I was wondering if anyone who has watched a lot of junior tennis has any insight on who they think will be the best of this current crop of juniors on the pro tour. I saw Ashley on tv and she seemed a little weak on the forehand side but with a little more strength she seemed a sure bet for top 50 to me. What about the others, bc i haven't seen much of them play, unfortunately <img src="frown.gif" border="0"> , how do you think the top juniors will fare?
Junior who will become the best pro
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Svetlana Kuznetsova will be top 20 for sure. She's mentally strong , has a huge FH and loves clay and hard.<br /> <br /> Marion Bartoli plays like no other esp. when receiving serve , she stands closer to service box than any player i've seen, even on 1st serves.<br /> Marion will be around top 20 as well.
Eva Birnerova has to get her knees right or else its gonna be pretty hard, both knees are constantly strapped up , she should make top 100 , but how further she goes depends on how her knees hold out.
Ashley is a bit lightweight but she's got a good solid game though , should be cracking top 50.
Vera Zvonareva is a bit like Ashley as well , somewhere around 50 i expect.
Dinara Safina and Kaia Kanepi both have huge games and both love clay, they've got it all depends on mindset on these two , Kaia should get around top 20 in next 18-24 months.
Dinara being a year younger will eventually get it together and when she does she is awesome , can blow anyone apart just like her brother but she also suffers from lapses in concentration.
Gisela has a beautiful all-court game , a joy to watch , pretty sure she will make top 50 but I expect her to do more in doubles.
<br /> There are others as well ....
Eva Birnerova has to get her knees right or else its gonna be pretty hard, both knees are constantly strapped up , she should make top 100 , but how further she goes depends on how her knees hold out.
Ashley is a bit lightweight but she's got a good solid game though , should be cracking top 50.
Vera Zvonareva is a bit like Ashley as well , somewhere around 50 i expect.
Dinara Safina and Kaia Kanepi both have huge games and both love clay, they've got it all depends on mindset on these two , Kaia should get around top 20 in next 18-24 months.
Dinara being a year younger will eventually get it together and when she does she is awesome , can blow anyone apart just like her brother but she also suffers from lapses in concentration.
Gisela has a beautiful all-court game , a joy to watch , pretty sure she will make top 50 but I expect her to do more in doubles.
<br /> There are others as well ....
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I was wondering why Eva keeps having those straps on! <img src="eek.gif" border="0">
Out of Eggy's group, I only see Dinara and Kaia having the best future. They have the game to compete with the big babes!
Out of Eggy's group, I only see Dinara and Kaia having the best future. They have the game to compete with the big babes!
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Kaia,Svetlana and Dinara i think will do well how well is all about there minds!
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One of my friend sent me the videotape of Gisela playing agianst Ashley in Connally Cup and i must say, Gisela has great talent. I think Angie has the ability to be top30, and of course MGM has top 20 potential.
G
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·kaia-hopefully she wont follow the steps of the williams (playing a minimal amount of tournamnets) as her career has so far gone. she comes out from hiding, and either kills, or she comes out and does not do so well. she was number 1 junior girl with much fewer tournaments than the average top 10 player. shes shown that she has the game for the pro level, qualifying in germany and losing a good match to anke huber, and doing very well in challengers (back to back finals, losing to matea m both times)
when you see her, shes so strong!! very very strong, thick, but not like fat, its all muscle!! <img src="eek.gif" border="0"> so naturally, shes very very powerfull...and we know where that will get you now a days.
when you see her, shes so strong!! very very strong, thick, but not like fat, its all muscle!! <img src="eek.gif" border="0"> so naturally, shes very very powerfull...and we know where that will get you now a days.
