Episode 7 of The Big T, a Tennis Channel podcast, is now available to listen on your favorite streaming platforms—click here for the latest drop.
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On this week’s episode, which for the first time featured three of our hosts in one room…
Czech Raise
What do Petra Kvitova and Barbora Krejcikova have in common? Two things, as many tennis fans know: they’re both Czech, and they’ve both won two Grand Slam singles titles.
But they shouldn’t be the only active Czech ladies with that designation, according to Brad Gilbert.
“I feel like she’s the biggest ‘What if?’ player on the women’s tour,” says BG of Karolina Muchova, the recently crowned champion in Doha.
The 29-year-old dropped just one set to win the 1000-level tournament, which for a while looked like Victoria Mboko’s event to lose. But the surging Canadian teen—who had defeated Mirra Andreeva and Elana Rybakina just to reach the semifinals—couldn’t handle Muchova’s signature blend of all-court craftsmanship in the title bout.
Yet despite having reached three Grand Slam semifinals, ascended as high as No. 8 in the world and posted a 338-163 win-loss record, this was just Muchova’s second WTA-level title of any sort, and her first since 2019!
Coco Vandeweghe heard Gilbert out, but offered another Muchova comp: Ash Barty.
Karolina “really disrupts the big power game…we haven’t seen for at least a good eight years now, since Ash retired.”
Muchova’s biggest problem has always been health. Could this year actually be different? And who do you think will have a better year: Muchova, or Mboko?