2024-01-16 02:34:00
This result must have aroused emotions in the tennis community. On Monday, Ukrainian qualifier Dajna Jastremska (93rd WTA) defeated the last Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova (7th WTA) 6:1, 6:2.
Problemy Vondrousovej
The Czech player practically did not exist on the court. The Ukrainian won fully deservedly. She looked like the player who won the Grand Slam title a few months ago. However, the Czechs are not surprised by the attitude of their tennis player.
– Markey Vondrousova’s elimination is not perceived as a surprise in the Czech Republic. Unfortunately, in recent days she has been struggling with several health problems, at one point she mightn’t even walk, and she practically didn’t train in Melbourne. Such a quick defeat was predictable – says journalist Jaroslav Plasil from Czech Radio in an interview with Sport.pl.
Vondrousova played with the national team in the United Cup in the first days of the new season. The Czechs were eliminated in the group stage, their biggest female star performed poorly. She lost to China’s Qinwen Zheng (15th WTA) and narrowly defeated Olga Danilović, number 123 in the world.
Previously, Marketa Vondrousova played in the WTA Finals, where in November she lost all three group matches – including the first one once morest Iga Świątek 6:7, 0:6. Already in Cancun she looked physically exhausted. Health problems are increasingly affecting top Czech tennis players.
Czech women prone to injuries
Karolina Muchova, finalist of last year’s Roland Garros, did not participate in the WTA Finals. Due to wrist problems, Muchova also had to miss the current Australian Open tournament. – She asked for the opinion of many doctors, underwent various therapies in the Czech Republic, but the pain keeps coming back – said Karel Knap from the idnes.cz portal in an interview with Sport.pl.
In the second part of the previous season, she also struggled with injuries, among others. Barbora Krejcikova. The Roland Garros 2021 champion was eliminated in the second round of the last Wimbledon following a draw in the match with Mirra Andejeva. After the meeting, she cried because her painful ankle spoiled her racing plans. Due to a recurring injury, Krejcikova did not play, for example in August in Montreal.
However, fans of Czech men’s tennis are in a better mood. 18-year-old Jakub Mensik advanced to the second round of the Australian Open on Monday. The 142nd-ranked Czech unexpectedly defeated Denis Shapovalov, a Wimbledon 2021 semi-finalist, 6-3, 7-5, 7-5.
What can Hurkacz’s teenage rival do?
– Jakub was able to cope with the speed of Shapovalov’s play and the high variability of rhythm in the rallies. This determined his victory over the Canadian. Before the match, he assured that he had to play better than usual, even if the opponent has not been as stable lately as in previous years. He managed to do it, and we are happy regarding it – Jaroslav Plasil tells us.
Shapovalov is a former tennis player ranked 10th in the world (2020), who has not played in recent months due to an injury. He is currently 114th in the world, and the performance in Melbourne showed how far he is from his former self.
In the next match, Jakub Mensik will face Hubert Hurkacz. The Pole, as the ninth player in the ATP ranking, will be a clear favorite. Does the Czech have no chance?
– Jakub is very goal-oriented, he exudes self-confidence. Much will depend on how Hubert Hurkacz serves. If there are opportunities for our tennis player, everything is possible – concludes Plasil.
18-year-old Jakub Mensik made it to the main tournament of the Australian Open through qualifying rounds. In recent months, he played only in lower-ranking ATP Challenger tournaments, but in September he reached the third round of the US Open following passing the qualifying rounds.
The Czechs hope that Mensik will build on the successes of Tomas Berdych, who was even fourth in the world in 2015. Since he ended his career five years ago, Czech tennis players have not had a representative among the top ATP players, unlike Czech representatives in the WTA ranking.
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