Winning a Grand Slam is easy, defending it is harder. This has been the theme in women’s tennis over the last few years and we witnessed i...
Winning a Grand Slam is easy, defending it is harder.
This has been the theme in women’s tennis over the last few years and we witnessed it yet again at the ongoing Australian Open, when Sofia Kenin’s title defence came to an end in the second round. Estonian giant-killer Kaia Kanepi beat her 6-3, 6-2 in just 64 minutes and the 22-year-old American made a tearful exit.
It was the just the latest in first-time Major champions finding it hard to defend their crown or added another one to their name.
In the last 20 Grand Slams – stretching back to the 2015 US Open – there have been 12 first-time champions in women’s tennis. None of them have been able to defend their title the next year, although a few of them have gone on to win another one and even fewer have captured a third.
The last woman to defend her Grand Slam title, to little surprise, is Serena Williams back when she won Wimbledon in 2016. She missed her title defence in 2017 due to maternity leave – a break that virtually changed the face of women’s tennis. Since she won her record 23rd Grand Slam at the 2017 Australian Open, nine of...