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Of course they will make top 20 too, Asu. <img src="wink.gif" border="0">
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For the juniors age 15 and over, I am most impressed by Marion Bartoli. I think she can play WTA top 50 class tennis right now. For those girls under 15, I am most impressed by 14 year old Maria Sharapova and 13 year old Tatiana Golovin. They both started playing the 18's just this year. Maria is 21-3 in the 18's. The "Russian Lynx" has had a tremendous start to her 18u career. She even had a great 3 set win over Barbora Strycova at this weeks Orange Bowl. As for Tatiana, she is the only 13 year old junior girl, capable of playing with the best junior girls. At the Eddie Herr tournament, she was on the verge of a straight set win over the then #1 ranked 16 year old Eva Birnerova, before she let the match slip away. The same thing happened at the Orange Bowl. Tatiana was pounding 17 year old Vera Zvonareva, the defending Orange Bowl champion, when she let that match slip away, too. That's the bad news. The good news is, is that Tatiana at the very young age of 13, is already a fine 18u player. All she has to do is learn how to finish off her much more experienced opponents. Then she will be a tremendous junior player, with excellent pro prospects. Udachi Maria and Tatiana!
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Can somebody tell me what are the pro rankings of :
Kaia Kanepi <img src="graemlins/hearts.gif" border="0" alt="[Hearts]" /> <br />Angelique Widjaja <img src="graemlins/bounce.gif" border="0" alt="[Bounce]" /> <img src="graemlins/bounce.gif" border="0" alt="[Bounce]" /> <img src="graemlins/bounce.gif" border="0" alt="[Bounce]" /> <br />Svetlana Kuznetsova <img src="graemlins/wavey.gif" border="0" alt="[Wavey]" /> <img src="graemlins/wavey.gif" border="0" alt="[Wavey]" /> <img src="graemlins/angel.gif" border="0" alt="[Angel]" /> <br />Marion Bartoli<br />Eva Birnerova<br />Dinara Safina .....
im too lazy to look it up <img src="wink.gif" border="0">
[ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Blessings And Aloha ]</p>
Kaia Kanepi <img src="graemlins/hearts.gif" border="0" alt="[Hearts]" /> <br />Angelique Widjaja <img src="graemlins/bounce.gif" border="0" alt="[Bounce]" /> <img src="graemlins/bounce.gif" border="0" alt="[Bounce]" /> <img src="graemlins/bounce.gif" border="0" alt="[Bounce]" /> <br />Svetlana Kuznetsova <img src="graemlins/wavey.gif" border="0" alt="[Wavey]" /> <img src="graemlins/wavey.gif" border="0" alt="[Wavey]" /> <img src="graemlins/angel.gif" border="0" alt="[Angel]" /> <br />Marion Bartoli<br />Eva Birnerova<br />Dinara Safina .....
im too lazy to look it up <img src="wink.gif" border="0">
[ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Blessings And Aloha ]</p>
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Wow...i thought Bartoli's rank was higher, as well as Eva. I didnt expect Widjaja's rank to be that high, i thought she was ranked in the 180's
P.S.<br />thanx Randy
P.S.<br />thanx Randy
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what do you mean by pro ?
total # of events ? or WTA events ?
non has gone pro full time as yet.
Angelique may have.
total # of events ? or WTA events ?
non has gone pro full time as yet.
Angelique may have.
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And Su-Wei is around 171 I think. <img src="wink.gif" border="0">
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here's a bit of a larger look at how the juniors are faring in the WTA ranks, as well as how many events they have played:
Angelique Widjaja - 150 (7)<br />Su Wei Hsieh - 164 (7)<br />Gisela Dulko - 188 (11)<br />Kaia Kanepi - 201 (6)<br />Svetlana Kuznetsova - 264 (7)<br />Ashley Harkleroad - 279 (9)<br />Edina Gallovits - 292 (10)<br />Marion Bartoli - 309 (11)<br />Cory Ann Avants - 339 (8)<br />Bethanie Mattek - 342 (5)<br />Myriam Casanova - 345 (9)<br />Scarlett Werner - 352 (10)<br />Jelena Jankovic - 363 (5)<br />Eva Birnerova - 367 (6)<br />Vera Zvonareva - 371 (9)<br />Ally Baker - 396 (8)<br />Galina Voskoboeva - 412 (8)<br />Anna Bastrikova - 426 (8)<br />Diana Srebrovic - 437 (10)<br />Sofia Arvidsson - 440 (8)<br />Dinara Safina - 453 (6)<br />Sunitha Rao - 458 (8)<br />Melissa Torres - 480 (11)<br />Joanna Sakowicz - 485 (8)<br />Petra Cetkovska - 495 (4)
Not all of the juniors are mentioned here, there are many many more you will see ranked outside the top 500, all with similar amounts of tournaments played. I also didn't include a few who I felt were pretty much done with juniors who have played a significant amount of events by now (Mikaelian, Kapros, Dlhopolcova, Kurhajcova etc.).
