McGrogan's Heroes
Caroline Wozniacki: It's tough to imagine the Dane enduring more criticism these days, but she would have if not for a massive comeback in Sydney. Trailing 4-0 in the third set of her opening match—against Dominika Cibulkova, who upset Wozniacki last year at Wimbledon—the world No. 1 won the last six games to earn at least one tour victory (7-5, 2-6, 6-4) before the Australian Open begins. Afterward, Wozniacki, who's been both refreshingly candid and cringe-inducing in her pressers, gave a winning quote: “I thought I had lost the match. I decided to play free, not care about the score anymore, and it worked out. I hate losing.”
It was an attitude that worked today (and once last year), and there are certainly some elements of it that Wozniacki can take into her upcoming odyssey in Oz. But I wouldn't recommend waiting until double-break down to realize it.
Adrian Mannarino: The men's matches are lacking this week, in terms of intrigue, but Mannarino made me take notice of the Auckland draw after his 6-3, 6-3 upset of Kevin Anderson. He gets Guillermo Garcia-Lopez next, and the top seed in his quarter, Fernando Verdasco, is far from a sure thing. It's silly to look ahead when discussing a qualifier, but with Melbourne on the minds of many, the Heineken Open is a nice opportunity for Mannarino to announce himself in 2012.
Match of the Day
Caroline Wozniacki vs. Agnieszka Radwanska, Sydney: Both Azarenka/Bartoli and Hantuchova/Kvitova are contenders, but after the aforementioned result and Radwanska's late-2011 surge, this Centre Court match has the greatest potential. Radwanska has already defeated Andrea Petkovic (in straight sets), and motivation shouldn't be a problem for the Pole—she's lost her last five meetings with Wozniacki. The last one, in last year's WTA Championships, was the closest of them all, a 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 result. Three sets seems just about right for this upcoming collision.
Tennis Theatre
In this all-Wozniacki edition of First Serve, here's highlights of her great escape against Cibulkova:
if...
you had to compare last night's national championship game (Alabama vs. LSU) to a tennis match, which would it be?