Roland Garros is in the books for another year for the women after Saturday’s singles final. I successfully managed to make it through the entire day avoiding the result of the final and sat down this evening to watch the match. This post reviews the 2019 French Open final between Ash Barty and Marketa Vondrousova. It’s been a real challenge to follow this Slam but i’ve enjoyed the ride. Excited for Wimbledon and plenty of live tennis around the corner…
Final review 🎾
Ash Barty d. Marketa Vondrousova, 6-1 6-3
Playing a near-perfect match, Ash Barty won her first Slam title with a straight sets win over Marketa Vondrousova in just 70 minutes. From the first point to the last, Barty was on it and delivered a superb performance. Barty served extremely well, particularly behind the second serve, where she lost just four points on it. She used the serve to set up the points on her terms and was decisive with the forehand. It was clear Barty’s gameplan was to be aggressive and she came forward with confidence, winning 15 of 20 points at the net. The Aussie moved beautifully and was able to chase down the majority of Vondrousova’s drop shots and put them away for winners.
It was a nervy start, understandably, from Vondrousova and while she did improve as the match wore on, she just didn’t do enough to put Barty under pressure. The Aussie was given time to construct the points the way she wanted to and she executed clearly and precisely, showing no signs of wavering in the second set. Barty was rock solid on serve and broke Vondrousova’s serve for the fifth time, sealing the win with an overhead smash winner.
Well done, Ash! What a star ⭐ .
Hot shot of the day 🔥
It’s been difficult to find many points to share this tournament so going with the RG shot of the day and a gorgeous slice drop shot winner from Ash.
Handshakes and hugs 🤗
Lovely moment at the net between the two. Vondrousova was extremely classy in defeat.
Super snap 📸
Great shot by Jimmie48 Tennis of the Roland Garros finalists.
Final thoughts 🤔
I’m just so happy for Ash! I’ve always been a big fan of her game and I adore watching her play. I thought she’d win Slams but I am surprised how quickly she has progressed this year. Barty is 31-5 for the year, has lost just one match this year to a player ranked outside the top ten and now moves to number two (TWO!!!!) in the world rankings. A good result at Wimby and Barty could be world number one. For Barty to win her first Slam on her weakest surface speaks volumes. I think she’ll add to her tally in the future.
Normally the French Open champ has a tough job at replicating at Wimbledon but Barty now moves onto her favourite surface and on a wave of confidence! She’s not a flashy player who has had just a peak run. It’s been solid, consistent and thoughtful tennis in Paris and actually, all year. She’s one of the most intelligent and versatile players on the tour. I’m tending to think she can still be one to watch at SW19. It will depend on how mentally spent she is from this run in Paris.
It’s been a weird end to the tournament with the scheduling, rain and a surprising final four. I missed everything today but I guess there was drama with the start time of the women’s final being pushed back. I’m thrilled with the winner and will remember Mertens-Sevastova and Osaka-Azarenka as the matches of the tournament. The tournament will always be tinged with a bit of sadness with the retirement of my favourite player, Lucie Safarova and the end of my tennis fandom. Now we move onto grass. It’s my favourite time of the year and I look forward to sharing my live tennis experiences with you all. I’m taking a week off from the blog but will be back for Birmingham. Thanks for all the comments during the tournament! Stay tuned… 🎾🎾🎾
Moo's Tennis Blog 
So happy with the outcome 😀 it was a near perfect match by Ash and I just loved how she couldn’t believe it and mouthed “f**k”. There are some really nice watchable players now and I hope it will make it easier for me once Angie retires.
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Also, everyone should read this really good article about Ash and her “comeback”.
https://www.smh.com.au/interactive/2017/second-serve/
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Thanks for sharing, Murphy! Never saw this at the time 🙂
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She’s a star. One of my favourite players to watch and looking forward to seeing her on the grass!
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I was disappointed for Marketa, who really struggled with the occasion, but I’m so thrilled for Ash- she played a perfect match!
