Li Na gets pumped up after making her early 2013 record go to 8-0 at the Apia International in Sydney
Despite participating in the weirdest season opener in WTA history in Shenzhen (an inaugural tournament where the conditions were so cold that the players needed heat generators on the court), Li Na showed that she wants to truly contend with Serena Williams if Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, and Aga Radwanska aren't up to the task.
Okay, at the current moment, Serena Williams will be the only person that determines if Serena Williams wants to contend with anybody. But outside of that, the Chinese #1 is already displaying going into the Australian Open that she really does want to be a consistent force throughout the year instead of her sporadic up and down nature since winning the 2011 French Open.
Li was the favorite to win in her country's newest event on the WTA calendar, a mantle that she hasn't handled fully well in her time of being amongst women's tennis elite. But she did well to hold off her always treacherous erratic side in beating the tricky Czech talent Klara Zakoplava 6-3, 1-6, 7-5.
Questions about her even playing the event with the inevitable transition to the extreme hot conditions of the Australian summer were justified. But Carlos Rodriguez client has done so well to to acclimate herself from the cold of Shenzhen. An up and down opening round match was expected against Christina McHale, but a comprehensive win over Ayumi Morita under record heat on Tuesday showed her intent in sustaining positive momentum.
Holding off the inform uber-talented that is Madison Keys with a fine third set in the quarters today was a very encouraging sign for the world #6, especially closing the match strongly with her serve.
If anyone is going to challenge Serena this year not off her own errors, then great serving is the top requirement for the rest of the WTA's elite. Li clearly has tremendous power and groundstroke technique when she's on, especially if the forehand is raiser sharp and not an unstable mess like it can be.
But her service motion, changed by Rodriguez to emulate Justine Henin's version for maximum effect, is the primary key. She's always had one of the most underrated 2nd serves on tour, displaying courage and fine spin to not have it be consistently attacked. But her 1st serve has always been off and on, and any improvement of it to get free points is so massive if she wants to contend with Serena.
Now this goes without saying, Li has felt totally at home on the Australian hardcourts, seeking her third straight final's appearance and second title in Sydney. And facing Aga Radwanska on Thursday is something that will make her more ensconced at the moment, having thrashed Sydney 2013's top seed in Montreal and Mason (Cincinnati) in consecutive weeks last summer.
But winning this title against Radwanska and either Angelique Kerber or Dominika Cibulkova in the final will certainly make her having more of a chance to give a top level Serena a huge fight than Azarenka (and yes, I'm not including Sharapova in that picture).
Li Na has the consistent groundstroke power that Azarenka lacks against Serena. And she has the movement and lack of fear that Sharapova is still searching for against the legendary American. All she needs is a dominant sound first serve to contend with Serena on her own terms instead of it just hoping Serena's on her B-game.
ATP
Bernard Tomic is really hitting the ball bigger now, and just like with Grigor Dimitrov last week, is showcasing that pivotal new weapon thus far in his chance to win his first ATP title: A massive new serve.
Tomic hasn't hit the ball this well for me since his terrific Wimbledon quarterfinal run 18 months ago. The passiveness to his game that was so problematic in gifting Andy Roddick that win at the US Open last year is gone for the moment, as well as the utterly ridiculous obituaries written about his career after that debacle.
His improved upper body strength and dogmatic serving practices over the short offseason spells that Tomic is ready to ascend back up to the potential many have thought and still think he will be at. He just has that natural sense of playing smart, high level tennis, a feel of the game that only a select few are born with.
To impressively handle Florian Mayer in that second set today, a guy whose out funked him so badly in their first three meetings, including a 6-0 set just 3 months ago in Shanghai, really displays the commitment he is now showcasing across the board.
21 aces and only one break point faced in his first two matches in Sydney is an eye opener, and more impressive for me than beating Novak Djokovic at the always fun but still exhibition Hopman Cup. These are the real matches that matter, and for him to do that so far is encouraging.
With a road to the final featuring Jarko Nieminen, Marcel Granollers and Andreas Seppi, Tomic is more explosive than his bottom have members at the moment based on current form. This would officially be the perfect spring board to showing all his critics that their castigation of him for much of 2012 will not last in 2013.
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