The Baseline Top 8: Mattek-Sands fast facts

Bethanie Mattek-Sands has been branded a lot of things over time. First she was the Britney Spears of tennis, then dubbed the sport’s own Lady Gaga. Sure, she wore a dress mostly made of tennis balls to the WTA’s pre-Wimbledon party one year. And she generally likes to dress in a unique, alternately astounding and confounding fashion on court. It’s all part of who she is.

So who is she? She’s your WTA No. 1 in doubles, for starters, and she's competing in the United States' Fed Cup tie against Germany this weekend in Hawaii. But you knew that, and probably all of the above. In light of these truths, here are eight things you likely didn’t know about BMS,

1

She and Lucie Safarova are the innovators of the championship synchronized dance (with a nod to Shaun T, practice made perfect.)

2

She gets along with basically everyone.

3

She doesn’t mind a “kwickie.”

4

She may or may not know usual doubles partner Safarova very well:

5

She doesn’t sport knee-high socks for the style statement they make. She wears them for—what else?—the health/compression factor.

6

The only major women’s doubles championship she hasn’t won is Wimbledon, reaching the semifinal round in 2010.

7

She has two younger brothers and a younger sister, and also claims to have a twin sister named Sania, but it appears to just be a reference to her sometimes doubles partner, Sania Mirza (see Exhibit A and

This is what happens when @MirzaSania and I stay at the same hotel... #Onesies #GirlsNightAgain #fashion #fashionista #letsdothis #style

A photo posted by MATTeK-SaNDS (@matteksands) on Aug 14, 2015 at 8:28am PDT " target="_blank">Exhibit B).

8

Husband Justin Sands, to whom she has been married since 2008, works at the C-suite level in the insurance industry. By the by, she calls Justin “Bubs.”

Follow Jon on Twitter @jonscott9.