Good question up above regarding Nadal's French Open dominance. Obviously what is happening on the men's side of tennis is unprecedented as the Big 3, all in their 30s, continue to totally dominate.
And consider this. If Roger Federer hadn't pulled out a come from behind victory over his nemesis ( even though they are good friends) Nadal at the 2017 Australian Open, they would both be tied with 19 grand slams. As it stands Roger has 20 and Nadal is up to 18.
Ash Barty is exciting for me because she is a quick athletic player. For historical reference she might fall in between Justin Henin and Simona Halep, smallish players with style, quickness and verve. Barty is 23 and Halep won her first major at the French last year at the age of 25 I think. Henin on the other hand was a prodigy and played in the Wimbledon final in 2001 at just 19. Henin won her first major in 2003 at the French. Her first of seven grand slams. She never won Wimbledon though.
That said does Barty have that kind of talent? At this point I can't compare her to Henin. However her game is more offensive minded and has a sturdier base than Halep's so her future does seem bright at the moment even though she is only 5'5". Oddly Barty took a couple of years off to play cricket. I guess it worked though. Maybe cleared her head? At the end of the day the emergence of Barty, who is not as cute as Halep, was a very positive thing here at the French Open.
I caught the latter half of the match of the tournament where Stefanos Tsitsipas (ST from now on) and Stan Wawrinka duked it out in a tight five setter. Wawrinka eventually overpowered ST and won a very emotional match. ST smacked his own head violently in frustration towards the end of the match. He knew it was slipping away and just couldn't muster that extra thump that most champions resort to in clutch time.
The media took up on ST's stirring press conference afterward. Instead of the usual "trying to take it in stride" stance many players resort to, ST would have none of that. He was pissed off at the world and playing a close match with a top player offered him no consolation. The media mentioned his fiery demeanor and they like me were duly impressed. This young man wants to win and win now. I like that fire in his belly. It strikes me that too many of these obviously spoiled young players lack that burning desire. Just happy to have gofers and kiss ass people follow them around all day as they collect decent pay checks. Young tennis players are soft because they have everything before they even win. Some say the same thing about young golfers and point to the time with gritty ultra competitive players like Gary Player and Lee Trevino.
Too many male and female young tennis players are coddled to death these days and it hampers their drive and development. Go to a tournament and you would think they are royalty. Of course on the women's side they have even more distractions. Mainly male tennis players who might become their boyfriends. However it is worth pointing out there was a 17 year old player and a 19 year old player in the women's semifinals this go around. But as we head into post Serena era land it is hard to tell who will be the next big things.
I get the sense the media is getting anxious for a new hero to emerge ( they like ST a lot) and I can't think of a better candidate than ST. His game is fluid, exciting and stylish and he has the easy athleticism that is bit reminiscent of a young Roger. He is a major chick magnet and is articulate and very intelligent. He is 20 years old and won't turn 21 until after Wimbledon. Will this mercurial 6'4" talent be the first to actually challenge the Big 3 ( or big 2 of Djokovic and Nadal)? He has beaten all three but not in a major. This is a huge question as we await the prime jewel of tennis, Wimbledon.
I like ST. Quite a lot. Can he mature into a champion? I hope so.
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