Navratilova on French Open title: “I have to go with Simona Halep”
Martina Navratilova thinks that Simona Halep is most probable to win Roland Garros this year, but she still gives some chances to other contenders like Osaka, Pliskova, Kvitova or even Serena Williams.
Navratilova couldn’t find any reason to not go for Simona as the main French Open title contender, but mentioned that the big hitters could be problematic for the Romanian champion: "I have to go with Simona Halep as the favourite. She's the defending champion, and she has to be feeling confident, as she's had some decent results and she's healthy. With her combination of defense and offence, she's capable of playing better tennis on the surface than anyone else. As well as Halep moves on other surfaces, I feel as though she moves even better on clay. She's really smooth and covers the court so well, getting a lot of balls back, and forcing players to hit so many more balls before the point is over, extracting some errors along the way. All of the big hitters - Osaka, Serena, Karolina Pliskova and Petra Kvitova - will have a chance against her, but they're going to have to play some really good tennis to stand a chance.”
The player who won no less than 18 Grand Slam singles titles explained in her WTA Tennis column the obstacles that Naomi Osaka, the top seed of the tournament, will have to face on her road to the title:
"Everyone is going to be gunning for Naomi Osaka in Paris - they will all want to beat the WTA World No.1 at a Slam, and they'll feel emboldened by playing her on clay. They'll know that clay is Osaka's weakest surface, that there's no better opportunity to beat her than at the French Open. I still think Osaka has a chance of taking a third consecutive Grand Slam title, adding to her hard-court victories at last year's US Open and this year's Australian Open, as she has the game to win on any surface. When she's on, she can hit through anybody, even on a clay court. But much will depend on how Osaka handles both the surface and the possible heavy conditions, as well as playing her first major as the No.1. ", said Navratilova.
Martina expressed her concerns on Osaka’s lack of titles since January:
"Since winning the Australian Open in January, which bought her that ranking, she hasn't won another title or even been in another final. This is her first major after splitting up with her coach Sascha Bajin. So there's pressure on Osaka on many fronts, but in majors, she seems to handle that OK."
Furthermore, Navratilova added that balls will help Naomi’s game while the conditions will play a great role in the Japanese’s game throughout the tournament:
"Big hitters like Osaka can still prosper on the clay of Roland Garros. It helps that the balls are lighter than they used to be, so it's a bit easier to win points with winners and forced errors, rather than through defending. There's no doubt that clay is the trickiest surface for her. The conditions are going to be another important factor for Osaka. The lighter the conditions, the better it will be for her."
Navratilova is not sure about how Serena Williams will perform at the French Open, but she definitely sees her as a title contender: "Serena Williams will be an unknown quantity in Paris, as she really hasn't competed at all - since losing in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, she has played just four matches. But she's the only player who can come into a Grand Slam tournament unprepared, and not at all match tough, and still overcome that and win the title."
Martina ended her WTA column with some thoughts on Lucie Safarova’s retirement, which will take place after RG: “I've only got nice things to say about Lucie, who has had a great career, including reaching the final of the 2015 French Open, where she came so close to beating Serena. She also won a bunch of doubles majors and represented the Czech Republic so well in the Fed Cup. On top of all that, Lucie has always been a fun player to watch. I wish her a happy retirement.”
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2VQTX1R
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