The young French is surely one of the most questionable talents the last 2 years. Kiki has been considered a rising star all these years but she is still to make her big bang in singles,while she has not even won a WTA title yet. 2015 has been a good year for her though leaving us with good promises for 2016.
2015:A step to the right direction
2015 has been a relatively good year for Kiki. The young Frenchwoman made a Grand Slam QF for the first time in her career in the US Open and we can pretty much say this is Kiki's best result in 2015. Kristina made also the first WTA Final in her career in 2015. in Strasbourg, while she remains still without any WTA title(only a 125k one) at the age of 22 years old. Moreover,Kiki improved a lot in the rankings, ending the year at number 29 instead of 81 in 2014 and she setting her new career high at number 27 after the US Open. Furthermore,Kiki got to play a lot more top players this year challenging many of them and pushing them to their best. Significantly,she beat Eugenie Bouchard 2 times and Simona Halep once.Finally,as we all know Kiki is a very successful doubles player and she did not fail to remind us in 2015. She broke into the top 5 after winning Rome with Timea Babos while she is currently in the 9th place. Kiki and Timea qualified in the WTA Finals in Singapore as well. She ended the year with 4 WTA Doubles titles,3 with Timea and 1 with Belinda Bencic with 2 of the 4 titles being at Premier Level 5 tournaments.In the bigger picture,Kiki's results in singles weren't that astonishing though. Even though,this was the best year of the French's career we can say that we still expect her breakout.2016 is a crucial year for her. Kiki is in the age of the Rising Star but this year as she turns 23 she will lose the title,so she'd better get the big move on quickly.
2016:Is this Kiki's year?
Kiki for me is definitely a very talented player and if she never gets in the top 10 it will be a waste of talent. First of all,she is a really crafty player and she can hit really good slices,drop shots and lobs something really important as the new generation lacks variety more and more,not to mention she has a great volley proven by her great doubles career so far. The main problem for Kiki in my opinion is the mental side of the game. She has what we call a "French brain". Many French players are amazingly talented,significantly Caroline Garcia and Gael Monfils, but they have not matured mentally until today. Kiki is one of these situations.I believe,that the "French brain" is definitely "curable". What it needs is the guidance by a good coach and for me there is no better coach for the mental side than a former player. Amelie Mauresmo,former world no1 and 2 time GS champion,who now works with Andy Murray and has done an amazing job while she has helped Marion Bartoli en route to her maiden Grand Slam title is one of the best choices Kiki can have. Now,Mladenovic can definitely make some improvements in her game. The most important for me are the serve and the return as they can help her come to the net easily where she is really good,mainly due to her doubles career.Moreover,her shots are powerful but sometimes cant seem to trouble their opponents so adding some top spin or finding some better angles will be really good even though her craft can help her a lot as well!My prediction for her 2016 is to crack into the top 20 and make at least one Grand Slam SF. I have high expectations from her this year as I believe it can finally be her breakout!!
BEST OF LUCK IN 2016 KIKI <3
P.S.:Photos are from Kiki's fb
2015:A step to the right direction
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| Kiki after beating Eugenie Bouchard in the FO |
2016:Is this Kiki's year?
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| Kiki during her US Open 2R match |
Kiki for me is definitely a very talented player and if she never gets in the top 10 it will be a waste of talent. First of all,she is a really crafty player and she can hit really good slices,drop shots and lobs something really important as the new generation lacks variety more and more,not to mention she has a great volley proven by her great doubles career so far. The main problem for Kiki in my opinion is the mental side of the game. She has what we call a "French brain". Many French players are amazingly talented,significantly Caroline Garcia and Gael Monfils, but they have not matured mentally until today. Kiki is one of these situations.I believe,that the "French brain" is definitely "curable". What it needs is the guidance by a good coach and for me there is no better coach for the mental side than a former player. Amelie Mauresmo,former world no1 and 2 time GS champion,who now works with Andy Murray and has done an amazing job while she has helped Marion Bartoli en route to her maiden Grand Slam title is one of the best choices Kiki can have. Now,Mladenovic can definitely make some improvements in her game. The most important for me are the serve and the return as they can help her come to the net easily where she is really good,mainly due to her doubles career.Moreover,her shots are powerful but sometimes cant seem to trouble their opponents so adding some top spin or finding some better angles will be really good even though her craft can help her a lot as well!My prediction for her 2016 is to crack into the top 20 and make at least one Grand Slam SF. I have high expectations from her this year as I believe it can finally be her breakout!!
BEST OF LUCK IN 2016 KIKI <3
P.S.:Photos are from Kiki's fb
