The 2005 tennis season – “I can do it”
The 2005 tennis season – “I can do it!”
If I could summarize the 2005 tennis season in just one sentence it would be “I can do i!”. To me this seemed to be the year when many players proved something against critics, against odds and against physical constraints.
The year started with the Australian Open and the first “I can do it!” moment. Many times criticized by the media as an inconstant player, and therefore unable to win another Grand Slam, Marat Safin proved to himself and others that he could do it. At his third final at the AO, he played a magnificent game and took away the centennial cup, leaving behind on his road to the final two weeks of perfect tennis, including that epic semi-final against the number 1, Roger Federer, a match that stood out as one of the best matches of 2005.
The second “I can do it!” belongs to Kim Clijsters, who after a wrist injury and after being told by doctors that she might never be able to play again, defied all odds and came back with a bang, winning back-to-back Master Series tournaments in Miami and Indian Wells.
Miami also saw the rise of a young star: Rafael Nadal, who at the age of 18 reached the final where he almost beat Roger Federer in another magnificent 5 set match. Many began there to wonder if that was just a blimp or if he really could leave a mark in the tour. And he proved he could. After winning the Clay court season, where he claimed 2 Master Series (Monte Carlo and Rome) and also Barcelona, he then went on to win the French Open, and at the age of 19, became one of the youngest players ever to win a Grand Slam, after 18 years old Boris Becker in Wimbledon.
But the clay court season also witnessed another raging comeback. Rising from the depths of illness Justine Henin-Hardenne proved that she too could do it again, winning the French Open after breezing through the clay court season where she won 3 titles in Charleston, Warsaw and Berlin.
The French Open gave the 2005 season another notable comeback appearance: Mary Pierce. At the age of 30, and when many were planning her retirement, she proved that she could still do it and after reaching the final in RG, she went on to claim 2 titles in 2005 (in San Diego and Moscow) and the presence in two other major finals: the USO and the WTA Championships in LA, finishing the year as nr. 5 in the rankings.
Kim Clijsters had not yet said her last word regarding the 2005 season. Many times noticed as one of the few players that had been nr. 1 without winning a Grand Slam title, she silenced those critics forever by winning the USO after also having claimed the USO Series with 3 titles in Stanford, Los Angeles and Toronto.
In the USO another tennis legend showed us that he was not yet ready to bow out. 35 years old Andre Agassi, reached the final, after playing a fantastic match against James Blake and was one of the only two in that tournament to win a set against Federer. His presence in the final was the proof that “he can still do it!”.
As the year was reaching its end, three more players emerged as examples that nothing is ever certain and that not so good images can always be changed. The first of these was Ivan Ljubicic, who after carrying Croatia to the Davis Cup final, won back to back indoor titles in Metz and Vienna and appeared in back to back Masters Series finals in Madrid and Paris, showing that he has the potential to be a top ten.
Finally, as the season was ending, Amelie Mauresmo, for so long called the “Lady of Glass” in a reference to her tendency to break in the decisive moments and for being one of the few nr. 1 never to have yet won a Grand Slam, finally proved that she could do it. After early exits in Moscow and Zurich she reappeared with a vengeance to win the Philadelphia title before conquering her most important trophy so far: the WTA Championships, defeating on the way Kim Clijsters, Maria Sharapova and Mary Pierce.
The WTA Championships male counterpart, the Tennis Masters Cup, certainly began on the wrong foot with the dropouts of most of the top ten classified players and, under those circumstances, everyone seemed to think that Federer would have the easiest TMC victory of his career. But that was not to be. After having lost to Federer in the last 4 matches that they played, David Nalbandian managed to gather strength to fight back from two stets down and won the final in 4h33m, proving that he is a player to be counted on.
Last but not least let’s not forget the William sisters, who recovering from lengthy injuries and overcoming inconsistent performances, proved that they are still two of the best players on the circuit. Serena won the Australian Open and Venus claimed the Wimbledon title.
Finally a word of recognition to two other players that showed us that they too could do it: James Blake and Nadia Petrova.
The first overcame personal tragedy and a serious illness, to emerge as one of the 2005 references, conquering his 2 titles in New Haven and Stokholm and reaching the USO semifinals. The second, a very regular player but that had a tendency to fade in the decisive moments, overcame critics and personal insecurities to finally conquer her first WTA title in Linz
2005 was therefore, in my opinion, a year where many shook off their troubles and problems and showed us that when you truly believe in yourself you can achieve great things.
I’m sure that many others deserved also to be mentioned, but for now I would just like to finish with a look on the future, and the names of Tomas Berdych, Gael Monfils, Richard Gasquet, Andy Murray, Nicole Vaidisova, Ana Ivanovic, Sania Mirza, Dinara Safina, and Anna-Lena Groenefeld are only some examples of the many young talents that, emerging in 2005, will certainly prove their worth in the years to come.
