AO R4: Lucic Baroni progresses to AO QF for first time def. Brady 6-4 6-2
What a great way to make a QF of AO for the first time (and first slam QF since Wimby 1999)
She was hitting very heavy, not much Brady could do from 2-3 *15-40 on.
MLB is such an inspiration, that interview needs to be uploaded later, she was just firing away her emotions on the screen. When asked what she would say to those having a tough time on tour, she said "F* everything and F everybody who tells you that you can't do it".
I've followed MLB's career right from the start and with all of the setbacks she's faced over the years, I never could imagine she would make it this far at a slam again. I remember watching her play Venus at the USO, looking extremely out of shape and getting double-bagelled. I remember her losing in the first round of 10k's. I remember when she nearly completely disappeared from the tour between 2004-2007 (playing just two events in those years). Since 2010, she's enjoyed a nice run in the 50-100 range and I am so pleased for her she was able to put it all together for a deep slam run again. I just loved watching her excitement at winning and just seeing her joy during the on-court interview. I am glad that she's enjoying herself out there and is able to continue (and one day finish) her career on her own terms. I like when they asked her about her body holding up and she said "Well, I'm playing QF in doubles with Andrea and I'm not going to withdraw, I'll pick up a few more battle scars I'm sure, but I'll be here to play!"
As for Brady, she had a nice run here and will definitely be one to watch. It's unfortunate that she could barely put a serve in the court in the 2nd set. Still, I think we'll be seeing more of her. Very nice hug at the net between the two players. :yeah:
I've followed MLB's career right from the start and with all of the setbacks she's faced over the years, I never could imagine she would make it this far at a slam again. I remember watching her play Venus at the USO, looking extremely out of shape and getting double-bagelled. I remember her losing in the first round of 10k's. I remember when she nearly completely disappeared from the tour between 2004-2007 (playing just two events in those years).
Re: AO R4: Lucic Baroni progresses to AO QF for first time def. Brady 6-4 6-2
Miki So proud of her, such a brutal performance. Great to see her back up her wins after beating La Hag! She could give Pliskova a good scare if she plays like she did today
On a different note, Jelena Dokic is a really great commentator. Hopefully we hear more from her
Miki So proud of her, such a brutal performance. Great to see her back up her wins after beating La Hag! She could give Pliskova a good scare if she plays like she did today
On a different note, Jelena Dokic is a really great commentator. Hopefully we hear more from her
Re: AO R4: Lucic Baroni progresses to AO QF for first time def. Brady 6-4 6-2
I'm just elated.
At the beginning I really thought Brady would win this, enormous hitting and decent defense. But after like 6 games Mirjana broke her spirits by keeping up with her and hitting even better than she did. Also she was so, so clutch when it mattered, it was almost as impressive as her ballstriking.
Re: AO R4: Lucic Baroni progresses to AO QF for first time def. Brady 6-4 6-2
If she wins the entire tourney, they'll make a movie about her. She's as good of story as Istomin is on the men's side. I was looking up more about her life because there's virtually nothing known about what she was doing between 2002 and 2008. Stopped playing tennis and couldn't afford to even get into tournaments. Then in 2011 she married a man 20 years older than she is. And now in 2017, she's as far as she's ever been in a Slam, 20 years after she started. And that doesn't even begin to talk about her what lead to her leaving Croatia/abusive father, etc.
A true underdog story. I think Plizkova is a much better version of what she is, so if she gets her she'll lose next round. But if she gets Dasha, she could beat her and keep going.
Mirjana played very contained aggressive tennis. Brady hung tough in the first set. What really took away Brady's chances was a horrible first serve percentage. She's got a very good first serve. Her second serve isn't that bad, but she had to hit way too many and Lucic grooved the returns after a while.
Brady has a very good fh from the center of the court. If she was better on first serve, she probably could have used that fh more to move Lucic. As it was, Brady had to do most of the running.
I think Lucic can hang with Pliskova. She almost beat her in the '15 Asian swing but choked serving for the match.
Gavrilova is tricky but has played a ton of long matches. I expect Pliskcova to come through
Just an incredible run and wonderful moment for Mirjana after all of the struggles she's endured. Such a big heart and amazing fighter, I'm so so pleased for her
She's spent the last 7 years hovering around the 50-100 range, had some big name wins in big events, won a tour event again, and now she finally pulls it together to get into a major QF again (and in doubles too, no less). Whatever happens here on out, you have to feel like Mirjana can truly leave the game knowing that she gave everything in the end and did it all on her terms without regret. Such an inspiration :yeah: It's been such a joy watching this second part of her career unfold as someone who cheered her on all those years ago as a teen prodigy.
You're absolutely right. Couldn't have said it better myself. She had so many opportunities for similar runs in the past (2012 Wimbledon win over Bartoli, Halep at US Open 2015, French Open 2015) but just couldn't find that extra mental/strategic gear.
That has ALL changed now. Her new ranking will be the highest of her "second chapter" --back in the Top 50. And she has already earned more in three weeks than she did in any entire year of her career!
COMPLETE CAREER REDEMPTION. Mirjana has come full circle. Her happiness is a joy to see and she will never regret her astonishing, ARDUOUS comeback.
She finally started her comeback in 2008 at the very lowest level of professional tournaments. In her second comeback event she won just $68 (£44) in prize money.
“It was incredibly difficult,” she says. “I hadn’t played for a good four or five years. Nobody really knew me any more and it was very difficult, playing on the very last court, sometimes playing two matches a day, without umpires.
“I remember a match when I was 3-1 up in the third but my opponent said it was 1-1. So I had to start again from 1-1. I was like, ‘How is it possible that this is happening to me?’
“It was tough sometimes finding a doubles partner. I asked a girl once if she wanted to play doubles. She said, ‘Who are you?’ I gave her my name. She said, ‘What’s your ranking?’ I said,‘I don’t have a ranking but we can ask for a wild card.’
“She said, ‘No, I don’t know you.’ I said to her, ‘Well, I won a Grand Slam title in doubles.’ After that she was like, ‘OK.’ So it was difficult in the beginning to break through again. I wasn’t getting any wild cards. I had to do it the hard way.”
As someone who's also followed her from the beginning, this feels so special. She's rewritten the ending to a story that looked like it was going to be a tragedy. Nearly two decades of unfulfilled promise, finally getting results like these.