2014 Aussie Open SF: Li vs. Eugenie

[kskate2]

Li leads the H2H 1-0

http://www.wtatennis.com/head2head/player1/4846/player2/15218

They've met once. A straight setter won by the veteran in Toronto 2012.

Who wins?

vs.

 

[Front242]

Both played really well today and it actually wouldn't surprise me if Bouchard actually won. Li will be really gunning for her shot at another slam and this is definitely her best chance, but she'll likely have huge pressure to perform, whereas Bouchard has none. Anything else from here onwards is just gravy. No pressure, swing for the fences. I'd like to see Li win another slam but if she loses it may as well be to an up and coming player who won a great match today, showing nerves of steel in the process.

 

[Front242]

A straight set victory with just a single break in each set from 2 years ago means nothing at this stage. Bouchard was only 17 then and Li still only won by a break in each. I'll be bold and say Bouchard wins it. Clearly she's got better since then. A lot better.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Although I would not be surprised if Eugene wins this one, I am voting for Li.
Li is experiences and has Carlos on her side. Li can act like a wall to counteract
Eugene's ground strokes.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I was really impressed with Bouchard's play against Ivanovic she really has great on court composure.
I also like the way she takes the ball on and moves forward towards the net.
This is Li's great chance to make another final at the AO......the pressure is on Li.
I will go with Li to win in 3 sets.

 

[JesuslookslikeBorg]

think I could be a new fan of 'The Genie'..

Plenty of variety..good placement, mentally strong. wonder what her best chum laura robson makes of it :idea:..also its Laura's 20th burfdayy.

 

[Si Si Simona]

think I could be a new fan of 'The Genie'..

Plenty of variety..good placement, mentally strong. wonder what her best chum laura robson makes of it :idea:..also its Laura's 20th burfdayy.

Laura is busy eating cakes and getting fat on her birthday.. she doesn't care much I think...
Genie is much fitter of course but she also tends to have slow legs and needs to watch her fitness! Casey was much faster than Genie and exposed her too many times, and when Genie meets a more talented fast runner than Casey, she will have problems. Just my opinion.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

For Genie, anything is gravy at this point. Li , with her experience, might be too hard to handle for her, but I will be rooting for her.

 

[10isfan]

I think and hope Li will be victorious in the match. Bouchard has that rare heart of a champion which other great athletes lack. Sloane comes to mind, as an example. She is cut from the same cloth as Pova, in my opinion. Anyone agree?

I am being superficial, but I love watching players with pretty strokes and beautiful movement/balance, eg, Jankovic, Li, Ivanovic. Bouchard, Kerber, Georges, and a few others do not fall into this category so I am not a fan.

 

[shawnbm]

I would love for Bouchard to win and get to the final, but I have to go with Li in three sets. I just believe experience will pay off in the semifinals. Bouchard will make it to the big dance soon though.

 

[Correspondent Kiu]

I am hoping Genie will come out of the bottle all the way.
Genie in 3

 

[HawkEye]

Li in straights. The trophy is waiting for her I assume.

 

[sk310]

I think Li is really hungry after wasting a lot of chances in Australia in the past. I don't think she will fold at this point. It's really a match that is all on her racquet. Can she keep her composure and beat a player she should beat easily? She's lost easier matches in the past.

 

[Front242]

Dunno about beat easily. They played once before when Bouchard was only 17 years old and though it was straight sets, Li won by only a single break in each set (6-4 6-4). That's not even "beat easily" and Bouchard is now 2 years older, more experienced and most importantly a lot more confident. "Beat easily" would be the boring one sided WTA unviewable disasters with scorelines of 6-0 6-0. Can't see this being a beatdown.

 

[Correspondent Kiu]

Genie is out on practice:

 

[rubydo]

From my Canadian perspective, I and of course all tennis fans in Canada would love to see Eugenie continue her incredible ride at the AO. I have seen both players in action, and admittedly Eugenie was just gaining her credentials last year when I saw her. She has made great strides and the pressure again is not on her shoulders, it is on Li Na. I think this match is a tossup. Temperament can be the decider and Eugenie has the edge there. I don't think there could be a more interesting match than this, and with that said, it may go to a third set tie breaker to see who wins. I am putting a couple of Loonies on Eugenie!!:clap

 

[HawkEye]

From my Canadian perspective, I and of course all tennis fans in Canada would love to see Eugenie continue her incredible ride at the AO. I have seen both players in action, and admittedly Eugenie was just gaining her credentials last year when I saw her. She has made great strides and the pressure again is not on her shoulders, it is on Li Na. I think this match is a tossup. Temperament can be the decider and Eugenie has the edge there. I don't think there could be a more interesting match than this, and with that said, it may go to a third set tie breaker to see who wins. I am putting a couple of Loonies on Eugenie!!:clap

I allways woner why people think the pressure is not on her. It's quite a big pressure to be in your first semifinal of a Grandslam. In my view the pressure will be on both of them, the question is who is able to cope with it better. Li was quite a few times in this situation and was generally dealing with it well, which might help her. With Eugenie no one knows, because she is in this situation for the first time. Very often people are overwhelmed by the occasion, though there were some excetions in the past ie Petra in Wimbledon 3 yars ago. We'll se.

 

[Si Si Simona]

Genie wasn't overwhelmed in the QF, she is not the type to lose control.
But!.. I have an issue which no one talks about with her game.
I think she reacts a bit too slow, she takes time to react to the shoot coming towards her.
It may be because of heavy legs or in the head. This weakness (late reaction) may cost her in the future and tomorrow if she doesn't improve her reaction time. Maybe its just in my head..

 

[kskate2]

From my Canadian perspective, I and of course all tennis fans in Canada would love to see Eugenie continue her incredible ride at the AO. I have seen both players in action, and admittedly Eugenie was just gaining her credentials last year when I saw her. She has made great strides and the pressure again is not on her shoulders, it is on Li Na. I think this match is a tossup. Temperament can be the decider and Eugenie has the edge there. I don't think there could be a more interesting match than this, and with that said, it may go to a third set tie breaker to see who wins. I am putting a couple of Loonies on Eugenie!!:clap

Hey Ruby. They don't play a 3rd set breaker in Aus. They keep playing until someone breaks and/or holds serve.

 

[Moxie]

Hey, all:

We'll be opening the live-chat for the SFs, so I hope you'll stick around for that.