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Jo Konta recuperates to overpower Hsieh Su-Wei at Wimbledon opener

By Gale Moorman

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 03: Johanna Konta of Great Britain plays a backhand during the Ladies Singles first round match against Su-Wei Hsieh of Taipei on day one of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 3, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 03: Johanna Konta of Great Britain plays a backhand during the Ladies Singles first round match against Su-Wei Hsieh of Taipei on day one of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 3, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images) /
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What a difference a day makes. It was nearly 24 hours since Johanna Konta had to retire from her semifinal at Eastbourne because of a bad fall.

Johanna Konta made good of the rest and did what she had to do.

"“…I lost against her at the French Open so I was looking forward to playing her again…” Konta had said of her first round opponent Hsieh Su-Wei.More from Lob and SmashCaroline Wozniacki gets her wild card for the Australian OpenTennis News: Rafael Nadal, Emma Raducanu and protected rankingsMartina Navratilova: Money lost by coming out was in the ‘millions’Tennis News: Novak Djokovic, Nick Kyrgios and Matteo BerrettiniBoris Becker and Rick Macci bicker over Carlos Alcaraz"

It was quite strange coming on court soon after a horrific fall while playing her semifinal with Angelique Kerber.

Konta was a tennis warrior and in her head vowed not to let a little bang or bump destroy her chances of playing this prestigious grass court event. This is Wimbledon and the opening round.

She was dealing with a few aches, but the spirit of playing and actually getting a bit of karma was at the front of her mind. She played brilliant and Hsieh wasn’t her ‘on point’ self from when she defeated her British opponent a few months ago.

Hsieh started off with many unforced errors, probably nerves taking over when she landed a backhand in the alley and then some forehands whipped wide. Konta played her patient game and before anyone would go for a refreshment or two, the first set was nearly over and done with at 6-2.

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This match wouldn’t be denied of the British favorite for Konta had ripped an ace down the ‘T’ and painted the line with a few more shots, as the second set was nearly evaporating in front of Hsieh’s eyes. It is essential to shake off the nerves as quickly as possible when you enter a match and Konta was became a Queen at doing that as she gained momentum.

A successful player can do change ups with speed and dimension and Hsieh tried this sometimes with success but other times and too often failures lead to those ghastly unforced errors again. Konta kept her Taipei opponent back and does justice to a few passing surprised shots that made Hsieh stumble. It was difficult to wrap anyone’s head around the fact that this was the same Konta who just 24 hours or so laid helpless on the hard grass after a slippery spill in her previous match. She had gotten her ‘mo-Jo’ back and did what she had to do against Hsieh.

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Johanna Konta got her karma going and beat Hsieh, stunning the crowd and gathering a round of applause as she won her opening round at Wimbledon 6-2, 6-2.

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