TENNIS: Eastbourne R2 and QFs
Jun. 27th, 2025 08:19 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
feather_ghyllMuch better conditions, which meant generally much better play. Krejikova was facing another Brit in Jodie Burrage (who is also coming back from injury, and looks like she could return to being a top 100 player.) Both were holding serve, but Krejikova broke at just the right point so that she could serve out the first set. Suddenly, she looked the top 20 player comfortably beating the lower ranked player, although she’s had less tennis than Burrage recently.
But it was clear that she was feeling some strain in her right thigh, probably from such a long match the previous day, and lost a break lead in the second set. Burrage took advantage of the second chance to win the second set. Because she was serving first in the third, she had match points on her opponent’s serve, but as she had the day before, Krejikova saved them. It went to a tiebreak and Krejikova won.
Next up, Emma Raducanu facing American-born Australian teenager Maya Joint, who’d just beaten an out-of-sorts Ons Jabeur. The kid has potential. Her athleticism is fabulous (she’d stumble well over half a dozen times, but generally came back up and continued playing the rally) and she has power. It was close, but Joint made more mistakes at the end of the first set, and Raducanu (who’d beaten her at their previous meeting on a very different surface) took advantage.
But in the second set, Joint tidied up her game and was sort of irrepressible, pulling off many winners. She won the second set quite easily, and her level didn’t drop at the start of the third, so she was racing ahead, while Raducanu looked listless. BUT! Serving for the match at 5-2, the nerves crept in, Raducanu played better, and kept winning points, finding pace and depth, eventually taking them to a tiebreak. Joint was able to put her wobbles behind her and get enough of a lead at the right time and this time converted her chances. She’s a prospect, having raced up the rankings to 51 since committing to a professional career – if she can tamp down on those nerves.
Next up, the highly intriguing match between Tommy Paul, unable to get time on the grass previously, and Dan Evans, who has had that time and plays an awkward type of tennis. He was deploying variety and showing up Paul’s slight rustiness, winning the close first set and breaking in the first game of the second. Paul put in the effort to break back immediately, though. He managed to find his rhythm and get more baseline rallies, which suited him. (I saw none of the ab issues he’d carried in the French Open.)
The third set was a bit more back and forth, with whoever got the type of rallies they wanted winning games, but Evans got a timely break and was able to win. He’s been nowhere all year, but has used the wildcards the LTA gave him (for his heroics at the Olympics if nothing else) to rediscover the game that suits grass so well. Paul will go into Wimbledon with far fewer matches on grass than he’d have liked.
I fastforwarded through the next match: Fritz won the first set 6-3, but Fonseca came into it more in the second set, and won the tiebreak. So, they’ll have to conclude before the quarter finals start.
Billy Harris continued to the quarter finals, but Jacob Fearnley was out.
I caught the ‘one set shoot-out’ between Fritz and Fonseca. The conditions were damper and windier, and the commentators pointed out that they could have played for 15-20 minutes longer the night before. It had probably suited Fritz more to pause, because Fonseca had momentum.
Fritz was serving first. Things got interesting in the fourth game, where he broke Fonseca, but when Fritz was serving out the match, Fonseca, his back against the wall, was returning well and broke back. Still, at 5-6, Fritz found a way to exert pressure and break and win. Fonseca showed enough there to get very excited about him for the next few months and years (he’s 18!) Fritz admitted he’d be facing his most regular training partner in his next match.
Due to the fact that the Beeb is treating Eastbourne as if two different tournaments are going on (admittedly, higher ranked female players are playing elsewhere), I switched the feed off and turned it back on to find that Maya Joint was trying to win her quarter finals. She’d raced ahead in both sets, then got pegged back by Blinkova. Could she do it? Yes.
I understand that Krejikova withdrew due to her right thigh strain, which is understandable as she’s the defending champ at Wimbledon.
The sun had come out, but it was windy and that would affect the next match, a quarter final between newly-wed Davydovich Fokina and third seed Jakub Mensik. DF started off muck better, Mensik did not look prepared for the wind, and granted, he’d had a bye and so had missed the windy first two days and played on the calmer Wednesday, but he’d had most of the morning to notice how windy it was. DF maintained his lead, although Mensik started getting more of a rhythm.
The second set was wild. Mensik started it with a point being docked for a time violation – he’d taken a bathroom break after losing the first set. The umpire used all his discretion about the pauses for gusts to die down before players started a point. DF twice lost his hold of a racquet after serving, winning one point with the shot, losing another. He also got a warning for thumping the grass (outside the baseline is no defence, because it’s not fair for future competitors) and had a good old rage about that. Mensik served and volleyed in one game, DF retrieved several balls and threw himself about the forecourt, breaks were traded, but DF held out to win in two. Experience sided with him a little, but Mensik is going to get used to playing in difficult conditions over his career.
Next up Fritz vs. Markos Giron (a late-blooming American), and Giron got an early break. To his credit, Fritz battled to break back and it went on serve for much of the set. Giron was probably the most aggressive throughout, although Fritz seemed happier to come forward (even if he’s not always the most convincing, which is why I scrunch my nose at the idea of him winning Wimbledon.) But it was Fritz who prevailed at the end of the set.
Giron responded well, got an early break, and another, and though Fritz regained one, it was Giron who prevailed. By now the wind had dropped, and Fritz’s serve certainly improved, so he was winning his service games more easily. At a key point, Giron wobbled, and the top 5 player with a great record here won through to the semis. He acknowledged in the on-court interview that he’s been sheltered from the wind during most of that success.
