In the second half of 2015, Alison Riske managed just one victory in eight tournaments and was on the cusp of falling out of the top #100. Six months later and she looks to have rediscovered the form that carried her as high as #40 in the world – on her favourite surface.
Nine matches into the grass court swing and it’s all looking rather rosy for Alison Riske. Nine victories for the loss of just one set makes for superb reading. The Eastbourne title she collected last week may have a travelling companion as she goes for her second title in as many weeks against Karolina Pliskova in the final of the WTA AEGON Open in Nottingham on Sunday.
Unbeatable Alison Riske Dominating the Grass
Before last week the American’s trophy cabinet had remained largely untouched recently. Not since winning her first – and only – WTA tour trophy in Tianjin back in 2014 had Riske been the last player standing at a tournament. Grass has always been her favourite surface though and this year she hit the ground running, reeling off five victories to collect the ITF Eastbourne title for the loss of just one set.
As the old saying goes, you wait ages for a bus and then two come along at once. After having to wait patiently for silverware she has now got a second shot just one week later. Riske has already reached one WTA final this year – losing the final of the Shenzhen Open to Agnieszka Radwanska – and is now into another after cruising through the field at the AEGON Open in Nottingham.
She may have reached the final without dropping a set but there were other factors that made it a tricky week. Unsurprisingly the British weather played its part, causing her quarter-final match against Anett Kontaveit to be played across two days.
“I feel like that’s just part of it,” she said after coming through her rain delayed quarter-final. “When you come to England you know that’s probably going to be part of it. You just have to go with the flow and not get too up or down and hang in there.”
That meant it was a particularly frantic Saturday for Alison Riske who, after finishing off her quarter-final, was back on court just a few hours later to defeat Saisai Zheng. A model of focus and intensity during the game – the joy on her face when her winning serve fizzed past Zheng was obvious. At the AEGON Open, winning players have been signing four balls and hitting them into the crowd after the match. Riske was in such a joyous mood that she signed six.
Whilst some players might complain about having to play two matches in a day, Alison Riske had a rather different attitude. Speaking after her semi-final victory she said, “We train for much longer than our matches go so I feel like a standard day for us is much longer than what we’ve just endured so it’s not really any different. You can just take one match at a time.”
“Honestly I would have more two days if it was up to me, just because you can get the show moving and get on with things and not be waiting around all the time.
If there was one thing that has been obvious this week in Nottingham, it is that Alison Riske’s game is perfectly suited to grass. Her penetrating groundstrokes caused Zheng all manner of problems and her agility around the court was noticeably fluid. On top of that, her rhythm on court is superb. Before every return she kicks her left leg behind her. Before every serve she gently blows on her right fingernails. These little habits and routines epitomise the calm rhythm and balance with which she plays – perfect for grass courts where it’s easy for attention to wander.
“I just think that I really enjoy playing on the grass,” she admitted. “I always feel at home when I get on it and I feel like I’ve been playing well leading up to the grass as well. I haven’t had the same success on clay but I still had good wins leading up to Roland Garros as well so I’ve just been playing well and looking on taking it through hopefully to Wimbledon.
“I’ve been coming to Nottingham for seven or eight years. All of my career this has been my stop. I’ve always felt comfortable here and I feel like the courts play great, the atmosphere is awesome and I just love England in general. I just feel at home playing here.”
In Sunday’s final Alison Riske will need every ounce of that calmness as she faces the big-serving Karolina Pliskova after the Czech defeated Monica Puig 6-2 6-2. The two have met three times before, with Pliskova holding a 2-1 lead. However, their last meeting was three years ago and they have never met on grass.
“I think we’re both different players from that time,” Riske said ahead of the final. “She’s obviously at the top of her game and I’m going to look just to play my game and put as much pressure on her as I can and we’ll see what comes of it.
Pliskova holds the ranking advantage but Alison Riske is in sublime form and the only thing that is for certain is that it is going to be a high quality affair. The two meet on Sunday afternoon at the centre court of the WTA AEGON Open in Nottingham.
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