Doi was a great matchup for Venus. Some tight moments and games but Venus moved very well and was able to play clean and hit her spots on the big points. Very encouraging week for Venus with positive moments for her to take to the upcoming American hard court season. :yeah:
So good for Venus to start getting some wins under her belt in 2016. I like that she kept her focus despite hitting some rough patches throughout the tournament.
Hope her thigh gets better soon though, it is still pretty apparent that she is hampered by it.
This match all but seals the scouting report on Doi, she won't be there in the big matches. Bencic at USO, Kerber at AO, and another example today. Her game disappears on the big games and the important points in games, even after some great play.
Good week for Venus I guess, though she played at a below average level by her standards and got by against a weak field. Take time off now and try to heal up, should really only play one of IW or Miami.
I thought that it was essential for Misaki to dictate play, but Venus knew she had to keep on top of her. Horrible serving from Venus, but she was solid off the ground.
Disappointing for Misaki, but she was not given the opportunity to execute that forehand today, Venus directed all her shots to Misaki's backhand with sufficient pace so that Misaki could not run around the backhand to use that zippy forehand of hers. Venus played a tactically smart match and knew what she had to do to win today.
Misaki is so so tiny compared to Venus
Congrats venus for your 49th! Keep inspiring!
Nice touch by the tournament organizer. They have a japanese translator ready for Doi :yeah:
venus is trying to convince serena to come to taiwan to play this tournament next year, lol. good luck with that. lol, venus is just saying it for diplomacy and publicity.
Really needs to rest tho, other than the crucial points that Venus took advantage of, both players were making errors everywhere, almost no medium rallies with lots of wind.
I love Venus' response to the body serves.
Congrats again for the first title of 2016.
Sweet Winning it on Valentine's Day.
Title #49! Showed mental strength throughout this week as she was far from her best but still managed to get the win. 7-2 on the year. Nice to see her getting some match wins under her belt. Great stepping stone for the rest of the year
Misaki played a horrible game at 4*-3 and never recovered. Well done Venus to get some wins here and boost her confidence after a disastrous Australian summer.