We have long talked about Big Three in men’s tennis with Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. This year, there is also one for women.
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Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina are respectively first, second and fourth in the WTA rankings. And they are the first three seeds in Montreal.
Together, they have won nine tournaments since the start of the season. Swiatek triumphed in Qatar, Stuttgart, Roland-Garros and Warsaw. Sabalenka won in Adelaide, Australia, and Madrid. As for Rybakina, she won honors in Indian Wells and Italy.
The trio also ensured a presence in the final stages of several tournaments.
Swiatek was a finalist in Dubai and Madrid in addition to reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon. Sabalenka lost finals in Indian Wells and Stuttgart in addition to being in the semi-finals at Wimbledon and Roland-Garros, while Rybakina was runner-up in Australia and Miami in addition to playing quarters at Wimbledon.
In action
Chance, or rather rain, ensured that all three were in action on Wednesday as Rybakina did not complete her match against Jennifer Brady last night.
Sabalenka was playing in the evening, but in the afternoon Swiatek opened her tournament with a 7-6(6), 6-2 victory over Karolina Pliskova (23rd).
The first half was complicated by the good service and the combativeness of the Czech, who then tasted the efficiency of the Pole who is not at the top of the classification by chance.
Also playing in the afternoon to complete her match started the day before, Rybakina worked much harder against the American Jennifer Brady, 584th racket in the world, but only because she missed two years of activities due to a injury.
Rybakina struggled for 2hrs 41mins to win 7-6(3), 6(5)-7, 6-3 as Sabalenka’s match was postponed to later in the evening due to the length of the match between Laylah Fernandez and Beatriz Haddad Maia.
Elena Rybakina worked three tough sets to win her opener on Wednesday. Photo Martin Chevalier
Oiginal
Among Swiatek’s arsenal, there is a good service and above all a formidable reading of the game which leaves little room for error.
He has also been seen training with a ribbon over his mouth that only lets a trickle of air through. That’s a little more esoteric and she recognizes it herself.
It’s a unique approach from her new fitness trainer that even she finds difficult to explain.
“Honestly, I don’t really understand why I’m being made to do this.
“I think it has to do with endurance, but I can’t explain it because I’m not an expert and sometimes they make me do things I don’t understand.”
Work ethics
The three players stand out from the pack for their consistency. We look at their performances since the start of the season, and it is obvious.
Swiatek also believes that she and her colleagues have a similar approach in managing their respective careers, even though they are very different from each other.
“It’s hard to say, we manage our careers well, we take our physical preparation seriously, it allows us to be consistent.
“Aryna and Elena are having great seasons too. We have very different playstyles and personalities. But I believe it’s our work ethic that makes the difference.”
2023-08-09 21:08:08
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