The seagulls were persistent visitors during the last match. No British men made it through to the other semi.
But it was clear that she was feeling some strain in her right thigh, probably from such a long match the previous day, and lost a break lead in the second set. Burrage took advantage of the second chance to win the second set. Because she was serving first in the third, she had match points on her opponent’s serve, but as she had the day before, Krejikova saved them. It went to a tiebreak and Krejikova won.
Next up, Emma Raducanu facing American-born Australian teenager Maya Joint, who’d just beaten an out-of-sorts Ons Jabeur. The kid has potential. Her athleticism is fabulous (she’d stumble well over half a dozen times, but generally came back up and continued playing the rally) and she has power. It was close, but Joint made more mistakes at the end of the first set, and Raducanu (who’d beaten her at their previous meeting on a very different surface) took advantage.
But in the second set, Joint tidied up her game and was sort of irrepressible, pulling off many winners. She won the second set quite easily, and her level didn’t drop at the start of the third, so she was racing ahead, while Raducanu looked listless. BUT! Serving for the match at 5-2, the nerves crept in, Raducanu played better, and kept winning points, finding pace and depth, eventually taking them to a tiebreak. Joint was able to put her wobbles behind her and get enough of a lead at the right time and this time converted her chances. She’s a prospect, having raced up the rankings to 51 since committing to a professional career – if she can tamp down on those nerves.
Next up, the highly intriguing match between Tommy Paul, unable to get time on the grass previously, and Dan Evans, who has had that time and plays an awkward type of tennis. He was deploying variety and showing up Paul’s slight rustiness, winning the close first set and breaking in the first game of the second. Paul put in the effort to break back immediately, though. He managed to find his rhythm and get more baseline rallies, which suited him. (I saw none of the ab issues he’d carried in the French Open.)
The third set was a bit more back and forth, with whoever got the type of rallies they wanted winning games, but Evans got a timely break and was able to win. He’s been nowhere all year, but has used the wildcards the LTA gave him (for his heroics at the Olympics if nothing else) to rediscover the game that suits grass so well. Paul will go into Wimbledon with far fewer matches on grass than he’d have liked.
I fastforwarded through the next match: Fritz won the first set 6-3, but Fonseca came into it more in the second set, and won the tiebreak. So, they’ll have to conclude before the quarter finals start.
Billy Harris continued to the quarter finals, but Jacob Fearnley was out.
I caught the ‘one set shoot-out’ between Fritz and Fonseca. The conditions were damper and windier, and the commentators pointed out that they could have played for 15-20 minutes longer the night before. It had probably suited Fritz more to pause, because Fonseca had momentum.
Fritz was serving first. Things got interesting in the fourth game, where he broke Fonseca, but when Fritz was serving out the match, Fonseca, his back against the wall, was returning well and broke back. Still, at 5-6, Fritz found a way to exert pressure and break and win. Fonseca showed enough there to get very excited about him for the next few months and years (he’s 18!) Fritz admitted he’d be facing his most regular training partner in his next match.
Due to the fact that the Beeb is treating Eastbourne as if two different tournaments are going on (admittedly, higher ranked female players are playing elsewhere), I switched the feed off and turned it back on to find that Maya Joint was trying to win her quarter finals. She’d raced ahead in both sets, then got pegged back by Blinkova. Could she do it? Yes.
I understand that Krejikova withdrew due to her right thigh strain, which is understandable as she’s the defending champ at Wimbledon.
The sun had come out, but it was windy and that would affect the next match, a quarter final between newly-wed Davydovich Fokina and third seed Jakub Mensik. DF started off muck better, Mensik did not look prepared for the wind, and granted, he’d had a bye and so had missed the windy first two days and played on the calmer Wednesday, but he’d had most of the morning to notice how windy it was. DF maintained his lead, although Mensik started getting more of a rhythm.
The second set was wild. Mensik started it with a point being docked for a time violation – he’d taken a bathroom break after losing the first set. The umpire used all his discretion about the pauses for gusts to die down before players started a point. DF twice lost his hold of a racquet after serving, winning one point with the shot, losing another. He also got a warning for thumping the grass (outside the baseline is no defence, because it’s not fair for future competitors) and had a good old rage about that. Mensik served and volleyed in one game, DF retrieved several balls and threw himself about the forecourt, breaks were traded, but DF held out to win in two. Experience sided with him a little, but Mensik is going to get used to playing in difficult conditions over his career.
Next up Fritz vs. Markos Giron (a late-blooming American), and Giron got an early break. To his credit, Fritz battled to break back and it went on serve for much of the set. Giron was probably the most aggressive throughout, although Fritz seemed happier to come forward (even if he’s not always the most convincing, which is why I scrunch my nose at the idea of him winning Wimbledon.) But it was Fritz who prevailed at the end of the set.
Giron responded well, got an early break, and another, and though Fritz regained one, it was Giron who prevailed. By now the wind had dropped, and Fritz’s serve certainly improved, so he was winning his service games more easily. At a key point, Giron wobbled, and the top 5 player with a great record here won through to the semis. He acknowledged in the on-court interview that he’s been sheltered from the wind during most of that success.
The seagulls were persistent visitors during the last match. No British men made it through to the other semi.
