Just a day after Doha’s denouement, many of the top women reconvene further south on the Persian Gulf for the second of February’s elite WTA events. We discuss whether Dubai will offer different themes from Doha or merely extend the trends of early 2012.
Top half: With a 17-0 record stuffed into one of her suitcases, the world #1 confronts a potentially dangerous draw. Considering her ankle injury, Azarenka may consider discretion the better part of valor as she did last year when she won Stanford and withdrew from San Diego the next week. If she does swagger onto the court, she may open against the perennially dangerous Kuznetsova, who has won four of their five previous meetings during a stretch from 2007 to 2009. The lower-ranked player in all of those collisions, Vika has improved as dramatically since then as the Russian has faded, so one should place limited emphasis on that history. In fact, Kuznetsova might fall prey to the Australian Open quarterfinalist Goerges in the first round. Also injured in Doha, the sixth-seeded Bartoli starts against fellow double-fister Peng, still searching for the form that she showed during her 2011 breakthrough. If either or both of the seeds falter physically, Pattaya City champion Hantuchova should not abandon hope for a surprising semifinal appearance. Her movement remains a crucial flaw against the athleticism of Azarenka or Kuznetsova, though.
Bookended by defending champion Wozniacki and Schiavone, the second quarter looks less intimidating upon closer analysis than it might appear initially. Since reaching the Brisbane semifinal, the 2009 Roland Garros champion has slumped to disappointing early losses at the Australian Open and Doha, as well as a tepid performance in Fed Cup. More convincing in general was the former #1, a quarterfinalist in Melbourne, but an opening loss in Doha raised eyebrows. Should Wozniacki bring an appetite for revenge to this tournament, she might feast upon the sagging Pavlyuchenkova as she has previously. While Doha quarterfinalist Niculescu and Pattaya City finalist Kirilenko bring recent momentum to their first-round encounter, neither seems equipped to overcome even a modestly effective Dane. Armed with the shot-making capacity to trouble her is Ivanovic, should she extend her dominance over Schiavone in the first round. Alternating between the explosive and the uninspired so far in 2012, the Serbian former #1 could not exploit an accommodating Doha draw and rarely has played her best tennis in the Middle East. Expect a rambling comedy of errors to develop in this section of players searching for rhythm.
Bottom half: Upsetting Ivanovic last week, the less famous Petra from the Czech Republic sets her sights upon the other notable Serb in Jankovic. JJ’s appearance here may surprise some observers, since she claimed to suffer a significant injury during Fed Cup, but she has succeeded in such dire situations before and often has drawn courage from physical adversity. Meanwhile, does Stosur march into Dubai with confidence from reaching the final in Doha’s Premier Five draw, or does she skulk into the tournament in embarrassment from her crushing loss in that match? Last week’s Caro-conqueror Safarova may pose some challenging questions of the Australian, who has found lefties troublesome and lost to Benesova in Brisbane. Still, as her ranking suggests, Safarova rarely builds upon accomplishments from one week to the next. If the two bold-faced figures in this section do collide in the quarterfinals, they should feature an entertaining contrast of styles not often seen among the WTA elite.
In another curious contrast of styles, Radwanska finds herself tasked with subduing the mighty serve of Lisicki while shielding her own meager delivery. Whereas the Pole has recorded steady results this season, the German will aim to halt a four-match losing streak. Only to Azarenka has Radwanska lost this year, so she will feel grateful to avoid her friend and rival until the final. Before then, though, she may need to withstand the assault of Kvitova. The world #3’s absence from Doha ceded the spotlight to Azarenka, leaving her with much to gain and perhaps something to prove. Although she reached the Australian Open semifinals, Kvitova likely left Melbourne slightly disappointed in an effort more uneven than expected. Her raw, unvarnished power also produced uneven results in Fed Cup before she rallied to win both matches. More than any of the other title contenders, Kvitova should feel especially motivated to deliver an impressive statement in her last tournament before Indian Wells and Miami.
(In an interesting footnote, the repercussions from the controversy between this tournament and Shahar Peer continue to reverberate. The Israeli received entry into the main draw, as required by the WTA, but needed a wildcard because of her diminished ranking. Assigned an opening date with Dubai’s other wildcard, she opens on the outer court where she contested a semifinal against Venus Williams in this event two years ago.)
Written by:
