Clay tennis court. Photo credit: TBC
As the grass season goes into full swing, it is worth taking a look at the five players who we think made the most of the clay season, and those five who in our opinion unfortunately spent the clay season well and truly in the red.
Winner:
Iga Swiatek: Her victory over Aryna Sabalenka in Stuttgart and the victory in the French Open ensured that she retains world number one status ahead of Sabalenka. It also means that she is now the owner of two Porsches and most importantly joins one of the select few number of people who have secured four Grand Slam titles in the Open Era. Though she heads into the toughest portion of the year for herself in terms of playing surface, and with Aryna Sabalenka breathing down her neck, Swiatek’s performance on clay has enabled her to hold on to the world number one spot for now.
Loser:
Jessica Pegula relinquished the top three spot and has been relegated to fifth in the world after a lackluster clay season. She could not repeat last year’s success in Madrid, in which she finished runner-up to world number one Iga Swiatek. This year she lost out to Veronika Kudermetova in the quarter-final and was upset by qualifier Taylor Townsend in the Rome Open round of 64. The American has had a tough time of it both on and off the court. Though in doubles, she and compatriot Cori Gauff made the finals of both Madrid and Rome, they lost out on both trophies which adds woes and surely will hope of better things as we head onto grass.
Winner:
Aryna Sabalenka doubled honours at Madrid following her previous victory in 2021. Crucially she secured victory over Iga Swiatek allowing her to close the gap at the top. An early exit at Rome against Sofia Kenin would’ve hurt in the rankings but she came back firing at Roland Garros. Still the defeat to runner-up Karolina Muchova in the semi-final dented her chance to claim the number one crown at the end of the clay season as she did not get the chance to battle it out against Swiatek at the final. A mixed bag, but the trajectory is no doubt a positive one.
Loser:
Ons Jabeur looked to be back with a bang as she stormed to take the opening clay season trophy in Charleston. However, injuries reared their ugly head again in Stuttgart, which saw the Tunisian retire against Iga Swiatek. Though she returned in time for the Roland Garros, she was ousted by Beatriz Haddad Maia in the quarter-final. Speaking about the tournament, Jabeur said she was delighted to make it that far but also made it clear that injuries hampered a part of the season which she would have loved to make her mark on. Having said this, one hopes she will be able to repeat last year’s success on grass, and perhaps do one even better by lifting the coveted Wimbledon title herself.
Winner:
Elena Rybakina climbed to world number three after securing the Rome Open which landed her a first major title also on clay. However, an injury at Stuttgart and a lackluster performance at Madrid before early exit at Roland Garros due to sickness have hurt her ability to put some distance to Caroline Garcia, who climbs to fourth, and to also close the gap at the top to Sabalenka.
Loser:
Daria Kasatkina dropped out of the top ten in the world after having a difficult time of things on clay, despite often being a tricky player on the surface. Like Jabeur, Kasatkina started off quite well in Charleston, being defeated in the semi-final by the Tunisian. However, failed to make it beyond the round of 16 in any of the tournaments.
Winner:
Beatriz Haddad Maia – The Brazilian who was touted the most improved player of 2022, has shown that it was not a blip and has carried momentum into this year. She became the first Brazilian to reach the semi-final of the French Open after beating Ons Jabeur in three sets. In doing so, she flipped the narrative after having been eliminated by Jabeur in Stuttgart’s quarter-final. All in all, Haddad Maia had a great run into the Grand Slam by also reaching the quarter-final of the Rome Open, in which she was outlasted by Anhelina Kalinina in what was the longest match on tour this year. There are definitely a lot of positives to take away from this portion of the season.
Loser:
Caroline Garcia spoke of the struggles on court labeling it as a “nightmare” after suffering defeat against a qualifier in Rome. Having had a fantastic season in 2022, the Frenchwoman has not been able to recapture that same spark and though hopes were high of seeing her go far on clay, none of it transpired. France’s best hope crashed out of the major tournaments against qualifiers or unseeded opponents, and in assessing the situation she spoke of collapsing on her own and getting into her head. Unfortunately, hopes of lifting the French Open title disappeared after defeat to Anna Blinkova in the Round of 64.
Winner:
Karolina Muchova – The Czech’s display at the French Open has skyrocketed her ranking by twenty-seven places to land at number sixteen in the world. Her comeback performance against Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-final and fantastic display at the final against Iga Swiatek showed the world just how crafty she can be with her shots. Her determination to come back against Sabalenka at 5-1 down showed her resilience, following years of hardship with injury. She then gave the world number one a run for her money, on her favourite surface. It was a match that delighted fans and though it did not have a fairtyale ending for the Czech player, it has alerted those who had not seen her quality, and sets her up for a strong run into Wimbledon as her game is highly suited also to grass.
Loser:
Simona Halep – the Romanian and former world number one has not been able to set foot on a competitive court following a ban that she is still fighting to lift since last October. In a public announcement on her social media accounts, 2018’s French Open champion said that her hearing was postponed by another month. It is the third time the hearing has been postponed. As the situation drags on, the thirty-one-year-old races against the clock on her career with thoughts of making it to the world’s best list no doubt playing on her mind.
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