5 things that we learned from the 2016 US Open

3. Karolina Pliskova is finally looking to do justice to her talent

Blessed with a thunderous first serve and an effortless game, the lanky Karolina Pliskova had so far been one of tennis’ most enigmatic players when it came to performing at the Slams. Her breakthrough in 2015 was one of the talking points of WTA Tennis where she made as many as six finals, winning one.

The consistency rewarded her with an entry into the top-10 rankings for the first time. Yet, for some strange reason, she was never able to translate that confidence on the biggest stage of the sport. In Slams, she never advanced past the third round in 17 attempts, losing to players whom she should have ideally dominated.

At the 2016 US Open, she changed all that. She not only won four more rounds at a Major for the first time in her career but the manner in which she did it speaks volumes of her improved movement and mentality.

Saving a match point en route to upsetting the World No. 6 Venus Williams in front of a partisan crowd in the fourth round, emboldened her. She carried on that confidence to the semi-finals where she toppled Serena Williams in straight sets which made her just the fourth woman to beat both the Williams sisters in the same Major. The 24-year-old Pliskova did not rest on her laurels.

In the final, she made her intentions quite clear – that she will not make it easy for her experienced opponent, Angelique Kerber. In the end, even though she squandered a one-break lead in the decider to lose, it only promises a brighter future for the Czech.