Thinking ahead to grass, I’m really confused why certain players have scheduled the way they have. Svitolina has really struggled to build confidence and could have benefited from playing a smaller event like Nottingham before going to Birmingham and Eastbourne, which have stellar lineups. Then you have Anisimova, who is playing on European grass and not UK- which i would hardly call good preparation for Wimbledon…
I hope both Ash and Marketa have great runs on grass, and I think they will (especially Barty). Wouldn’t be surprised if he start to see more players slicing and adding variety to their games over the next couple of years.
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🙂 As much as I keep harping on Niculescu, honestly, variety should always be a welcome addition to the women’s game.
The issue, may also partly be due to how short the grass season is. Imagine if you want a long practice period, you would choose a tournament in which the chances of being knocked out in the very first round is low. In that sense, I do agree with your point on Svitolina. I can’t help but feel there is more going on with her too. Nottingham or Eastbourne, the outcome may be the same.
As a spectacle, it could have been greater. Ash Barty was ready, her doubles slam final appearances served her mighty well too. Marketa seemed a bit overawed. Well played to Ashleigh, I hope she is here to stay in the big leagues, very positive personality.
Was hoping for a tense one in the ATP as well. History, beckoning for both Nadal and Djokovic, the atmosphere could have been electric. Anyway, we’ll see what lessons Thiem brings to this second opportunity at dethroning the Clay King.
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Novak was surprisingly tense against Thiem in big moments! Can’t remember the last time I saw him make such poor tactical decisions.
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Svitolina hasn’t played Eastbourne since 2015 so she’s at least playing more on grass before Wimbledon than usual. I’m intrigued to see whether Barty will still play Birmingham and Eastbourne. I agree about the slice!
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I just think Svitolina could do with playing in a smaller event where her chances at winning a title would be higher. Her confidence right now is really affecting her game, because she’s trying to be aggressive but doubting in pressure moments.
There seems to be a stigma in bigger names playing lesser known events to build confidence, but it’s worked for the likes of Andy Murray, Ana Ivanovic, Caroline Wozniacki and even Rafael Nadal, to name a few.
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Great final wins today from Alison Riske (who beat Kiki Bertens at Rosmalen) and Caroline Garcia, who beat Donna Vekic in the final at Nottingham. Well done both!
Just looking at the entry list for Birmingham; has anyone else noticed that there seem to be fewer home players in qualification, or is it just me? Home tournaments used to be a way for players from that country and working their way up the rankings to get a start, but there don’t seem to be many British players at all in the Birmingham qualies (or at Nottingham either).
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The Vekic-Garcia final was fantastic! Perhaps fewer Brit entries than normal in the qualifying. Dart and Watson both got main draw wild cards for Birmingham.
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Birmingham this year is STACKED! There was a time that they could barely get a top ten player, and this year they have the top 3 players in the world. It’s just a shame we are missing Petra in the draw!
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Best draw that I can remember in Birmingham. I’m here until Wednesday so looking forward to seeing some quality tennis 🙂
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A rather fierce play from Gasparyan, a quite efficient backhand from her, and a deserved win. So, a rather short stay for Svitolina and we’re off to Eastbourne?!
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I said she needs to play smaller events… the hesitancy on the serve and forehand really show a lack of confidence and play. She did stay positive though, and it seemed like she was enjoying herself as the match went on. Bit awkward for her at the moment battling with injury, rust and the breakup of a relationship that was quite publicized!
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I wonder if Elina is fully recovered from the knee injury?
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She said after the Muguruza match in Paris it was still painful and she might skip grass depending on what an MRI determined. If it really is an issue, she should take a proper break because this is not doing her any good in the slightest. Honestly though, it didn’t look like it was a problem against Gasparyan…
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Ah missed that. I agree, there doesn’t seem to be much point to come back until it’s right. I thought she looked fine vs. Venus in Paris. I just saw she’s on the entry list for San Jose so must be feeling OK?
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