After defeat in the Billie Jean King Cup: thriving tournament landscape, but crisis in German women's tennis
The largest German women's tournament has just started with the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix - and it is no longer the only event in Germany. After the defeat of the DTB women at the Billie Jean King Cup in Kazakhstan at the weekend, one thing is becoming clear: the generation gap has long existed.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Apr 18, 2022, 04:57 pm
Not so long ago, the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart was the scene of exhilarating German tennis festivals. Angelique Kerber started her best career with her home triumph in 2015, and in 2016 she successfully defended her title in Swabia as the newly crowned Australian Open Queen. And in 2017, Laura Siegemund, the gripping outsider and local hero, even managed a national hat-trick in one of the best-attended tournaments outside of the Grand Slam universe. The atmosphere under the roof of the Stuttgart hall was never more emotionally charged and intense than at that time.
Kerber and Siegemund are playing in Germany's best-attended competition again this year. But the world of tennis has changed, for the duo, for German women's tennis, for the makers of the top event. As a national leader, Kerber is only number 17 in the world rankings, Siegemund - after countless injury problems - can only start the race as number 231 with a wildcard. And both also have a bitter, symbol-laden defeat in their luggage, a 3-1 defeat at the King Cup in Kazakhstan over the long Easter weekend, which means that Rainer Schüttler's team has to play against relegation from the world group in November.
"Golden Era" is coming to an end
A striking finding remains before the first rallies at the Grand Prix spectacle in Stuttgart, before the next big highlights of the tennis season: while the tournament landscape in this country is blossoming, with the newly created or revived competitions in Bad Homburg, Berlin (German Open) and Hamburg , German women's tennis only plays a second-class role internationally. The era of the golden generation is irrevocably coming to an end. The dry spell, which DTB women's boss Barbara Rittner feared again and again, has long since arrived - and could last longer.
Of the players who once fought for victory in the Fed Cup (today: Billie Jean King Cup), Angelique Kerber is the only one who regularly plays in the traveling circus after Julia Görges left. But the year 2022 reflects the loss of importance that the 34-year-old from Kiel has suffered: At the Australian Open she was eliminated in the first round, only in Indian Wells did she have two wins in a row. At the King Cup duel in Kazakhstan, she lost both singles in three sets. Kerber registered positively that he had competed in Nur Sultan and had fought "with heart and passion". Kerber, currently on the tour without a trainer, must hope for a similar awakening experience in the grass season in spring as he did in 2022 with victory to celebrate in Bad Homburg.
Hopes for Niemeier, Schunk and Lys
The three-time Grand Slam winner, who "brought German tennis back onto the world map" (Boris Becker) in the past decade, is one of only two top 100 players in the DTB - the other is Andrea Petkovic, whose career is believed to be in ends this or next season at the latest. A frightening generational gap has opened up behind the veteran fighters, which include surprise Bogota winner Tatjana Maria, 34. At a young age in her career, Jule Niemeier (22) is currently the only player who has prospects and who is 108th in the world rankings. After all: With the 18-year-old Nastasja Schunk and the 20-year-old Eva Lys, two German talents energetically prevailed in the qualification in Stuttgart - possibly also a pointer for coach Rainer Schüttler, in team competitions like the King Cup soon to younger players put.
The Stuttgart tournament organizers around maker Markus Günthardt can muster seven out of ten top ten players in the week after Easter - including four Grand Slam winners. One of them is Angelique Kerber, but in order to be able to triumph again in Swabia, a moderate miracle would have to come for the former number one on the planet.