A Look at Top WTA Young Guns By Niall Clarke
Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic

With Serena Williams capturing the French Open last weekend, I couldn’t help but think ‘Why is a 33 year old dominating the tour like this.’ After all, most athletes are past their peak when they reach the north side of thirty.

Of course, Serena is not your average athlete. She is unique, and truly one of a kind. She is arguably the best of all time, and of course with her tennis ability combined with her physical gifts you really do have a special player on your hands.

It’s not Serena’s fault that the rest of the tour can barely touch her at the moment, but you must wonder when the next generation of players will come through.

We have seen glimpses of what the likes of Eugenie Bouchard, Madison Keys and Garbine Muguruza can do, but isn’t it time these players started competing for grand slams?

After all, the Williams dominance can’t last forever. These girls may be the future faces of the WTA, and their rivalries might be sending us into the next decade.

Who are these players? Let’s meet them.

Eugenie Bouchard

Age: 21
From: Montreal Quebec, Canada
Height: 5’10 (1.78m)
Weight: 134lbs (61kg)
Plays: Right handed (two handed backhand)
Rank: 11
Career high rank: 5
Achievements:
– Semi Finals at the Australian Open and Roland Garros (2014)
– Runner up at Wimbledon last year (L. Kvitova)
– Titles: 1 (Nurnberg 2014)

Outlook:

Of all the girls that appear in this article, Genie Bouchard is the one that has made the biggest breakthrough thus far. 2014 was a huge year for the Canadian, making her first major breakthrough at the Australian Open where she made the semi-finals (l. Li). She then went on to repeat that result at Roland Garros (l. Sharapova). Bouchard went on to make Canadian sporting history by becoming the first player from Canada to reach a grand slam final at Wimbledon (l. Kvitova). 2014 was also the year, where Bouchard won her first title in Nurnberg and reached a career high ranking of five in October.

Year so far:

Despite a hugely successful 2014, Bouchard has failed to cement her breakthrough in 2015. The year did not start badly, as the 21 year old made the Australian Open quarter finals but from there it seemed to all fall apart. From Indian Wells, Bouchard went on to lose six straight matches before finally breaking that duck in Rome against Zarina Diyas. She went on to lose the following round to Carla Suarez Navarro, but even more worrying was the round one exit at the French Open to Kristina Mladenovic. The failure to defend her semi final points has seen Bouchard slip outside the top 10. She currently stands 39 in the race rankings

Strengths:

– Early ball striking
– Movement
– Backhand

Weaknesses:

– Ability to control opponent’s power
– Forehand technique
– Pressure

Assessment:

The curious case of Eugenie Bouchard still goes on. Once touted as the most marketable athlete in sports, Genie needs to find the way to win before that could ever come to fruition. From being labelled as the future face of the WTA last year, The Canadian is wilting under pressure and if not careful she could see herself slump further and further down the rankings.

Bouchard will likely go on to have a good career, but not to the expectations of many. The pressure is clearly affecting her performance on court, and to be frank her game could do with a lot of work too. She struggles to handle power, and her technique could do with some tweaks especially on the forehand side. IF she sorts out her current mess she will likely be top 10, and may win a grand slam or two which will be considered a success. If not then she might have one or two more big runs, and then she might head for an early retirement.

Elina Svitolina

Age: 20
From: Odessa, Ukraine
Height: 5’9 (1.74m)
Weight: 132lbs (60kg)
Plays: Right handed (two handed backhand)
Rank: 17
Career high rank: 17
Achievements:
– Quarter Finals at Roland Garros (2015)
– Titles: 3 (Marrakech 2015, Baku 2014, 2013)

Outlook:

Whilst people talk about their Keys’, Muguruza’s and Bouchard’s, they seem to forget that a young Ukrainian is slowly making her own way up the rankings. Prior to Roland Garros, Svitolina was almost the forgotten youngster but her quarter final run at the French has put everyone on alert. In 2013, Svitolina made her top 50 breakthrough finishing as world number 40. She also won her first WTA title in Baku that year.  2014 saw more improvements for the Ukrainian, as she finished inside the top 30 for the first time in her career. That was helped by defending her title in Baku and making the semi-finals of three other WTA events

Year so far:

The ever improving Svitolina has continued on the right path in 2015.  Starting with a semi-final run in Brisbane (L.Sharapova), the 20 year old has rose to a career high ranking of 17 after an impressive quarter final run at the French Open. Svitolina also claimed her third WTA title in Marrakech defeating Timea Babos in the final. She currently lies 13^th in the race rankings.