Angelique Widjaja - 150 (7)<br />Su Wei Hsieh - 164 (7)<br />Gisela Dulko - 188 (11)<br />Kaia Kanepi - 201 (6)<br />Svetlana Kuznetsova - 264 (7)<br />Ashley Harkleroad - 279 (9)<br />Edina Gallovits - 292 (10)<br />Marion Bartoli - 309 (11)<br />Cory Ann Avants - 339 (8)<br />Bethanie Mattek - 342 (5)<br />Myriam Casanova - 345 (9)<br />Scarlett Werner - 352 (10)<br />Jelena Jankovic - 363 (5)<br />Eva Birnerova - 367 (6)<br />Vera Zvonareva - 371 (9)<br />Ally Baker - 396 (8)<br />Galina Voskoboeva - 412 (8)<br />Anna Bastrikova - 426 (8)<br />Diana Srebrovic - 437 (10)<br />Sofia Arvidsson - 440 (8)<br />Dinara Safina - 453 (6)<br />Sunitha Rao - 458 (8)<br />Melissa Torres - 480 (11)<br />Joanna Sakowicz - 485 (8)<br />Petra Cetkovska - 495 (4)
Not all of the juniors are mentioned here, there are many many more you will see ranked outside the top 500, all with similar amounts of tournaments played. I also didn't include a few who I felt were pretty much done with juniors who have played a significant amount of events by now (Mikaelian, Kapros, Dlhopolcova, Kurhajcova etc.).
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Thanks for the rankings, Randy. <img src="smile.gif" border="0">
According to Kaia's coach, Kaia can only play on 4 more pro events before turning 17, but after her 17th birthday, she will wrap up a junior circuit and start concentrating on challenger and WTA events.
Here is a short story on Kaia Kanepi. It's about a month old, and it's in Estonian, but I will translate parts of it. Enjoy! <img src="smile.gif" border="0"> <br /> <a href="http://www.epl.ee/uudised/artikkel.asp/G=3/ID=113710" target="_blank">http://www.epl.ee/uudised/artikkel.asp/G=3/ID=113710</a>
<br />Kaia Kanepi Went Through a Complete Medical Testing in Salzburg.<br />by Jaan Jürine
16 year old Kaia Kanepi went through a complete medical testing yesterday in Salzburg. Jaak Kanepi, Kaia's dad and manager, said that there is no reason to worry. At the moment, Kaia is practicing in Salzburg, where Austria's sports medicine center is located. Schweinfurt club in Germany, where Kaia belongs, used the opportunity and asked Kaia to go through a routine medical testing.
According to Jaak Kanepi, Kaia is in good health. She is practicing twice a day and has an opportunity to use good practice partners and even coaches if needed. The main goal for Kaia is to get used to hardcourts, and practicing in Austria is one step toward that goal.
In January, Kaia is hoping to play in Australian Open qualifications. Kaia's dad believes that Kaia's current ranking (201) should quarantee her a spot in quallies.
Kaia's earlier plans were to play in Florida in December. She planned to participate in Connolly Cup and Orange Bowl, but Kaia's parents and coach Tiit Kivistik decided to cancel the trip to USA and decided to head to Australia instead.
