The winning moment at
Roland Garros. Bedlam!
When unseeded and relatively unknown Aļona Ostapenko (more
commonly known as Jelena Ostapenko) met No. 3 seed Simona Halep in the finals
of the French Open, the sports oracles might’ve foreseen a quiet, straight-sets
triumph for Halep, who, with a win, would’ve overtaken Angelique Kerber to
become the top-ranked women’s tennis player in the world, a height she hadn’t
yet reached. If contemplating the all-time greats, one considers the likes of
Billie Jean King and Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Margaret Court and
Evonne Goolagong, Steffi Graf, and of course, the still-active Williams
sisters, Venus and Serena. The nationalities—American, Czech, Australian, German,
American—leave off Halep’s Romanian origins and Ostapenko’s Latvian roots. When
Halep took the first set and led 3-love in the second set, it seemed as if she
would become only the second Romanian woman to win a grand slam event, joining
Virginia Ruzici, who also triumphed at Roland Garros in 1978. No Latvian tennis
players—neither men nor women—had ever won a grand slam event.
En route to the finals, Ostapenko played four three-set
matches, including a notable quarterfinal triumph against No. 11 seed Caroline
Wozniacki (4-6, 6-2, 6-2). This might’ve favored Halep, who’d only faced two
lengthy matches before the finals, among them a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 semifinal victory
over No. 2 seed Karolína
Plíšková. Down one set, and love-three in the second set, Ostapenko
might’ve been content to capitulate, might’ve been content in the knowledge
that she’d earned a berth in a grand slam final just a few days after her
twentieth birthday. But the viewer could detect the formulation of the
comeback, in Ostapenko’s expressions and gestures, from the flailing, frowning,
and pouty, to the steely, sage, and jubilant. She captured six of the ensuing
seven games, to secure the second set, 6-4. Her opponent was no slouch, and
took a 3-1 lead in the third set, but even then, the viewer couldn’t envision a
derailment. The wiry-armed Latvian was swinging for the lines.
It’s not that simple, of course. According to
Reuters, Ostapenko committed 54 unforced errors to accompany
her—punishing—display of 54 winners. (Halep would collect 10 and 8,
respectively.) Ostapenko would lose her serve six times, but this wouldn’t deter
the upstart, as she would break Halep’s serve eight times. She didn’t just punish the ball on winners
(and unforced errors) but virtually every time she swung her racket. Trailing
in the match didn’t seem to matter. So long as there were more balls to
clobber, she would clobber them. Ostapenko profited from a ridiculous bounce, a
net cord at 3-3 in the third set, but many champions receive lucky bounces,
especially those who fight the hardest. She took five straight games to close
the match 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, her first title as a professional. The French Open
champion didn’t play recklessly, but just shy of recklessness, and maybe that’s
how we can define her game. Ostapenko delivered powerful ground-strokes from
numerous angles, balances, and stances, just shy of recklessness. She dwelt—regally,
precariously, bravely—on that edge, and won the French Open as an unseeded (and
mostly teenage) player. She should never play tennis any other way.
Ostapenko’s smile is
as formidable as her inside-out forehand.
It surprises me often enough when intelligent people reject
the meaningfulness of athletic competition. To the contrary, the fearless
vision of Aļona
Ostapenko and her unwavering dedication to attacking the boundaries of the
tennis court, moved me—I admit—to teary eyes, right after she scorched a
backhand return of serve down the line to clinch her match versus Simona Halep.
Ostapenko appears to be a kindly person and she didn’t exult in a way that
mocked her opponent, yet there too, I found the celebratory imagery to radiate
importance: a dazzling reward that compensated her own achievement, as well as
the powerful force (Halep) arranged against her. The seasoned American
announcing crew was stunned; who wouldn’t be? And who wouldn’t see this performance
as a blueprint for any creative foray? There. That’s the crush. Learning from
this young person to gamble—every moment—on the promise of your vision.
Sources
of Information:
NBC
broadcast of the French Open women’s final
French
Open match highlights, on YouTube
Reuters match statistics
French
Open Women’s Singles 2017 complete results at Wikipedia
New
York Times article on Ostapenko’s first name
WTA
listing for Jelena Ostapenko
Jelena
Ostapenko Wikipedia page
ESPN
story about Ostapenko’s progress at Wimbledon
Virginia
Ruzici Wikipedia page
Roland
Georges Garros Wikipedia page
Cultural Affairs Week 2017 Editorial Schedule
Aļona
Ostapenko
4 comments:
Nicely said. Wish I'd had time to watch the match, because it has all the hallmarks of a classic effort.
Thanks for taking a gander at this post. There was something special about Ostapenko's effort in the final. She's the ultimate "edge" tennis player. With that, comes great mind-boggling improvisations and of course, runs of poor play, where the shots get missed. But I learned a certain "never say die" from this player. She can dig out any point, any game, any set, any match. And at 20, she's got her entire career ahead of her. It's unreal, to borrow a phrase. I hope she can keep it up! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BA
Sounds like if she can learn to add a bit more craft to her edge, she might have a long and successful career.
Venus Williams just beat her in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, ending a substantial winning streak in grand slam events. You're right about needing a bit more craft, and that might come on her serve, which is vulnerable. Still, if she were to do nothing more with her career -- and that seems unimaginable -- she'd have still given one of the best performances of all time. ---------------------------------------------BA
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