?
MUGURUZA: I think I’m ambitious. I think I have a strong character and I like competition. I like to compete. I like to play against the best players. This is a source of motivation for me.

I’m very happy, because today I proved to myself that I can play really well, that I can manage my stress and win against one of the best players in the world.

Q. There were very important moments, for instance, the match points, 15-40, and you were serving for the set. Which is the moment when you felt was the best moment for you, you were stronger, or that was a turnaround point?
MUGURUZA: Well, you know, Serena is never going to give you the impression that you dominate the match. She’s very powerful. Her serve is very impressive. She can win games very quickly. I wouldn’t say there is one point that was more important than any of the other ones.

It’s true that after winning the first set I managed to calm down a little. I thought I got off to a good start. I wouldn’t say that there was any specific moment that was a turnaround type of moment.

Q. Was there something in your tennis that you wanted to improve?
MUGURUZA: Well, a bit of everything, I’d say. Frankly, I have to improve many things in my tennis. That’s what I’m working on. I could have served better, for instance, today. I wasn’t feeling that comfortable when I was serving.

And by the way, that’s the only shot that you can really totally control. So I have to work on my serves, but there were other aspects, as well.

Q. You’re a champion. You have won Roland Garros. You are a Grand Slam champion. Would you say it’s okay? You’re satisfied? It’s done?
MUGURUZA: No. Well, of course I’m very happy, but I’d like to have more. My dream is to continue and win more tournaments, similar tournaments, and to dominate. When I am on the court I want to dictate my game and bring more of these cups back home.

Q. You said that this was an important moment or tournament for Spain and Venezuela.
MUGURUZA: Yes, of course. I think I have equal support from Venezuela as well as Spain. I talked more about Spain because clay is more of a Spanish tradition. Everybody knows that. All children start playing on clay.

I think that it was a major win and a great victory, as well, for Venezuela. I think that sports in general and tennis should be practiced more and more in Venezuela. I would like to have more children playing tennis.

Q. You were talking in English about new faces or perhaps new blood. On the Grand Slams you were talking about Kerber, and you mentioned others, as well, like Flavia.
MUGURUZA: Yeah, for a long period of time we had the same players, like Serena. They were always in all of the Grand Slams. And I think it’s incredible to see new faces and that the players know now that it’s possible to win, to defeat Serena. It’s like breathing new or fresh air.

Q. Patrick Mouratoglou was saying that the match was in the hands of Serena, and I think he was wrong. You’ve shown that it’s the contrary.
MUGURUZA: Yeah, that’s true. I heard this comment before. That’s true.

Well, that’s his job. You know, he’s Serena’s coach. But I don’t pay attention to this. I don’t agree with that. My tennis was dominating today, and we’ve seen the evidence of this.

Q. Your name will now be on the cup. What’s the name close to which you’d like your name to appear today? Which is the other name you’d like to be close to? Is it Conchita? Is it Serena?
MUGURUZA: Well, almost all of them. Being close to Serena’s name, of course, because she’s won so many Grand Slams. She’s part of history. There is Steffi Graf, as well. How many wins she’s had here in Grand Slams.

Almost all of the names I can see on the cup today. All of the names. All of them. It’s so great to have mine here, as well.

Q. I’d like to say a few words about women’s tennis and women’s sports, in general. After Roland Garros I suppose you’re going to play on grass at the Mallorca Open. I think it’s important for women now, women tennis players, to have a champion.
MUGURUZA: Yeah, I’m very happy to go and play on grass in Spain. It’s going to be a bit special. But I think it’s fantastic if I can play, as well, on grass in Spain. People will come to see us play. I don’t have much time left, but I’ll be going to Spain after this win.

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.