Strengths:

– Consistency
– Backhand
– Movement

Weaknesses:

– Lack of fire power
– Serve
– No major weapons

Assessment:

Svitolina has one thing that a lot of her fellow rising stars don’t have; consistency. With a solid all round game, Svitolina is perhaps the most likely of the lot to reach her full potential. The problem is, how much potential does she have? Despite the solidness, Svitolina lacks any real firepower and weapons which means she may find it difficult to topple to top players at the biggest stage.

So far, Svitolina has been slowly climbing up the rankings, and after a top 30 finish last season she is looking on course for a top 20 finish this year. Like stated previously, Elina is the most likely to fulfil her potential but unfortunately the potential isn’t as great as the others in her age group. Svitolina will be top ten, and will be around for a long time but any grand slam win would be considered a huge success.

Madison Keys

Age: 20
From: Rock Island Illinois, USA
Height: 5’10 (1.78m)
Weight: 145lbs (66kg)
Plays: Right handed (two handed backhand)
Rank: 18
Career high rank: 16
Achievements:
– Semi Finals at Australian Open (2015)
– Titles: 1 (Eastbourne 2014)

Outlook:

Undoubtedly the biggest hitter on this list, and perhaps on tour, Madison Keys has been touted by many to have huge success in the future. Keys first made herself known when she made the second round of the US Open as a 16 year old, but 2013 was her first major breakthrough as she made the top 40 for the first time. In 2014 the American made even more strides by winning her first title in Eastbourne which resulted in a career high ranking of 27 at the time.

Year so far:

Keys made her first big grand slam breakthrough by making the semi-finals of the Australian Open at the start of the year. That result was backed up by a final run in Charleston (L.Kerber) and career high ranking of 16 in May. Keys currently lies 16^th in the race rankings.

Strengths:

– Serve
– Power
– Forehand

Weaknesses:

– Movement
– Return
– Consistency

Assessment:

Keys possesses so much firepower, it is hard to see her not winning a grand slam. If she catches fire for two weeks then there are few players who can handle the serve and the powerful groundstrokes. Her best chance will likely be Wimbledon where her already big first serve becomes an even bigger weapon.

Like any other player, she has weaknesses that can be exploited. The biggest is probably her movement, and with her play style consistency will also be an issue. With her weapons though, a few big grand slam runs are not out of the question.

Garbine Muguruza

Age: 21
From: Barcelona, Spain
Height: 6’ (1.82m)
Weight: 161lbs (73kg)
Plays: Right handed (two handed backhand)
Rank: 21
Career high rank: 19
Achievements:
– Quarter Finals at Roland Garros (2014,2015)
– Titles: 1 (Hobart 2014)

Outlook:

2014 was a breakthrough year for Garbine Muguruza, as she announced herself as one of the brightest prospects on tour. Her 2013 season was marred by injury, but the start of 2014 couldn’t have been much better. A title win in Hobart was followed by a fourth round run in Melbourne (L.Radwanska). Her biggest result came at Roland Garros where Muguruza made the quarter finals (L.Sharapova). On her run to the last eight she inflicted Serena Williams’ biggest grand slam defeat. From there, the Spaniard stagnated and failed to build on that impressive result.