Kaia's coach said that it is time for Kaia to start wraping up the junior circuit. Of course, that will cause Kaia's junior ranking to drop, but since Kaia has already proved herself in junior circuit, it is time to put the main focus on women's tour. Before her 17th birthday, Kaia can play only 4 more pro events, and her coach is hoping that she will be able to get into a quallies in one of the tournaments before Australian Open.
Kaia's dad said that Kaia has not played for her Weissblau club yet. According to the rules, the club can only have one player who is outside of the Europen Union countries, and currently that player is Russian Tatjana Panova. Weissblau is very interested in Kaia, and they are hoping to start using Kaia in about a year or two. Weissblau also covered part of Kaia's training camp expenses. According to Kaia's dad, the main reason they are practicing in Austria is because there is only one decent hardcourt in Estonia.
<img src="biggrin.gif" border="0">
According to Kaia's coach, Kaia can only play on 4 more pro events before turning 17, but after her 17th birthday, she will wrap up a junior circuit and start concentrating on challenger and WTA events.
Here is a short story on Kaia Kanepi. It's about a month old, and it's in Estonian, but I will translate parts of it. Enjoy! <img src="smile.gif" border="0"> <br /> <a href="http://www.epl.ee/uudised/artikkel.asp/G=3/ID=113710" target="_blank">http://www.epl.ee/uudised/artikkel.asp/G=3/ID=113710</a>
<br />Kaia Kanepi Went Through a Complete Medical Testing in Salzburg.<br />by Jaan Jürine
16 year old Kaia Kanepi went through a complete medical testing yesterday in Salzburg. Jaak Kanepi, Kaia's dad and manager, said that there is no reason to worry. At the moment, Kaia is practicing in Salzburg, where Austria's sports medicine center is located. Schweinfurt club in Germany, where Kaia belongs, used the opportunity and asked Kaia to go through a routine medical testing.
According to Jaak Kanepi, Kaia is in good health. She is practicing twice a day and has an opportunity to use good practice partners and even coaches if needed. The main goal for Kaia is to get used to hardcourts, and practicing in Austria is one step toward that goal.
In January, Kaia is hoping to play in Australian Open qualifications. Kaia's dad believes that Kaia's current ranking (201) should quarantee her a spot in quallies.
Kaia's earlier plans were to play in Florida in December. She planned to participate in Connolly Cup and Orange Bowl, but Kaia's parents and coach Tiit Kivistik decided to cancel the trip to USA and decided to head to Australia instead.
Kaia's coach said that it is time for Kaia to start wraping up the junior circuit. Of course, that will cause Kaia's junior ranking to drop, but since Kaia has already proved herself in junior circuit, it is time to put the main focus on women's tour. Before her 17th birthday, Kaia can play only 4 more pro events, and her coach is hoping that she will be able to get into a quallies in one of the tournaments before Australian Open.
Kaia's dad said that Kaia has not played for her Weissblau club yet. According to the rules, the club can only have one player who is outside of the Europen Union countries, and currently that player is Russian Tatjana Panova. Weissblau is very interested in Kaia, and they are hoping to start using Kaia in about a year or two. Weissblau also covered part of Kaia's training camp expenses. According to Kaia's dad, the main reason they are practicing in Austria is because there is only one decent hardcourt in Estonia.
<img src="biggrin.gif" border="0">
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Uggghh....I hate the words medical testing...I hope nothing is wrong with her. <img src="redface.gif" border="0">
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Thanx for the Kaia report <img src="smile.gif" border="0">
<br />Kuilli .... Kaia has only played 6 events since her 16th.<br /> Between 16 and 17 she can play 10 events but Kaia's rank is high enough for her to also participate in the AUS and FRENCH Open's as SLAMS do not count if your rank is high enough for direct entry into Main or Qualifying.
<br />Kuilli .... Kaia has only played 6 events since her 16th.<br /> Between 16 and 17 she can play 10 events but Kaia's rank is high enough for her to also participate in the AUS and FRENCH Open's as SLAMS do not count if your rank is high enough for direct entry into Main or Qualifying.
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