The one that rises and the one that fades Israel today

Kaya "The Giant Killer" Kanfi beat for the eighth time an opponent from the top 10 • Victim: Australian champion Sofia Kanin, who admitted: "Can't stand the pressure" • Dor Hoffman for her terrible year

• Kanin goes home

  Photo: 

  Reuters

Kaya Kanpi has honestly earned the nickname "Giant Killer".

Although the 35-year-old Estonian has never climbed beyond the Grand Slam quarterfinals, during her career she has prevented great and favorite players from doing so.

Over the years, Kanfi has defeated players who were in the top 10 at the time 13 times, and in Grand Slam tournaments she did so eight times, and always in the early rounds.

Yesterday she added to the resume the eighth time, with one of her impressive victories - 3: 6, 2: 6 over the fourth-ranked and reigning champion Sophia Kanin in the second round of the Australian Championship.

This victory strengthens Kanfi's status as a ranked destroyer, but in this case it is much more indicative of the loser and the situation in which she came to Melbourne.

The enemy inside

Kanin feared this encounter.

Not only did Kanfi's resume and the fact that she lost it in the only meeting between them worry her, but also - and most importantly - herself.

A year ago she testified that she was suffering from an emotional problem, when she cried before and after every game on the way to winning, and this year she was accompanied by tears.

"I broke down in tears when I saw that Kanfi was my next rival," Kanin said, and she did break up.

The American failed to break even once the submissions of her opponent, beating ten winners compared to 22 of the Estonian.

"I couldn't get into the rhythm and I was too stressed," concluded Kanin, who burst into tears again during the press conference.

Property, to some extent, is a sporting victim of the period.

A year ago she won the first Grand Slam of her career in Australia, at the age of 21, and about a month later the corona virus came and drove the world crazy.

If on days like theirs the American could have taken advantage of this year to arrive physically and especially mentally prepared for the title defense campaign, then due to the epidemic she came to the tournament more stressed than she was.

Since lifting the trophy in January 2020, Kanin has participated in nine tournaments - less than half the average in a normal year - and even though she qualified for the Roland Garros final, she has not been able to gain enough confidence.

Along with matters of health, family, corona time flights and all the usual troubles that came with the virus, Kanin collapsed even before it started.

"The situation hit me and it was very difficult for me to come back," she said in an interview ahead of the tournament.

When asked what her biggest fear was, she replied: "Lose, and lose early."

Yesterday the fear came true.