As of Monday, August 22nd, Karolina Pliskova sits at the No. 11 spot in the WTA rankings. This position is the result of capturing the Western & Southern Open title over world No. 2 Angelique Kerber 6-3, 6-1.

On final Sunday, fair weather arrived after pounding Mason Ohio with nearly seven inches of rain. Perhaps this signaled a shifting tide. Then No.17, Karolina took center court the “apparent” underdog.

While some tagged the win as “shocking,” a look under the covers reveals otherwise. There is evidence documenting a positive evolution of Karolina’s game and her winning potential. Her 2016 resume presents a player with stamina, top-ten stats and a growing ability to succeed under pressure.

2016 Momentum

Pliskova’s momentum began early in 2016 down-under. In Australia she made it to the round of 32 at the Aussie Open and played Simona Halep in the Sydney quarterfinals. While the final score was 6-4 7-5 in favor of the Romanian, she played a solid match against the then world No. 2.

In March, Karolina produced top-ten hard-court skills at Indian Wells. In the desert, she beat Ana Ivanovic, Johanna Konta, and Daria Kasatkina to reach the semi-final. Her singles run ended only when she faced champion Victoria Azarenka losing 7-6 (1) 1-6 6-2. A then healthy Victoria went on to win the Indian Wells title over Serena Williams.

Keep in mind, Karolina accomplished this while also reaching the doubles final with partner Julia Goerges of Germany. This feat was a significant amount of high quality tennis played in a short time-span. While several players can produce random wins, they lack the consistency required to capture titles.

Other noteworthy achievements and close calls followed in Eastbourne where she beat Johanna Konta in the semis earning a final appearance against Cibulkova. Although she lost, she pressed Dominika to a 7-5 set. She earned a singles title in Nottingham on grass and produced solid back to back clay performances in the Stuttgart quarter-finals and Prague semi-finals. Here she created another tight set against Lucie Safarova 7-6 (4).

The 2015-2016 seasons have provided Karolina with learning opportunities against some of the best on tour. She has come out on top of Johanna Konta, Lucie Safarova, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Elina Svitolina and Carla Suarez-Navarro. Representing the Czech Republic, she scored Fed Cup wins over Simona Halep and Timea Bacsinszky.

Foreshadowing Victory

When she arrived in Cincinnati, Karolina had played 19 singles matches that were a round-of-16 or better result. Fold in her doubles record and the number quickly climbs to 39 year-to-date. She has clearly reaped the rewards of “pressure is a privilege,” displaying mental strength and the ability to push her physical limits. In press, Karolina acknowledged that doubles match play is a strategic part of developing an all-around singles game.

Pliskova’s last four meetings with Kerber have been a quarterfinal, a semi and two finals. She won half of those matches. While she lost to Kerber in both the finals of Stanford and Birmingham, both were 3-set battles, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 and 6-7 (5), 6-3, 7-5 (4) respectively.

These matches were Karolina’s opportunities to learn about Kerber’s game and to devise a winning strategy. Karolina had this to say during her Cincinnati press conference, “I knew how it is to play her in the final,” and “I lost twice and I was really close to win both of them so I knew I’m really close this time again.”

Other Notable facts

As of August 22nd, Pliskova leads the WTA with the most aces served. Her total at 407 with Serena Williams in second place with 260. In fact, Karolina closed the match against Kerber producing three aces one at 115mph.

Her percentage of points won on return of 1st and 2nd serves year-to-date are aligning well with the world No.1 & 2 players; Serena Williams (58.8/41), Angelique Kerber (56.8/41) and Karolina (55.3/36.7). These stats are indicative of efficient points won and the ability to put pressure on her opponent’s service game.

In 2014, Karolina was nominated as the Most Improved Player on tour and she achieved a career high No. 7 ranking in 2015. She also won the 2015 Emirates U. S. Open Series, another indicator of hard court consistency. Lastly, Pliskova finished 2014 ranked No. 24, 2015 at No. 11 and now is on track for a top-ten 2016 finish.

The Final

The fundamental concept of making your opponent uncomfortable and creating doubt was in play. Karolina did just that capturing the first break in both sets putting Kerber immediately behind the eight-ball. In set 1, Karolina took the first four service games before Kerber could engage and hold serve to 4-1. She would press Kerber again on serve and break her for the set, 6-3.

For the rest of the match Karolina remained steady in her game plan going for the lines. In contrast, Kerber found moments of excellence but could not produce top-shelf shots to capture the key points. Angelique saved 0% of break-points in the 1st set. In the 2nd set, Kerber’s percentage of 1st return points won fell to 8%. This stat is partially a nod to Rio Olympic fatigue but also an indication of solid serve placement by Pliskova.

Kerber spoke these words in regards to Pliskova’s ball striking “she really hits the ball from the first point…she played a good match and she played a good week, so she deserved it at the end.”

Karolina Pliskova now owns 6 WTA singles and 5 WTA doubles titles. Cincy is her first Premier level win worth 1000 ranking points. While she may have flown under the radar for most of 2016, the Western & Southern Open win has shattered that façade.

In Cincy, Karolina dismissed three current and former Grand Slam champions Angelique Kerber, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Garbine Muguruza. This career milestone proves Karolina has a secure grasp of the big occasions both physically and mentally. It’s official - Karolina is out of the bag.