By Chris Oddo | Thursday, December 18, 2014
Simona Halep was a picture of concentration in 2014, and her work ethic and dedication to craft was one of the things that inspired us most this season.
Photo Source: Clive Brunskill/Getty
From comebacks from injuries and illness to over-the-top feats of athleticism, endurance and fortitude, there was lots to get inspired by in tennis in 2014. Here’s what moved us and left us believing that in tennis—as in life—anything is possible.
More Year in Review: Hot Shots | Offbeats, Part One | Under-20 Surprises | Tearjerkers | Controversies, Shockers and Blunders | Selfies
1. Roger Federer’s Net Play
Federer, under the tutelage of Stefan Edberg, has taken his net game to new heights. He was always a good volleyer with soft, lightning-quick hands and the ability to employ serve-and-volley as a surprise tactic, but in 2014, Federer added layers to his attacking game that made him a menacing threat against any style of player and increased his already off the charts watchability.
In 2014, the net-rushing, volley-knocking Federer had an impermeable clarity about him at the net. It wasn’t just about the volley, it was about his sprinting prowess (have you noticed how fast he closes?) and his decision-making (gone for the most part were the kamikaze forays of 2013—see Robredo US Open match). Federer had a vision, clearly, and it has all come together for him in 2014. At 33, he has reinvented his game and has centered his revival around world-class net tactics and volleys, proving that you are never too decorated, too good or too old to get better.
2. Simona Halep’s perfect technique
Watching Romania’s No. 1 player, one can quickly tell that Simona Halep is a woman who is putting in the time. There is a crispness in her footwork, a machine-like consistency in her ground strokes, a clinical intelligence in her shot selection. Though she’s an incredible athlete, one can tell that hard work and discipline is at the root of each core rotation, shoulder turn and follow through. Halep’s genius lies in the melding of the technical and the physical. There are elements of sacrifice in her game, and one can almost feel that she’s suffered to make herself what she is today—the rare baseline basher with an extremely high tennis IQ. Though she’s not been blessed with plus-size or plus-power, Halep is climbing the WTA rankings rung by rung. It is a rise fueled by determination and the willingness to fine-tune her craft and squeeze every bit of marrow from her potential as an athlete.
3. The fortitude of Vicky Duval and Alisa Kleybanova
Both of these WTA fighters are thumbing their nose at cancer and using their love for tennis as a blueprint to defeating the disease. Kleybanova, 25 and Duval, 19, are making their way back from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma diagnoses (both are cancer-free), and both are showing tennis fans on a daily basis what the true meaning of mental toughness is. Tennis has long been considered as a metaphor for life, but in the case of these two inspirational women, tennis IS LIFE.
4. The sizzling form of David Goffin
What is inspirational about David Goffin? Well, how about the fact that he’s gone from being an underachieving player who was in danger of falling off tennis fans’ radar to an absolute savant who barely ever loses a match? How has Goffin done it? That’s the thing. It’s hard to actually pinpoint what is different about him. But that’s what is inspirational about Goffin’s rise. There is a sense of the randomness and hopefulness that exists in all who endeavor to have success in life: Give it time and effort, and it could happen…
After Wimbledon, Goffin went on a 26-match tear that saw him land three challenger titles and his maiden ATP crown in Kitzbuhel. Then he won Metz and reached the Basel final before falling to Federer. Goffin wasn’t too proud to play challenger events, and he clearly benefitted from the victories he earned in those events—another reason to like what Goffin has done.
5. The mental toughness of Kei Nishikori
Maybe Michael Chang has a lot to do with the change in Kei Nishikori’s fortunes, but let’s give Nishikori some credit too. Japan’s top dog, always long on talent but questionable in the fortitude department, went the extra mile in 2014. Suddenly brimming with confidence and fight, Nishikori engaged in—and won—some of the biggest, most memorable battles of 2014. His epic victory over Stan Wawrinka in New York was his coming out party, but the building blocks were set in place during the clay season, where Nishikori won Barcelona and nearly won Madrid before falling out of the final with a hip issue. There was a foot surgery before the US Open that had most ruling him out of contention, but Nishikori surprised the tennis world when he hit the ground running in New York, bad foot and all, to reach his first Grand Slam final.
