N like Nadal...
Of course. As the world number 1 at the end of the season, who has won half of the Grand Slam tournaments this year (Roland-Garros, the US Open), the Spaniard has shown once again his power, and is only 1 small major tournament away from equalling the record-holder Roger Federer, after winning 58 matches in 2019. And the icing on this cake of happiness also came this year as El Matador decided to get married with his longterm girlfriend, during a ceremony where he had the great idea of… banning smartphones! Respect, champion.
O like Osaka...
First name Naomi. There are just so many arguments to justify her presence in this alphabet book… To resume: an Australian Open won, a world number 1 spot at the WTA ranking, a mark left in the history books of tennis after becoming the first Japanese player to sit on the throne, a Barbie made after her, an insect saved in the middle of a match… 365 absolutely crazy days!
P like Plíšková...
First name Karolina. There are just so many arguments to justify her presence in this alphabet book… To resume: three titles won, a world number 2 spot at the WTA ranking, 192 aces in 25 matches between January and the end of April, a 500th win on the circuit in May, a new coach in November… 365 absolutely crazy days!
Q like Qualification...
And especially Cori Gauff’s for the second round of Wimbledon, at the age of… fifteen. At Wimbledon, the American kid who had managed to get through the qualifying rounds has achieved a real feat by crushing, in two sets (6-4, 6-4), the five-time winner of the tournament, Venus Williams. « It’s the first time that I’m crying after winning a match, » said the winner. Baby tears, or almost. But she might be the future queen of the circuit.
R like Racquet...
Or throwing racquets, maybe. As in November, when Michael Mmoh decided to destroy his racquet at the Charlottesville Challenger, it had more consequences than a simple fit of anger. The tool of the Riyad-born player hit the linesman who lied down on the ground after the shock. An immediate disqualification! Darian King, who had suffered the same issue, at the same place, in 2014, is now less lonely.
S like Serena, or Stéfanos...
The first held her rank as a true Williams by getting back in the Top 10, even if she still hasn’t managed to win this damned 24th Grand Slam title, which has slipped again despite playing two finals (Wimbledon and the US Open). There’s a reason why one of her broken racquets has just been put up for auction, and should be sold for 25 or 50 000 dollars. The latter has definitely made Tsitsipas a household name in the world of tennis by reaching the Top 5 and winning the ATP finals, even if he is still lacking regularity in the Major tournaments. There is a reason why fame and Instagram make him go crazy, as he has recently admitted. By the way, 17 years separate these two…
T like Tweener...
Roger Federer, Nick Kyrgios, Filip Krajinovi?, Dominic Thiem, Pablo Cuevas… Every season, there are plenty of candidates for the most beautiful shot of the year. But this time, the winner is Joe Salisbury. And in the doubles, if you don’t mind.
U like Ukrainian...
The nationality of the amateur of the year, who nobody really knows how he got in the qualifying rounds of the Doha Challenger. But Artem Bahmet made a name for himself, by displaying a catastrophic level of tennis, as he ended up losing 6-0, 6-0, without scoring a single point against Krittin Koaykul. 48-0, it is.
V like Victims...
Gaël Monfils and Nick Kyrgios still laugh about it, but they were the victims of two absurd serves this season. For the Frenchman, it was against Reilly Opelka, who used the wind to hit an improbable ace on May 1st. As for the Australian, it was when he lost against Bernard Tomic, who hit an absolutely crazy serve on his match point in January.
W like Wimbledon...
One of the most thrilling moments of this 2019 season, without a doubt. Between the introduction of the « super tie-break » at 12-12 and the incredible final between Federer and Novak Djokovic which has crowned the Serb after 4h57 of hard work (the second longest final in the history of Major tournaments), the grass was celebrated as it should be. And we haven’t mentioned the uncontrollable hose during the match Artem Sitak/Laura Siegemund-Ken Skupski/Darija Jurak or Benoît Paire asking the umpire to get him something to eat.
X like X Factor...
or the unexpected physical endurance of the phenomenal Daniil Medvedev. The man who has played nine finals (four trophies won, including two Masters 1000), has played six of them between August and October! He ended up with 59 wins in total (the highest amount of the year), and 46 on his preferred surface. A real tough guy.
Y like Youtube...
Which shows us the most deserved point of the year, scored by Fabio Fognini. What do you have to do to win a point against Nadal, for Pete’s sake…
Z like Zverev...
Just because the young Alexander, 22 years old, hasn’t held the promises he showed in 2017 (five trophies won) and 2018 (four). One small tournament won, and not even a Grand Slam semi-final played. Thankfully for him, he still know how to put on a show, and he’s invented air tennis alongside Federer!
By Florian Cadu
