French Open 2022: Schunk and Niemeier - there's music in there!
Nastasja Schunk and Jule Niemeier give German tennis hope for a golden future.
by Jens Huiber
last edit: May 25, 2022, 07:02 am
By Jens Huiber from Roland Garros
If Andrea Petkovic ever resigns - and as much fun as the Darmstadt native showed after her opening win at the French Open 2022 against Ocean Dodin, it will probably take a while - then she will also take care of Jule Niemeier and Nastasja Schunk as a mentor . If there is a need on the part of the youngsters. Because, as Petkovic opened on Monday to a small group of journalists in Roland Garros, with Niemeier, Schunk and Eva Lys, German women's tennis is in good hands for the coming years.
The local inspection on Tuesday evening on the Simonne-Mathieu court shows: Petkovic was not exaggerating. Because Nastasja Schunk, who slipped into the main draw as a lucky loser, delivered a spotless performance against Simona Halep. Like Jule Niemeier against Sloane Stephens. Nobody should be fooled by Halep's smooth 6:1 in the third set: Schunk had good chances to break in the first game, who knows how the match would have gone if she had used them.
Schunk and Niemeier fire warning shots
Watching Schunk live at work is also an acoustic experience. It's unbelievable how richly the balls flew from the left-hander's bat in the direction of Halep, who at the beginning actually only had to defend herself all the time. This full tone when hitting - it's reminiscent of Naomi Osaka. Which may have something to do with the fact that Schunk plays with the same brand of racket as the Japanese, with Yonex.
Niemeier uses a different brand, namely HEAD, but there is also plenty of music in her shots. At 22, Niemeier is four years older than Schunk and has been looked after by Christopher Kas for a few weeks. The experienced coach will certainly ensure that his protégé brings even more variation into the game, Schunk already did quite well against Simona Halep. The two-time Grand Slam winner had to muster all her routine and was also the stronger player in terms of condition. The warning shots that Schunk, last year's finalist in the junior competition in Wimbledon, and Niemeier fired at the French Open will still have been heard loud and clear in the tennis world.
Here is the women's individual tableau
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