The tennis year 2020 of ... Angelique Kerber
It was short and sweet, the 2020 season for Angelique Kerber . Especially at the US Open, the first appearances had raised some hopes.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Dec 04, 2020, 11:51 am
Angelique Kerber only started six tournaments this year - due to a thigh injury and the corona shutdown. Would there have been more otherwise? Possibly.
And not just because Kerber would have kept its two-year rhythm. In 2016 she won the Australian Open and the US Open, plus the final at Wimbledon; In 2018 she won her longed for title on the Heilgen Rasen. The intermediate years? Were rather mediocre. All the greater the expectations for a strong 2020, with the Olympic Games in the middle, Kerber had already won silver in Rio in 2016.
Kerber into 2020 with injury
As is well known, things turned out differently. Things got off to a bad start for Kerber: Thigh problems plagued her in Australia and forced her to give up in Adelaide. In Melbourne, however, she made it to the round of 16, where she was defeated by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three hard sets. It was Kerber's last appearance until late summer: Dubai, Doha, Indian Wells, Miami - Kerber had to gradually cancel her appearance, her left thigh continued to give her problems, but with her US cancellations she only got the general one Tour shutdown before.
In the meantime: Kerber went to the podcasters - and in the summer back to successful coach Torben Beltz , after training with Dieter Kindlmann at the end of 2019. Kerber had her successful year in 2016 with Beltz, but announced the separation after a sobering 2017; at Wimbledon 2018 Wim Fissette was at her side, then Rainer Schüttler.
Kerber fans dream in New York
With Beltz, Kerber also triumphed successfully in New York in 2020. Observers took her into the radar early on for a possible tournament victory - the bubble could well play into the cards of the rather introverted representative, so the thought. Kerber declined whether a title form, but showed himself in strong form, triumphing over Ajla Tomljanovic, Ann Li, Anna-Lena Friedsam. In the round of 16, however, she was without a chance against the strong Jennifer Brady.
The end of the year? Was a dreary from a tennis perspective, with two uninspired appearances in Rome (loss to Katerina Siniakova) and Paris (loss to Kaja Juvan).
The result in 2020: seven wins and six defeats, including two rounds of 16 in the majors. In the end, 25th place in the WTA ranking is for the former number 1. With the, and she showed that in New York, at the big tournaments, however, is still to be expected when body and mind play a role.