#LucieSafarova has recently announced her retirement from professional tennis at the 2019 Australian Open — hence it implies that 2018 was her last full year on the WTA tour, although she did not exactly play a full schedule due to a series of health problems. Safarova has been a shadow of her previous self after her stunning achievements in 2015 as a bacterial infection ruined her playing career, and the former French Open finalist finds herself ranked 106th to end the season with.
Owning a poor 12-11 (.522) overall win-loss record throughout the year, Safarova had to endure through another rough patch once again. The Czech was struggling with her form, but more concerns were made about her health as there were rumours spreading around that she may announce a sudden retirement from tennis. The unfortunate news finally came during the Fed Cup final, when she announced that the 2019 Australian Open would be the last tournament of her storied career.
Going 4-9 against players ranked inside the top-50, Safarova’s body has shown that it could not hold up against the best players in the world. She also had some poor luck with her draws, and soon fell out of the top-100 after a period of inactivity. The average ranking of the players she had been defeated by is 32.5, which is considered extremely high on the tour.
High Points of the Season
Safarova earned her first win of the year at the Australian Open. She eased past local favourite Ajla Tomljanovic and steered past the dangerous Sorana Cirstea before falling to compatriot Karolina Pliskova in a tight third-round encounter. Despite her loss, it was an encouraging run for the Czech who left the tournament as the world number 30.
We had to wait until the grass court season to catch a slight glimpse of Safarova’s best tennis as she excelled on the fast surface. Overcoming teenage sensation Marta Kostyuk in a mouthwatering first-round clash at the Mallorca Open, Safarova followed it up with yet another extraordinarily good performance against former world number one Victoria Azarenka. Her run ended in the hands of Tatjana Maria but that was her first and only quarterfinal result of the year.
Safarova’s successes on grass continued at Wimbledon, where she strolled past Kateryna Bondarenko without losing her serve. The Czech then defeated 32nd seed Agnieszka Radwanska in a high-quality second-round encounter to reach the third round, where she fell to Ekaterina Makarova.
Playing qualifying in a WTA tournament for the first time in nine years, Safarova surged through the qualifying rounds at the Rogers Cup and successfully booked a spot in the main draw. Coincidentally, the last time Safarova was found in a qualifying draw was also at the Rogers Cup in 2009. She battled back from a 2-5 deficit in the final set against Daria Gavrilova to triumph but was beaten by top-10 player Julia Goerges ultimately.
Low Points of the Season
Safarova started the year at the Apia International Sydney, where there was a packed draw consisting of multiple top-10 players. Hence, a first-round blockbuster clash against former world number one Angelique Kerber did not come as a surprising news. Holding a match point against the in-form German, Safarova failed to convert and ultimately fell in three heartbreaking sets. That match changed both players’ season drastically — had the Czech capitalized on her chances, could she have earned more success? Had Kerber not produced the magnificent comeback, could she have returned into the top-10? But as far as we know, Safarova’s confidence suffered from a huge blow due to this loss.
The former world number five struggled during the Middle East swing. Her tough luck backfired as Safarova was drawn to face top-10 players in the opening rounds of both the Qatar Total Open and Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. On both occasions, she was outclassed by her opponents in straight sets as she was conquered by Julia Goerges and Caroline Garcia respectively.
An illness caused Safarova to withdraw from both Premier Mandatory events in Indian Wells and Miami. The Czech finally returned at the Internationaux de Strasbourg with a wildcard entry but was stunned by Hsieh Su-wei in a surprisingly one-sided second-round encounter. Another early exit followed at Roland Garros, where she was ousted by compatriot Karolina Pliskova in three tough sets.
It was a tough end to a disappointing season for Safarova, who only reached one quarterfinal throughout the entire year. She was defending fourth round points at the US Open but this time around, she came off second-best against 18th seed Ashleigh Barty in the second round. Reaching the semifinals in Quebec City last year, Safarova fell at the first hurdle this year to the unheralded Ons Jabeur. This loss caused her ranking to plummet out of the top-100 and she opted to skip the entire Asian swing and end her season early.
Season Grade: C-
It has been a disappointing season for Safarova who would have wished for a better ending to her career. The Czech was unable to find her best tennis throughout the majority of the year and seems like a different player as compared to the past. Nonetheless, there were patches of amazing performances from Safarova who showed that she is still able to excel on a tennis court, just not consistently.
Safarova is known as one of the nicest and friendliest players on the tour, and she would be a figure dearly missed by her counterparts.
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