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How about everyone gives Sam Stosur a break?

Roar Rookie
20th January, 2017
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Samantha Stosur may not have won the Aussie Open, but who of our modern-day greats has? (AFP PHOTO / PAUL CROCK)
Roar Rookie
20th January, 2017
14
1344 Reads

While critics are suggesting it might be time for Sam Stosur to call it quits, that’s the wrong answer to a complex issue.

Like many, I want to see Australian players achieve the ultimate success on their home turf, and it used to drive me crazy that Stosur couldn’t get the job done.

Unfortunately, story–book endings in professional sports are few and far between.

Stosur is not the greatest Australian tennis player of all time, but neither is she an overrated mental–midget who should give up the game entirely.

While it’s arguable that Stosur could have reached greater heights during her prime, she’s already achieved more than the vast majority of professional tennis players ever will.

Not only did Stosur win the US Open in 2011, she did it by beating one of the greatest ever, Serena Williams, on her own turf. Few can say they’ve bested Williams in any form of tennis, let alone a grand slam final.

In this time period, where she was most successful, Stosur also reached the finals of the 2010 French Open, and peaked at a number four in the world.

So why does Stosur get a bad wrap?

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Maybe it’s due to her athleticism and physical attributes that we expect more from her.

Stosur is one of the more impressive athletic specimens to ver play the game, and one of the most physically fit players on the tour.

While her thunderous first serve would often reach 190km/h, her kicking second serve is one of the toughest to play in professional tennis.

It’s undeniable that Stosur struggled to cope with the weight of expectation. In particular, the expectations of achieving success at the Australian Open have proved too much for the 32-year-old – the furthest she has reached at her home grand slam has been the fourth round, having lost in the opening round five times.

But the majority of Australian players have struggled at home.

The last local male to win the Australian Open was Mark Edmonson, in 1976, while Chris O’Niel won the women’s draw in 1978. To put this in perspective, the Australian Open was still being played on grass courts at this stage.

Lleyton Hewitt, Pat Rafter, Mark Philippoussis and Alicia Molik are among the greats of green and gold tennis to never win the Australian Open.

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At this point in her career, it may be too late for Stosur to win another grand slam, let alone the Australian Open. But if someone told you that one day you’d have a professional tennis career that saw you reach No.4 in the world, beat the greatest ever women’s player to win a grand slam, and be consistently ranked for almost a decade, would you accept it?

Damn right you would.

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