His success proved that old dogs (especially old dogs with tough-as-nails coaches) can learn new tricks.
6. Venus Williams’ love of the game
Venus may win, Venus may lose, but what is front and center about the 34-year-old spirit and sage is that Venus loves tennis and is unafraid to take her lumps on the tour, because she is guided by a love of the game and a sense of belonging on the tour that most can only dream about. Williams’ attitude, ripe and refreshing, is a beacon of light in professional tennis. Why? Because there is defiance in her game, a feeling that she’s fighting every day to find her best self, not simply to win or make money. Maybe major titles aren’t in her future, but Williams isn’t after this type of accolade. She simply wants to prove to herself that she can be the player that she feels she can be. In 2014 that player was good enough to earn a 13th top 20 year-end finish, and her first since 2010.
7. Stan Wawrinka and Marin Cilic’s Grand Slam titles
Nobody thought that Wawrinka or Cilic would be able to win a major prior to 2014, and yet they both did because, apparently, THEY DID BELIEVE. Maybe it wasn’t an outward belief, and maybe each struggled with that belief at times, but when each of their chances appeared, Wawrinka and Cilic filled their chests with the rarefied air of the self-believers, and followed through.
8. The brash earnestness of Nick Kyrgios
Say what you will about the perceived cockiness of 19-year-old Aussie Nick Kyrgios, but this kid has that certain je ne sais quoi that will someday prove invaluable: He believes in himself and that he is destined to be truly great. No, not good, Kyrgios believes he will be great. A world No. 1 and a multi-major champion. Some young kids name that same goal, but in Kyrgios one gets the sense that the kid not only believes in what he says when he says it, but that he’s also so hell-bent on doing it that he’ll eventually achieve it.
No matter how it turns out, watching Kyrgios take ownership of his game, his attitude and all that goes with it, should be wildly entertaining in 2015. Success in tennis starts with belief. Kyrgios has that part down, now let’s see if he can learn to grind it out with the biggest, baddest boys in tennis.
9. Dustin Brown’s Giant Game
Kudos to the marvelous Mr. Brown for adding his own brand of wild, improvisational in-your-face tennis to the tour. Tennis may be a baseline game in the modern era, a time where patience, consistency, and margin make the champions, but Brown is quite happy to hang out on the margins, bashing improbable returns, ‘tweeners and rushing to the net like a gladiator. Brown is staying true to himself, and playing the game on his terms. It may not always be successful, but damn is it entertaining.
10. Ernests Gulbis’ Roland Garros run and top ten ranking
So many people—maybe even Gulbis himself at times—had stopped believing that the lovable Latvian would ever make good on his devastating and surprisingly nuanced game. He had almost become a caricature of himself, all joke and no yoke. But Gulbis continued his career resurgence in 2014 with a vengeance and it was awesome to watch. Not only did he play great tennis, but he also played composed tennis, choosing to stay in matches rather than letting his mind wander. Maybe it wasn’t as much fun for Gulbis, or for fans who hang on the edge of their seats looking forward to Gulbis’s next hilarious mishap, but it was that newfound maturity and commitment that guided him past Roger Federer and all the way to the Roland Garros semis.
11 (Because this one goes to 11). Caroline Wozniacki: Player, Marathon Runner and Friend
Caroline Wozniacki overcame personal hardship (relationships aren’t life-threatening, but we all know how difficult it can be to suffer emotionally after losing love) and emerged—through hard work and embracing friendship—as a more evolved person and a completely rejuvenated tennis player. Oh, and she rocked the New York Marathon like it was nobody’s business. There was so much to get inspired by when it comes to Wozniacki that we don’t really know where to start. Life gave her lemons in the first half of 2014, but by the end of the year Wozniacki’s lemonade stand was selling ice-cold glasses for anyone in need of some sustenance. A top ten finish, a new outlook on tennis and life, and the same old Wozniacki charisma had the tennis world falling in love with the great Dane all over again.