 "Wimbledon 2015: The contenders")
Serena Williams: Bidding for immortality
By the time fans packed the Rod Laver Arena on women’s singles final day at the Australian Open in late January, the unforgiving afternoon heat of Melbourne had given way to a balmy evening, with a scant chance of rain. But as the lights took full effect, Maria Sharapova was still feeling the heat — of a very different kind though. A player on the women’s tour had once proclaimed: playing against Serena Williams is like playing against a brick wall. The harder you hit the ball, the harder it comes back. Sharapova belted a few but the ball came back at double the speed, often whizzing past her racquet. In the latter stages of the first set, the otherwise phlegmatic Russian let out a cry of anguish that upstaged the uproarious applause of the crowd.A little under two months later, on a blustery Barcelona evening, when Lionel Messi was obliterating a hapless Manchester City defence in a Champions League game, match commentator Gary Neville described the Argentine’s style of play as “barbaric”. This was after Messi had left a couple of bewildered City players on their backside. Had Neville been in the stands at Melbourne Park, he would have unhesitatingly used the same superlative for Williams.
Back to the Rod Laver, where the savagery continued. Sharapova tried. And then she tried harder. Williams never relented. The kohl adorning her eyes prominent as ever and her effulgent pink and yellow outfit easily outdoing the twinkling Melbourne skyline, the American eventually dispatched Sharapova in straight sets, romping home to a 19th Grand Slam title. This was the sixteenth consecutive time Williams had tamed Sharapova — a fair indication of the kind of dominance she enjoys in the women’s game.
Also Read: Quite a business at Wimbledon
In Paris earlier this month, Williams clinched Grand Slam number 20, overcoming Lucie Safarova in the final at Roland Garros. To put the enormity of that achievement into context, Roger Federer has won 17 majors in just about the same time, and there is a general consensus that the Swiss is the most dominant player the sport has ever seen.
Remarkably, Williams is 33 years old and still the best tennis player on the planet. After her win at the French Open, Nike, Williams’s main sponsor, came out with a poster that read: “Age is just a number. Serena’s #1.” They couldn’t be more right. Her age-defying, spunky brand of tennis, quite frankly, has reached a level of unseen absurdness. It boggles your mind every time you see her play.
Williams has now in her sight Steffi Graf (who holds the record for the second most slams with 22) and Margaret Court (the all-time best at 24). Surprisingly, Williams hasn’t won at Wimbledon since 2012. But there is little that can stop her this year. World No 2 Petra Kvitova — the only player to have beaten her this year — is the sole formidable challenger in the draw.
After losing in Melbourne, Sharapova was strafed with questions about what makes Williams so good. “I wish I could serve as fast as her. And hit groundstrokes like her. But it’s just not possible with my shoulder,” was her response. There is nobody who can compete with Williams in terms of physicality. In a lot of ways, she is the female version of Rafael Nadal — dogged and irrepressible. When her groundstrokes are not finding the lines, she relies on her physical supremacy to slay opponents.
However, at Wimbledon this year, it’s the lesser players that would have Williams worried. In the past, the American has found it difficult against players who are fast movers and hit heavy from the back of the court — such as Sabine Lisicki and Eugenie Bouchard.
But with a calendar Grand Slam in the offing, Williams is unlikely to be challenged. The Justine Henins and Martina Hingis’ would have struggled to live with her in their prime, let alone the Kvitovas and Bouchards. And, this time, we hope Gary Neville is watching.
Novak Djokovic: Seizing the advantage
After both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer had made meek exits from the French Open earlier this month, Novak Djokovic would have imagined himself gleefully posing with the The Musketeers’ Trophy on the banks of the Seine at the end of the tournament fortnight. Stanislas Wawrinka and his pink check shorts, of course, were perhaps left out by Djokovic while he formulated his winning equation.
On a mild Parisian afternoon, Wawrinka played like a certain Marat Safin from an era gone by — hitting the ball with brute force and clocking speeds that would have made the capricious Russian proud. So good was the Swiss No 2 that even Djokovic, the best player in the world, was made to look ordinary. But how often can a player make Djokovic so prosaic? More worryingly for the neutrals, who apart from Andy Murray, or Wawrinka once in a while, can challenge the Serb on a consistent basis?
The answer is simple. With Nadal’s star on the wane and Federer struggling to go all the way in major tournaments, the next couple of years are Djokovic’s for the taking. We are destined for an era in men’s tennis that is strikingly reminiscent of the late 1990s — an age that saw the emergence of Pete Sampras as the unstoppable force on tour, toppling rivals with his elegant brand of serve and volleying. By then, the likes of Jim Courier and Richard Krajicek had had their say and were slowly heading for muted exits. Andre Agassi was still in his prime, outlasting opponents with arduous, yet delightful, baseline play. But then Agassi was no Sampras. Similarly, Murray, even with his polished all-round game, is no Djokovic.
The head-to-head between the two players paints a rather disquieting picture for the Scot. Djokovic leads 19-8, with Murray having failed to beat him in their last eight meetings — the last of which was a marathon five-setter in the semi-final of the French Open. But Djokovic’s record in major finals tells its own story. The 28-year-old, with eight titles, has only won half of the Grand Slam finals he has played. Federer — the ultimate benchmark when it comes to major records — in comparison had eclipsed Sampras’ record of 14 slams by that age, and he had to contend with Nadal when he was at his most sublime.
While you can marvel at Djokovic’s consistency over the last few years, his imploding in major finals must have coach Boris Becker worried. His failure to adapt to the pace of Wawrinka’s game cost him the title in Paris. Against Murray, another tenacious counter-puncher, similar mistakes in the future will go a long way in determining his eventual standing among the game’s elite. He may be roaming that hallowed territory already but there is a fair way to go before he joins Rod Laver, Sampras, Nadal and Federer.
At Wimbledon, Djokovic is likely to run into the imperious grass court version of Federer for probably the last time. Federer is still playing like an ageless wonder on his beloved surface, proof of which was there for all to see at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle last Sunday. A consistent Federer will be hugely difficult to beat but then Djokovic is possibly the only player who has the weaponry to stop him.
John McEnroe, earlier this week, warned that Djokovic and Murray’s domination is unlikely to last beyond the next two years, with young players such as Nick Kyrgios, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Jack Sock and Borna Coric ready to challenge the might of the world’s top five. However, McEnroe would well know that two years is a long time in any sport. And, Djokovic, if he stays fit, can make the transition from being just “great” to being considered as one of the finest to have ever played the game in these two years. The All England Club is where he will be hoping that process begins.