Maria Sharapova vs. Victoria Azarenka: The New Rivalry in Women’s Tennis?

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: May 6, 2012

commentComment        

As the men wrap up minor tournaments in Estoril and Munich, it's worthwhile pondering the recent state of women's tennis.

Its never been as orderly an affair, and 2012 seemed to start likewise. Victoria Azarenka won the Australian Open in Melbourne, continuing a trend that has saw four different grand slam champions in 2011, the last three (Li Na, Petra Kvitova, and Sam Stosur) being maiden winners.

Azarenka, too, was a maiden champ, although something suggests that we may be in for a bit of a period of settlement in the WTA. Kvitova since winning Wimbledon has proved her mettle, going deep into the Australian Open, and Azarenka has justified her No. 1 ranking with a sensational run in the last few months.

Perhaps the biggest and most noticeable member of this nascent WTA power stranglehold at the top is Maria Sharapova.

A three-time grand slam champion, she won her first title in Stuttgart last week, defeating none other than Victoria Azarenka. It was the third time she, the world No. 2, had played Azarenka, the world No. 1, in 2012.

Both have flowing, aggressive baseline games, with Azarenka perhaps slightly more rounded and mobile, while Sharapova arguably with slightly more firepower.

Admittedly, the WTA nowadays has a host of top players that defy ever so slightly the thinking that women's tennis is a monotonous log of ball-slogging.

Stosur and Williams have their kick-serves, Schiavone is the creative one-hander, Radwanska likes to change up pace, while we have the southpaw world No. 3 Kvitova to add some left-handed spice...is the WTA in an era of transition, however?

Ever since queen Wozniacki’s deposition, perhaps. The three contests between Azarenka and Sharapova seem to foreshadow, should it persist on the clay and beyond, a new, limited struggle for supremacy.

It was difficult somewhat in the last few years to find three to four outstanding, domin...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

Latest News


Comments

Comments are closed.

Sponsors

Bruins Tickets The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Red Wings Tickets The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League.

Penguins Tickets The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New York Rangers Tickets play their home games at Madison Square Garden, they are one of the oldest teams in the NHL, having joined in 1926 as an expansion franchise, and are part of the group of teams referred to as the Original Six.

San Jose Sharks Tickets The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States.

Toronto Maple Leafs Tickets The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New Jersey Devils Tickets The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Washington Capitals Tickets The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C.

Buffalo Sabres Tickets The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. Get the Sabres and all of your NHL Tickets here.

NASCAR season is on of the most attended sports in the world. NASCAR Tickets to the best tracks is a must every year. Some of these tracks are: Talladega Tickets, Lowes Motor Speedway Tickets, Pocono Raceway Tickets, located in Ridgeway Virginia you have Martinsville Speedway Tickets and southern US you have two of the most popular Atlanta Motor Speedway Tickets and Texas Motor Speedway Tickets. Don't miss all the racing events this year!

Boston Red Sox Tickets The Boston Red Sox are a member of the Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Since 1912, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park. This is one of the hottest MLB Tickets sales of any team in the major league.

New York Yankees Tickets The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City, New York and are a member of Major League Baseball's American League East Division. Get tickets to one of the hottest games of the season Yankees Red Sox Tickets.

Chicago Cubs Tickets The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League.

Phillies Tickets The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883.

Orioles Tickets The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland.

Do you love wrestling? Get your WWE Tickets and WWE Survivor Series Tickets today!