A Trainwreck Named Ana

Oh, Ana.

I don't know how much more there is to say about this girl. It started off as a slump. Then it turned into a bad season, a bad year. Now it's just a disaster. I feel it's not inaccurate to say that Ana Ivanovic's 'real' career ended with a bang, and that bang was her victory at Roland Garros 2008. Everything afterwards...? It just does not bear speaking of.

Is it - and it's difficult to say this - game over for Ana?

I think there could definitely be worse things for her than just taking some solid time out of the game - maybe even a Justine and Kim style sabbatical. I mean, with her loss to Sevastova today she's out of the top fifty, so much worse can it get? First it was the top ten, then the top twenty, then the top fifty... those milestones are only going to keep coming until she does something serious about her game. And trying to play through it... that's a whole year and a half of stuff not working.

Go away, Ana. I don't want to see your face again before you've fixed what is wrong. I don't even know what is wrong any more. It's probably not just one thing. It's many things. Fix them all - or at least some key ones. Because what you're doing at the moment...? Not helping. You might get a few wildcards on account of how you are Ana Ivanovic, but really? you're going to have to start playing qualies sooner rather than later and that is not going to help at all. Not when you start losing - because at the rate you're going, you will - to people who will never sniff the Grand Slam glory that you once tasted.

Go away and fix your issues. That is the only advice I can offer now.

On the upside, though, how awesome is Anastasija Sevastova? I'm really digging her at the moment - I'd like to see her string some great results together!