A jumping, no-look high backhand volley. A short-hop squash shot at the net, which wrong-footed the opponent. A backhand topspin lob. A forehand pass that landed smack on the sideline. A sneak-attack trip to the net that ended with a backhand volley touching perfectly in the corner. A full-cut swing volley winner. A sliding, slicing ace down the T to close out a set.
Can you guess the identity of the player who hit these shots for winners at the Miami Open on Thursday afternoon?
If you hadn’t already seen who the subject of this article is, you probably would have guessed that the author of all of these clever and athletic shots was the afternoon’s men’s star, the ever-artful Roger Federer, right? Instead, it was Caroline Wozniacki, a woman generally thought to be about as artful as a concrete wall. She used all of her underrated skills to come back and beat No. 3 seed Karolina Pliskova 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.
Call this Caro 3.0. After falling out of the Top 50 as of last August, the 26-year-old veteran—yes, she’s still only 26—has now reached her third final of 2017, and her first in Miami. She’ll soon reenter the Top 10.