“I think she improved over the last year to be where she is now. For me, she is the player who can win on every single surface. I’m really impressed with where she came from, how she is playing now, how strong mentality she is now, and also how she improved her game. She’s now really a consistent player.”
In a wide-open top half, in which the other three quarterfinalists are all outside the top 20, Sabalenka’s path to a ninth major final is favourable, on paper at least.
Davenport said she’d love to see her earn another shot at the trophy to test where she stacks up mentally.
“There’s a match also that stands out a couple years ago against Muchova out here in the semis, up 5-2 in the third, and she lost it, you know. She was yelling at her camp, and that one got away from her also,” she said.
“So I think this court, there’s a couple of matches there that maybe have a little bit of scar tissue for her. I’m always cheering for people, so I hope she can overcome it. I think it would be maybe one of her greatest achievements if she was able to win here after the history here and also being on the red clay.”