A.C. November 2005
If I could summarize the 2005 tennis season in just one sentence it would be “I can do i!”. To me this seemed to be the year when many players proved something against critics, against odds and against physical constraints.
The year started with the Australian Open and the first “I can do it!” moment. Many times criticized by the media as an inconstant player, and therefore unable to win another Grand Slam, Marat Safin proved to himself and others that he could do it. At his third final at the AO, he played a magnificent game and took away the centennial cup, leaving behind on his road to the final two weeks of perfect tennis, including that epic semi-final against the number 1, Roger Federer, a match that stood out as one of the best matches of 2005.
The second “I can do it!” belongs to Kim Clijsters, who after a wrist injury and after being told by doctors that she might never be able to play again, defied all odds and came back with a bang, winning back-to-back Master Series tournaments in Miami and Indian Wells.
Miami also saw the rise of a young star: Rafael Nadal, who at the age of 18 reached the final where he almost beat Roger Federer in another magnificent 5 set match. Many began there to wonder if that was just a blimp or if he really could leave a mark in the tour. And he proved he could. After winning the Clay court season, where he claimed 2 Master Series (Monte Carlo and Rome) and also Barcelona, he then went on to win the French Open, and at the age of 19, became one of the youngest players ever to win a Grand Slam, after 18 years old Boris Becker in Wimbledon.
But the clay court season also witnessed another raging comeback. Rising from the depths of illness Justine Henin-Hardenne proved that she too could do it again, winning the French Open after breezing through the clay court season where she won 3 titles in Charleston, Warsaw and Berlin.
The French Open gave the 2005 season another notable comeback appearance: Mary Pierce. At the age of 30, and when many were planning her retirement, she proved that she could still do it and after reaching the final in RG, she went on to claim 2 titles in 2005 (in San Diego and Moscow) and the presence in two other major finals: the USO and the WTA Championships in LA, finishing the year as nr. 5 in the rankings.
Kim Clijsters had not yet said her last word regarding the 2005 season. Many times noticed as one of the few players that had been nr. 1 without winning a Grand Slam title, she silenced those critics forever by winning the USO after also having claimed the USO Series with 3 titles in Stanford, Los Angeles and Toronto.
In the USO another tennis legend showed us that he was not yet ready to bow out. 35 years old Andre Agassi, reached the final, after playing a fantastic match against James Blake and was one of the only two in that tournament to win a set against Federer. His presence in the final was the proof that “he can still do it!”.
As the year was reaching its end, three more players emerged as examples that nothing is ever certain and that not so good images can always be changed. The first of these was Ivan Ljubicic, who after carrying Croatia to the Davis Cup final, won back to back indoor titles in Metz and Vienna and appeared in back to back Masters Series finals in Madrid and Paris, showing that he has the potential to be a top ten.
Finally, as the season was ending, Amelie Mauresmo, for so long called the “Lady of Glass” in a reference to her tendency to break in the decisive moments and for being one of the few nr. 1 never to have yet won a Grand Slam, finally proved that she could do it. After early exits in Moscow and Zurich she reappeared with a vengeance to win the Philadelphia title before conquering her most important trophy so far: the WTA Championships, defeating on the way Kim Clijsters, Maria Sharapova and Mary Pierce.
The WTA Championships male counterpart, the Tennis Masters Cup, certainly began on the wrong foot with the dropouts of most of the top ten classified players and, under those circumstances, everyone seemed to think that Federer would have the easiest TMC victory of his career. But that was not to be. After having lost to Federer in the last 4 matches that they played, David Nalbandian managed to gather strength to fight back from two stets down and won the final in 4h33m, proving that he is a player to be counted on.
Last but not least let’s not forget the William sisters, who recovering from lengthy injuries and overcoming inconsistent performances, proved that they are still two of the best players on the circuit. Serena won the Australian Open and Venus claimed the Wimbledon title.
Finally a word of recognition to two other players that showed us that they too could do it: James Blake and Nadia Petrova.
The first overcame personal tragedy and a serious illness, to emerge as one of the 2005 references, conquering his 2 titles in New Haven and Stokholm and reaching the USO semifinals. The second, a very regular player but that had a tendency to fade in the decisive moments, overcame critics and personal insecurities to finally conquer her first WTA title in Linz
2005 was therefore, in my opinion, a year where many shook off their troubles and problems and showed us that when you truly believe in yourself you can achieve great things.
I’m sure that many others deserved also to be mentioned, but for now I would just like to finish with a look on the future, and the names of Tomas Berdych, Gael Monfils, Richard Gasquet, Andy Murray, Nicole Vaidisova, Ana Ivanovic, Sania Mirza, Dinara Safina, and Anna-Lena Groenefeld are only some examples of the many young talents that, emerging in 2005, will certainly prove their worth in the years to come.
A.C. November 2005
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