The Aegon Classic began on Saturday and a lot of the players will look to start their grass season in the right manner as they try to build confidence going into the third Grand Slam of the year at Wimbledon.
The tournament boasts some star names this year despite the notable late withdrawals from Maria Sharapova, Karolina Pliskova, Simona Halep and Agnieszka Radwanska. Also, the defending champion, Madison Keys also will not be taking part at this year’s event. Her win at the Aegon Classic last year catapulted her into the world top-10 for the first time, but she has been blighted by injuries during the 2017 season.
The biggest of names featuring this year at the 2017 edition of the Aegon Classic is Angelique Kerber. Confidence and match-wins are two things that have not come easy for the two-time Grand Slam champion and gaining invaluable grass-court victories is the goal for the world #1, who is barely hanging on to that top ranking after her first round exit at Roland Garros.
For many players, finding their feet and experiencing the transition from clay to grass can be difficult at the best of times. Some look for a week of practice on the grass courts before competitive action, but Kerber is a player that has consistently praised the way her game translates to a quicker fast court. Much more so than the way she feels about the slower red clay.
Garbiñe Muguruza, the 2016 Roland Garros champion, will be playing the Aegon Classic too. Last year she played the inaugural tournament at the Mallorca Open, but this year she is set to brighten up the field in Birmingham – a tournament where she won the doubles title with Carla Suarez Navarro back in 2015. The Spaniard brings a merciless, ruthless brand of tennis on any surface, but the grass court allows her to strike through the court with her flat, hard groundstrokes. That was evident in her run to the Wimbledon final in 2015, where she beat some fantastic players along the way including Angelique Kerber, Caroline Wozniacki and Agnieszka Radwanska.
The player that will be looking forward to the start of the grass court swing the most is the two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova. The Czech made her return to the tour at the French Open and is one of the most devastating players to watch on a quick grass court. She simply takes the racquet out of her opponent’s hands from both the forehand and the backhand.
The question is whether Wimbledon has come around too soon for the 2011 and 2014 champion. One thing that is for sure is that a few solid wins in Birmingham could push Kvitova forward as one of the serious contenders in London next month.
Lastly, the British representatives include Johanna Konta, Heather Watson, and Naomi Broady. Konta had a disappointing clay court season and has not really ever found her game at Wimbledon, but as a top seed and a more experienced player, she will expect great things from herself in the weeks that lie ahead.
The field has a bit of everything. Promising, excelling juniors, a plethora of good British talent and some quality star names that can entice the casual tennis fans to attend for the whole week. The stage is set for what should be a fantastic week of tennis at the Edgbaston Priory Club.
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