They’re not messing around in Tokyo. The women there, and almost all of them are there, have already moved into the third round. This is tough on preview writers back in the States; all of my “first round matches to watch” have already been watched. But starting late does have one advantage: Predictions—they should, in theory, be easier to make. This time I didn’t have to throw in the usual caveat about the roller-coaster quality of Petra Kvitova’s play. She's already proven it by losing to Croatia’s Petra Martic in her opener.
Nearly all of the other seeds have advanced, however—for today, at least, order is growing on the WTA. Below is a look at the Tokyo draw, as well as the men's in Bangkok.
*
Toray Pan Pacific Open
*Tokyo
Hard courts
WTA Premier 5; $2,168,400
U.S. TV schedule is here*
The Asian swing gets underway in earnest at the venerable Toray Pan Pacific. There’s upwards of two million bucks on the line, and of the WTA's Top 18, everyone other than Serena Williams and Maria Kirilenko was present and accounted for at the start of the week. Serena is missed, of course, but her absence isn’t as obvious, or as damaging, as it might have been a couple of years ago. With Vika, Maria, Aga, there’s a top tier in place around her, and there's another group of dangerous players—Li, Stosur, Kerber, Bartoli, etc.—capable of knocking any of them off.
Asia has been the site of two big pushes the last two seasons: In 2010, Caroline Wozniacki won two tournaments to reach No. 1; last season Aga Radwanska used a trifecta of titles to get to No. 2. Is there anyone who could do the same in 2012? Germany’s Angelique Kerber seems capable, though it feels like a long shot this time around. That’s because Azarenka, No. 1 with a bullet, appears poised to finish the season the way she began it. Vika is coming off what has to be the best loss of her career, in the U.S. Open final, and she didn’t waste any time getting back on track in her opener, which she won over Tamira Paszek 1 and 1. Vika and Kerber are scheduled to play in the quarters.
Also of interest:
Li Na: She was on a serious roll before going out early to Laura Robson at the U.S. Open. Can she get back on it? She’ll play the winner of Wozniacki-Hantuchova next.
Aga Radwanska: She has a lot to defend starting this week, and she’s been slumping since she reached the Wimbledon final in July. Today she got a good, if exhausting, win over Jelena Jankovic. Both players were doubled over after rallies, and Aga looked too tired to hit a ball into the stands at the end. She might play Li in the quarters.
Maria Sharapova: The last we saw of Maria, she was a very frustrated semifinal loser at the U.S. Open. She squeaked past Heather Watson in three sets in the first round.
Third-round match to watch: Azarenka vs. Vinci. Can the Italian continue to slice up top-ranked opponents, the way she did at the Open?
Third-round match to watch: Urszula Radwanska vs. Kerber. Yes, the other Radwanska, U-Rad, is making a move. She reached the semis in Guangzhou and beat Ivanovic in the second round here.
Considering that I’m starting in the third round, I really should be able to pick at least two of the semifinalists correctly, right? Here you go: Azarenka, A. Radwanska, Bartoli, Sharapova. After that, you’re on your own.
Thailand Open
*Bangkok
Hard courts; $551,000
U.S. TV schedule here*
The Thailand Open isn’t quite what it used to be. In the past marquee names like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Marat Safin, and Andy Roddick made the trip to Bangkok to pick up their appearance fees, along with a title or two if it worked out. The draw this time is solid, but not starry. Janko Tipsarevic and Richard Gasquet are the top two seeds, and regulars like Verdasco, Simon, and Troicki dot the brackets. Another of those regulars, Gael Monfils, continues his comeback here as well. Admit it: You missed him. Maybe his more sober haircut will make him a more serious player. But is that what we really want?
Perhaps most intriguing is the No. 3 seed, Milos Raonic. Yet again we say: Here’s an opportunity, what can the young Canadian do with it? The tournament looks winnable for him. If he wants to know the value of winning it, Raonic can look across the draw at Tipsarevic. Last year the Serb finished the end of the season on a hot streak. His ranking went up, and so did his seedings at big events in 2013.
First-round match to watch: Tomic vs. Garcia-Lopez
Doubles team of the week: Tomic and Dimitrov. Frustration, and talent, times two.
Name of the week: Peerakiat Siriluethaiwattana. Thankfully, for all tennis writers’ sakes, he lost in the first round.