Agnes Szavay is one of the most exciting talents to emerge on the WTA Tour. The teenager had shown glimpses of her prodigious talent in only her third pro event way back in 2005 when she had outclassed top-seeded Francesco Schiavone en route to the Modena semifinals.
But it took the Hungarian teenager two years after that initial flourish to make it to the top. She came into her own during the second part of the season in 2007. Apart from making the US Open quarterfinals — where she defeated No 7 Nadia Petrova — the big-hitting Szavay clinched two Tour titles.
Her first came at Palermo and she very nearly added another at the Tier II event at New Haven. Having accounted for second seed Daniela Hantuchova after coming through the qualifiers, Szavay had to retire in the final with a lower back injury against Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Young sensation
The young sensation then proved that her New Haven performance was not a mere flash in the pan. In Beijing, she went all the way, defeating world No 3 Jelana Jankovic in three sets in the final for her second title. For sure, the young sensation had arrived.
In the Garden City for the $600,000 Bangalore Open, the Hungarian girl is keen to take her game to the next level. “There are a whole lot of good players in the draw. The seeded players are just too good, while the qualifiers too are quite strong," Szavay pointed out after a long workout on the outside courts at the KSLTA stadium.
Her strokes on the court matched the bright red T-shirt she was wearing. “I’ll take it one match at a time,” she added quickly. For the record, Szavay has been found wanting in the consistency department. That has been an area her coach Zoltan Kuharsky has been worried about.
“Consistency is missing in her game. But this is her first full year on the Tour, she should improve with every match,” Kuharsky said. As regards her game, Szavay’s coach has no worries at all. "For sure she is a top-10 player."
“The beginning of this year I didn’t play so well in Australia. I lost in the first round and there was little bit of pressure on me. I was a seeded player and everybody expected me to win so it was little bit different than before," Szavay pointed out. "Then I had a great tournament in Paris. I think I'm still little under pressure and am trying to get out of it.”
She showed glimpses of that during her incredible run to the Paris final last month. She defeated Hantuchova and Elena Dementieva en route. The 19-year-old nearly toppled Anna Chakvetadze, but lost out in three sets.
Instead of building on that momentum, Szavay lost in the first round at both Antwerp and Doha.
With the spotlight on the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena, and Jelena Jankovic at the Bangalore Open, Szavay can quietly work her magic unnoticed. Armed with a big serve and solid groundstrokes, the Hungarian teenager has the potential to go all the way.
