The offseason was long and probably tiring, but the Australian Open was worth our patience during December, as once again this year they had everything. New faces, Cinderella runs, massive upsets, veterans looming around and to top it off; a brand new Grand Slam Champion after a high quality final that kept every fan in the edge of their seat. So, let's start the final countdown. Who are VAVEL's top 10 players for this month?
10. Monica Puig
The Puerto Rican youngster had one of the best months of her career this January finally finding some big results and moving up in the rankings. After a rather disappointing 2015 season, the 23-year-old started in the same fashion failing to qualify for the Auckland main draw. However, the next week she had probably one of her best tournaments ever in Sydney, where she made a final for the first time in her career at a Premier tournament. Starting from the qualifying and taking advantage of Aganieszka Radwanska's withdrawal, she beat Magdalena Rybarikova, Anna-Karolina Schmiedlova, Samantha Stosur and led a set over Belinda Bencic before the latter withdrew to reach the final.
Despite getting easily defeated by Svetlana Kuznetsova, it was a great result for the young Puerto Rican that she has been looking for for a long time. With this, she arrived in Melbourne full of confidence, where she made the third round after a grueling and tiring physically match against Kristyna Pliskova in round two, only to be defeated by Agnieszka Radwanska in the end. Even though Puig did not have any stunning wins, the results in the end were really good helping her raise her ranking a lot and filling her with confidence. So what remains is to see if she can keep it up for the Puig star will finally shine.
9. Carla Suarez Navarro
After a 2015 with many up and downs, the Spaniard started the season really well seeming to have found some temporary solutions to her problems that have brewed in the second part of 2015. She began her year in Brisbane, where she successfully exploited an open draw to make the semifinals before losing to Angelique Kerber without playing her best tennis though. She then went on to lose to Sara Errani in Sydney before the "Happy Slam". In Melbourne, she got another open draw, having not faced a single top 100 player until the round of 16.
She peaked at the right time to edge inspired home favorite Daria Gavrilova returning back from 0-6 to make the quarterfinals. Her road ended there in the hands of Agnieszka Radwanska. Suarez Navarro played well only when it mattered and beat who she was supposed to beat earning some good results and that's why she re-entered the top 8 of the WTA Rankings in the end of the month.
8. Maria Sharapova
The Russian and five-time Grand Slam Champion did not have an ideal start, marked with an injury as well, but she had the result she wanted in Australia reaching the quarterfinals in Melbourne before failing to her nemesis, Serena Williams for 18th consecutive time. Sharapova was planning to enter Brisbane after a long offseason, but she withdrew the last minute due to a forearm injury.
In Melbourne, she was drawn into the quarter of world number one Serena Williams, a player that has beaten her 18 consecutive times and she has yet to beat her herself since 2004. She cruised through to the round of 32 and then beat Belinda Bencic in a tough two-setter in their first ever meeting to setup the much-expected clash with Williams. She challenged the American in the first set but her efforts were shortlived as she was defeated 6-4, 6-1 in the quarterfinal. However, it was a good appearance in the Australian Open by the 2008 champion who seemed to have improved her serve, hitting 21 aces in her round of 16 match against Belinda Bencic.
7. Shuai Zhang
The Chinese 27-year-old has been definitely the fairytale of the month after her run in Melbourne. She started the year in Shenzhen where she made it to the second round, losing to eventual champion and world number four Agnieszka Radwanska. Zhang moved on to Melbourne where she was in the qualifying draw. After beating Mandy Minella, Tereza Martincova and Virginie Razanno she qualified for the main draw, her 15th Grand Slam main draw.
The Chinese had never won a Grand Slam main draw match in 14 tries before and this time it seemed even more unfeasible, as she had the toughest draw she could wish, drawing world number two Simona Halep in the first round. But, as they say in tennis, and life for a matter of fact, anything can happen. Shuai Zhang would play one of the best matches of her life the next hours, dismissing Simona Halep for her first Grand Slam main draw win and for one of her biggest career wins. In the next rounds, she entered again as the big outsider, but still managed to oust Hobart champion Alize Cornet and Varvara Lepchenko to find herself with three Grand Slam Main Draw wins in a week and obviously making it to the second week of a Slam for first time in her career.
The Zhang train would not stop now either though. After beating an injured Madison Keys in three she made the quarterfinals, her first at the WTA level since Birmingham 2014. Her run would end at the hands of the other story of the month, Johanna Konta. Shuai Zhang was one of the stories you rarely hear. Having lost 14 times in the first round of a Slam and drawing the world's second best player in the first round, this time she still managed to get herself in the last eight of the tournament. Her reaction after the match with Simona Halep when she cried with her coach was probably the most emotional moment of January and that pretty much defines why a story like this could not miss the top 10 of the month.
6. Svetlana Kuznetsova
Another Russian, Svetlana Kuznetsova, had one of the best performances of the month. She started the season in Auckland, where she made it to the second round before failing to an inspired Tamira Paszek. After Auckland, she moved on to Sydney were she had her best run of the month. Under the Australian sun, one week before the Australian Open, the "marathon woman" won the Premier Title, the sixteenth of her illustrious career.