Year so far:

After defending her Australian Open points (L.Serena), Muguruza went on to represent Spain in the Fed cup for the first time. Despite her two singles victories, Spain lost to the tie to Romania 3-2. After a semi-final run in Dubai (L.Pliskova), Muguruza’s season took a downturn as she struggled to put together victories, but she found her form in time to make the quarter finals of Roland Garros for a second straight year. Muguruza is currently 16^th in the WTA race rankings.

Strengths:

– First Serve
– Backhand
– Power

Weaknesses:

– Second Serve
– Consistency
– Movement

Assessment:

Some people think that Muguruza all things considered has the biggest potential of this current crop of players. She has the makings of a top player, but there are a few things that need ironing out. For starters he first serve despite being a weapon is inconsistent, and recently she has been getting down on herself too easy but that might just be a confidence issue.

Garbine will probably win at least one Roland Garros title, and maybe the Australian Open. Right now it’s hard to see her winning anything big on the faster surfaces but she has time to make improvements. She has potential to do well, but I think the mental side will hold her back from ever fulfilling her potential.

Caroline Garcia

Age: 21
From: Lyon, France
Height: 5’10 (1.77m)
Weight: 134lbs (61kg)
Plays: Right handed (two handed backhand)
Rank: 31
Career high rank: 25
Achievements:
– Titles: 1 (Bogota 2014)
– Finalist: 2 (Acapulco, Monterrey 2015)

Outlook:

Roland Garros 2011, everybody was introduced to the talents of Caroline Garcia. Leading Sharapova 6-3, 4-1 Andy Murray tweeted that Garcia is a ‘future world number one’. Four years later, we are still waiting for the true emergence of the Frenchwoman. 2013 would be Garcia’s first top 100 season, rising from 114 to 99 after Roland Garros and finishing the year as world number 75. 2014 would see further improvements, being Garcia’s first top 40 season and winning her first WTA title in Bogota (d.Jankovic).

Year so far:

2015 has been a decent year for Garcia. She made the third round of the Australian Open which is her best result in Melbourne. The 21 year old also made back to back finals in Mexico, but twice lost to a resurging Timea Bacsinszky. Otherwise, it has been very erratic and inconsistent which has become somewhat expected from her. Garcia currently is ranked 22 in the race rankings.

Strengths:

– Serve
– All round game
– Power

Weaknesses:

– Return
– Consistency
– Mental fragility

Assessment:

Of the five assessed so far, Garcia is perhaps the most talented of the lot. Unfortunately she is also the worst mentally. Despite possessing a great all round game with a fantastic serve, Garcia has not yet found a way to put it all together. Her shot selection (especially on return) is often times questionable, and she has stated herself that the pressure of playing on Phillip Chatrier court is too much for her to handle.

If Caroline Garcia can get a coach to work with her instead of just having her dad there, then I feel she can make great strides. Having someone to help with game planning and the mental side of the game will only benefit Garcia in the long run and help get the maximum out of her great talent. Right now, I feel she might be top ten with a few big grand slam runs. If she can get a coach, or mature as a player then who knows what she might achieve.

Notable mentions

Belinda Bencic: At 18 years old, Bencic is slightly younger than the other players mentioned in this article. But being ranked 33 in the world she is certainly among them. The talented Swiss made her big breakthrough at the US Open last year, making the quarter finals, which helped her rise to the top 40. Her main weapon is the backhand but her game still needs ironing out. Right now it’s too early to really predict how far she will go but I will say top 10 at least for now.

Zarina Diyas: Diyas is solid, consistent and still young. At 21 there is still time for improvement, but with the Kazakh’s lack of any major weapons it’s difficult to see her rising any higher than the top 20. Her ceiling is quite low compared to the rest, but she is the closest to fulfilling her potential at the moment.

Anna Schmiedlova: The ever improving Slovak won her first WTA title in Katowice this year and made the final is Rio. Schmiedlova suits the clay courts very well and will likely have a fair level of success on the dirt, it’s whether she can adapt her game to other surfaces that will determine her level of success.

There are plenty of other youngsters on tour who seemed destined to have successful careers, and it is only a matter of time before the late nineties generation make their breakthrough.