Smile, and the world smiles with you, or if you’re Victoria Azarenka, gets you to your first final of the year. Azarenka, the youngest and loudest of the Miami semifinalists, beat Vera Zvonareva, the oldest and highest-ranked, 6-0, 6-3.
It’s been a good tournament for Azarenka, who’s talked repeatedly about being happier and more stable, and things started well for her today. The first point was a pleasing rally that ended with her hitting a backhand winner into a corner. She would break Zvonareva to start the match, with the Russian helping out by serving two double-faults to end the game.
It was a bagel, but it didn’t taste like one. Sure, Zvonareva hit just one winner and 10 errors, but the set was really about the nine winners and two errors from Azarenka. Zvonareva could have played more consistently, but Azarenka’s play made that score happen and elevated the tennis. Certainly it led the commentator to utter this memorable line about Azarenka: “She’s big, she’s bold, she’s beautiful, and she’s playing sublime tennis.”
The second set went better for Zvonareva, who started with the winner this time and ended up hitting 13 more of them, including several acutely-angled balls that flew off the court. But she was held back by 20 errors (compared to nine for Azarenka, all match).
Zvonareva’s trainer—the commentator said her coach, Sergey Demekhin, wasn’t there because of passport issues—visited her once in each set, but that didn’t help. She was mostly held back by an opponent who was on her game. Azarenka attacked, like we know she can, but in a measured way, like we know she doesn’t always do.
Going into this one, Zvonareva led the head-to-head 6-2, and she had an easier time getting to this semifinal, her fourth this year. She spent an hour less on court during the tournament than Azarenka—who reached her first semifinal of the year here—but managed to serve more aces than all four semifinalists combined. The eight previous matches aside, these two know each other well. Zvonareva won her last doubles title with Azarenka (Indian Wells in 2009), and Azarenka is now coached by Samuel Sumyk, who previously coached Zvonareva.
Last year we heard all about their coach swapping. Now you can’t help but wonder if there’s some sports psychologist swapping going on, too:
“I’m just trying to enjoy my time on the court,” said Zvonareva after her last match.
“When you enjoy playing, it makes it a lot easier to be there,” said Azarenka after hers.
Zvonareva, on her loss to Dominika Cibulkova in Indian Wells this month: “I never really look back—I’m always trying to look forward and trying to improve myself.”
Azarenka, on her loss to Serena Williams in Melbourne last year: “I don’t care what happened before really, because I try to... learn from those things and forget them.”
In Saturday’s final Azarenka, who won her biggest title here in 2009, will face Maria Sharapova, a finalist in 2005 and 2006. It will be their fifth meeting. (They’re 2-2.) Sharapova could get the No. 8 ranking if she wins, and Azarenka could get back to her career-high No. 6 ranking. We know these two can bring it. Let’s hope they do—and give us a lot more to talk about than earplug jokes.
—Bobby Chintapalli