Beatriz Haddad Maia began 2023 after enjoying a career-best season in 2022. This included winning her first two WTA titles, reaching the final of the WTA 1000 event in Toronto in singles, and reaching the Australian Open final in doubles. Did the Brazilian better those accomplishments in 2023? Read on to relive the highs and lows of Haddad Maia’s season.
Beatriz Haddad Maia 2023 Season Review
The Highs
There were two achievements that made 2023 the best of Haddad Maia’s career to date. The 27-year-old had never been past the second round of a Grand Slam before this year’s French Open. However, Haddad Maia went on to have a memorable run to the semifinal at Roland-Garros. After a comfortable opening-round win, the Brazilian won her following four matches in three sets. She also lost the first set in three of those contests, but showed her trademark fighting spirit to overcome the odds each time. This included an epic three hours and 51 minutes victory against Sara Sorribes Tormo in the fourth round, and a 3-6 7-6 6-1 quarterfinal triumph against three-time Grand Slam finalist Ons Jabeur. Haddad Maia’s excellent tournament was stopped by eventual champion Iga Swiatek 6-2 7-6 in the semifinal.
Haddad Maia’s results were enough to qualify for the WTA Elite Trophy in both singles and doubles. The Australian Open doubles finalist was not tipped as one of the favourites to win the title. This was due to the event being played on the fast courts of Zhuhai. But those perceptions were quickly changed. She qualified for the semifinals with straight-set victories against US Open semifinalist Madison Keys and Caroline Garcia. Haddad Maia then played even better to prevail against Daria Kasatkina in two sets again in the semifinal. Home favourite Qinwen Zheng was Haddad Maia’s final hurdle to glory. In one of the best matches of the season, Haddad Maia won two superb sets on tiebreaks to win the title. Incredibly, she also won the doubles title at the same tournament with Veronika Kudermetova, to confirm one of the best achievements of 2023.
The Lows
2023 was a reverse of 2022 for Haddad Maia. She failed to make a mark at Grand Slams in 2022 but found more success at WTA 250 events, leading to tournament wins on the grass courts of Nottingham and Birmingham. The Brazilian was slightly less consistent this season, with her overall win percentage being slightly lower than in 2022, despite the notable achievements mentioned in the previous section.
The biggest disappointment of Haddad Maia’s season came very early in the season at the Australian Open. She suffered a surprise first-round defeat in straight sets to Spaniard Nuria Parrizas Diaz. Her North American hardcourt season after Wimbledon was also somewhat underwhelming. She failed to get past the second round in Montreal, Cincinnati, or at the US Open.
Overall though, those lows will not matter much to Haddad Maia now. The biggest title of her career in singles and doubles at the WTA Elite Trophy and a career-best run at a Grand Slam puts her in a great place heading into 2023.
Main Photo Credit: Jerry Lai – USA TODAY Sports
