[jolafan]

Nice comeback from Kiki to beat Potapova in straight sets. Some clutch serving when down set points!

 

[Fortitude]

It was tough actually enjoying it while watching but it was a tense and exciting match. Really good rallies and Kiki's comeback while looking mentally done was a nice surprise. It was at either 2-5 or 3-5 but she had a love game somewhere with 4 really good aggressive points, stepping in and taking time away from Potapova. The tiebreak was 'top10 Kiki'.

What I loved the most though was that no matter how insecure she looked at times, she kept taking almost every high ball out of the air with a drive volley. Every time I was like, nooo let it bounce, but she took them straight out of the air and made the point. ?

 

[Elwin.]

Kiki withdrew from Dubai, so no match against Kim!
Smart decision though. Played Fed Cup, now into the final of St Petersburg. And there’s a P5 in Doha, the week after Dubai

 

[nniels]

Very sensible. Too bad she's not going to play against Kim tho. Hope she'll get another chance!

 

[tony p]

Kiki withdrew from Dubai, so no match against Kim!
Smart decision though. Played Fed Cup, now into the final of St Petersburg. And there’s a P5 in Doha, the week after Dubai

and they have scheduled kim v muguruza( kiki's replacement) at not before 7.pm on monday, ( tomorrow), kiki would have been completely knackered if she had to play then after a long flight and little sleep.

 

[Fortitude]

Very sensible. Too bad she's not going to play against Kim tho. Hope she'll get another chance!

Me too. A fresh Kiki against a Kim with some match rhythm could have a lot of potential.

and they have scheduled kim v muguruza( kiki's replacement) at not before 7.pm on monday, ( tomorrow), kiki would have been completely knackered if she had to play then after a long flight and little sleep.

Now I'm extra happy she made this decision.
I believe it also took a lot of extra ballast off so she could give everything in the final.

 

[Fortitude]

She played sooo well! Really happy she saved the best for last. Serve was killing it!

Mid first set I heard Rybakina's coach telling her she should go to Kiki's BH over and over. Could have worked if she had played those good strong DTL shots but giving a lot of CC to Kiki's BH is asking for trouble. Kiki's BH is so deceptive. Looks weak(er) but so steady and has a lot of versatility. Defensively so strong. And when she even starts hitting BH winners DTL you just know she is very confident.

 

[jolafan]

Welcome to the live stream of Kiki's couch:

 

[jolafan]

Nice article from the WTA featuring Kiki

Porsche Race to Shenzhen Spotlight: Kiki Bertens

 

[Fortitude]

Kiki received a WC for Strasbourg. Good decision to get some more match rhythm after that awful performance at Rome. Far from ideal though, so right before RG.

 

[Fortitude]

Tomorrow 11:30 AM French Time, Kiki plays Ostapenko.

I've watched a bit of the Latvian's match against Davis. She's very up and down but will definitely pounce on anything short. Kiki better bring her FH. Ostapenko's serve is still a disaster so there should really come some chances there.

 

[Veesus Christ]

I'm hoping DFapenko shows up a bit to help the match along lol. Kiki needs a good test like this but i'd rather her play someone who will give her some actual rhythm before RG.

 

[Fortitude]

What a crap match. Kiki should have won comfortably in 6-2, 6-3. Don't know what the injury is all about but even healthy we can safely assume she won't be a contender for the RG title.

 

[Veesus Christ]

Yeah the expectations for RG are approximately zero right now. Although having said that, whatever was bothering her didn't seem to be too bad or urgent so I more got the sense that she was trying to preserve herself for RG rather than go all out here.

Most concerning was her lack of effort throughout the match. Even when she plays badly she is normally TRYING to find solutions, and ATTEMPTING to chase down every ball. Here I don't think her actual level of play was as bad as her level of fight. A lot of her leads today were given up way too easily.

Her best hope is a soft draw to play herself into form, but that's a big ask with barely any matchplay in months and months.

 

[Fortitude]

So it's an old achilles tendon injury. That end of 2019 was so grueling. You'd think her body got enough rest in the corona break. Maybe that's the problem, her body isn't used to so much rest.

Not hopeful for RG at all now. Last year that food poisoning and now this. Other players get stars aligning for them and Kiki gets the black hole.

 

[Fortitude]

I liked what I saw in the fight department. 💪 After that horrible first set she got herself together and at the same time seemed to put more energy in her game and foot work and looked more collected. Especially on depth she improved because she gave too much room in the first set for my liking.

Hopefully this match shook the rust off. Errani is a terrier who loves to challenge a subpar playing top player, she will be tough.

 

[nniels]

Solved a different kind of puzzle today!

 

[Veesus Christ]

She's in the doubles draw with Kuznetsova too, which can only be a good thing in terms of shaking off the rust and getting reps on her serve and volleys. They play KrisPlis and Kuzmova tomorrow. Glad it's a day or two before her Errani match - that one screams mess all over to me lol.

 

[JakeJ8]

Can't see her in the doubles draw, Kuznetsova plays with Zhang

 

[nniels]

That was wild