En route to the title, she played some stunning tennis, beating some really tough players on a surface that is definitely not her favorite. She beat wild card Tammi Patterson, Sabine Lisicki, Sara Errani, world number two Simona Halep in a match that was delayed by rain as well, and in the final the surprising youngster Monica Puig.
Even though she got ousted early at the Australian Open, her run in Sydney is inspiring. The fact that while many people have been saying she is too old and her era has faded, she keeps proving them wrong. running like crazy and playing difficult and physically painful schedule. On top of it all winning Premier titles, shows why you should never count a champion out despite her age or her physical status.
5. Johanna Konta
Johanna Konta had another breakthrough run in the Australian Open, becoming the first Brit since Jo Durie back in 1983 to make the semifinals of a Slam. Konta had made her name after a win streak last summer which included 2 ITF titles and a run in the round of 16 of the US Open, beating names such as Andrea Petkovic and Garbine Muguruza. She started the season dropping openers in both Shenzhen and Hobart to Qiang Wang and Dominica Cibulkova, with the most disappointing being the first as she was seeded in the Chinese tournament.
Konta moved on to Melbourne where as unseeded. She got to face American legend and world number ten Venus Williams. She did complete the upset there, but she did not stop there. She got past some hard matches, especially in the fourth round with Ekaterina Makarova to make her first Grand Slam quarterfinal and then her first semifinal before she fell to Angelique Kerber. Ιt was a run of paramount importance for British tennis, a country that has huge tradition, which has been in drought the latest years in terms of women's tennis.
4. Agnieszka Radwanska
The WTA Finals Champion started the 2016 season as she ended the last one, continuing her winning streak, extending it to 13 consecutive wins before falling to Serena Williams in the semifinals of the Australian Open. She started this year at Shenzhen where she prevailed without having to face any top 90 player in that week, winning her 18th WTA title.
Moving on to Melbourne without having faced any top players she beat some tricky opponents(Genie Bouchard, Monica Puig) and came through a tough, physical match against Anna-Lena Friedsam to make the quarterfinals where she defeated Carla Suarez Navarro in straights for her fifth Grand Slam semifinal. Then for the first time since 2013, she was up against world number one and 21-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams. Despite the Pole's efforts over the years to change her game to trouble the elite more and more, she ended up getting routinely beaten 6-0, 6-4. It was still an amazing start from Radwanska though who seems ready to compete once again at the highest level this year.
3. Victoria Azarenka
The Belarussian was probably the most expected paler to be seen back at the top and this January, she proved that she has had a great offseason and is ready to return to her past results. The two-time Australian Open champion entered Brisbane to prepare for her favorite Slam. Without facing a tough field in general but still having to beat US Open finalist Roberta Vinci and upcoming Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber, she raced to the title without even losing more than three games in a single set. Her level of play was amazing and her fitness, her main problem these years, seemed to be in perfect shape.
She continued the strong appearances in the Australian Open as well when she made the quarterfinals before she got beat by eventual champion Angelique Kerber. It was a month that can be an important turning point for Azarenka as she seemed fit and ready for new challenges with her play touching 2012 times at some points.
2. Serena Williams
The 21-time Grand Slam champion played her first matches since her US Open semifinal loss against Roberta Vinci at this Australian Open and she seemed more rejuvenated than ever.
Serena was ruthless in her road to the Final of this years Australian Open with her swings blasting out winners everywhere, completely dismantling her opponents, including top players as well. However, Angelique Kerber's perfect match in the final prevented her from reaching the 22 titles of Steffi Graf and defending her title, as she crashed to defeat 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
Despite the loss in the final, the level that Williams put on display in this tournament was her best in years, as she stated herself, and by far better than last year so play and result wise, she deserves this spot in the top players of the month.
1. Angelique Kerber
I don't think that there were many people out there who believed that the Australian Open Champion and Brisbane Finalist, Angelique Kerber, would be the player of the month in January. The German played utterly amazing all month long and that was rewarded in the end as she had the honor to lift the Australian Open trophy. So, let's take the things from the start. Starting in Brisbane she had an awesome week beating many tough players before losing to a completely fired up Victoria Azarenka in the final. Withdrawing after her first match in Sydney, she went in Melbourne to prepare.
She saved one match point in the first round against Misaki Doi, in a match that was really close as she was about to see an early exit for a second consecutive time in Australia.
Since then, Angie never looked back again. Playing her typical game that can produce stunning shots from time to time she moved onto her first ever quarterfinal in Melbourne. Coming up against Azarenka ,a player that was the second favorite for the tournament and that she has never beaten before in many attempts and close matches, she seemed to have really little chance.
However, not only did she play one of her best matches to beat an Azarenka that was not able to come to the demanded level to challenge her, but also followed up to beat Johanna Konta to make her first Grand Slam final. Against Serena, once again, none gave her much chance, but she kept proving the odds wrong. Playing an utterly amazing match, probably the match of her life, she beat the world number one and all of a sudden Angelique Kerber of Germany, was the newest Grand Slam champion.
It was a run that Angie will never forget, especially the matches against Serena and Azarenka. That final match was probably the best Grand Slam Final since 2014 French Open and the German found some shots that were made from heaven. The German's efforts were inspiring and it would be really difficult to say that she is not the player of this month.
January was a month that had a lot and exciting WTA tennis. The schedule is packed for February now as the season moves to the Middle East tournaments in Doha and Dubai.