The emergence of young stars like Ashleigh Barty, Naomi Osaka, Bianca Andreescu and Coco Gauff during the just-concluded WTA season was "reassuring for the future" of women's tennis, whose "relevance to younger, entertainment-saturated audiences remains a question mark," according to Christopher Clarey of the N.Y TIMES. This season, young players "clearly arrived." The "average age of singles title winners on the tour" in '19 was 23 years and 4 months, the youngest average since '08. Of the new wave, Barty (age 23), Osaka (22), Andreescu (19), Gauff (15) and Amanda Anisimova (18) "seem best equipped to carry the game forward." Gauff, Anisimova and 20-year-old Sofia Kenin "should add up to an incandescent future for American tennis if they can remain focused and, above all, healthy." The game "remains a gantlet" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/5).
TABLE FOR THREE? ESPN.com's Peter Bodo noted the WTA must "develop its own Big Three" in Barty, Osaka and Andreescu, each of whom won a Slam in '19. All three are "off to a great start." Osaka "struggled in the middle of the year," but then "came on with newfound fury" to win twice in Asia. Andreescu put together a "dream year between injuries, capped with a stunning win at the U.S. Open," while Barty won the French Open and the just-completed WTA Finals in China. Injury "might be the main threat" facing the WTA in the coming year. Osaka's slump was in part due to "injuries to a knee and thumb." The "only qualifier when it comes to Andreescu's future prospects is her durability." Barty has "proven sturdy." But if she or any of her peers "grow complacent, even younger talents" like Kenin, Anisimova and Gauff "will be challenging obstacles in the coming years" (ESPN.com, 11/4).
