Tennis News

NEW YORK, NY, USA – It has been an axiomatic to the point of cliché statement about Serena Williams’ prospects at any tournament, that if she is physically fit and motivated, she’s the overwhelming favorite at every tournament she enters.

But it’s true. This year there are no questions about motivation as she heads to the last Slam of the season. Once again she will be playing for history, but this year it will be history on two fronts.

Serena is aiming to break the record she currently holds with Stefanie Graf for the most major singles titles in the Open Era. She matched that record in July by winning her seventh Wimbledon title and 22nd major overall. A seventh US Open victory here would give Serena sole possession of the modern record.

“I’m cheering her on, yes,” Graf told CNN’s Open Court. “Because it’s great for the sport. Why not? She’s done so much for the sport. She’s out there working hard.”

Regardless of what happens over the next two weeks, Serena will also leave New York having tied Graf’s record for consecutive weeks at No.1 at 186 weeks. But with the top ranking under threat from No.2 Angelique Kerber, No.3 Garbiñe Muguruza, and No.4 Agnieszka Radwanska, Serena must make at least the semifinals to have a chance of remaining in the top spot on the Monday after the tournament. If she can secure the No.1 ranking after the US Open she will break Graf’s record outright and add to an era-defining resume that already spans the length of the new Arthur Ashe Stadium roof.

“I’m happy for her, I’m excited for her,” Graf said. “It’s cool that records are being broken, that’s what they’re there for. She’s been phenomenal for the sport of tennis, it has been great to watch. I hope she does break it.”

The questions concerning Serena surround the state of her right shoulder. She withdrew from the Rogers Cup earlier this month with shoulder inflammation and was clearly compromised in her third round loss to Elina Svitolina at the Olympic tennis event. For the first time since 2009, Serena heads to the US Open without a summer hard court title under her belt, having played just three singles matches since Wimbledon.

Her withdrawal from the Western & Southern Open last week was particularly worrisome. Serena was not originally entered in the event but took a late wildcard a few days before the tournament. She came to Cincinnati, cut her first practice short after less than an hour and subsequently withdrew, again citing shoulder inflammation.

Serena doesn’t lose often in New York, and a good draw that would give her time to play herself into form and confidence might be all that she needs. Since coming back from injury and illness in 2011, the World No.1 is 32-2, adding three more US Open titles to her major haul. Since returning to No.1 in 2013, Serena has never lost to a Top 10 player in New York, though the last time she faced a Top 10 player here was back in 2013, an indication of just how frequently the draw has been breaking the last two years.

To do it all Serena’s serve will need to be at the ready, and all eyes will be on that singular shot during the first week of the tournament. Notably, she will have a day’s rest between singles matches, which was not the case in Rio. If the scheduling breaks her way and she’s able to get the rest and recovery time she needs between matches, No.23 is well within striking distance.

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Serena Williams was on top of the world at Wimbledon, winning a 22nd major championship to tie Stefanie Graf’s modern era record. Less than 24 hours later, the American began feeling pain in her shoulder.

“Ironically enough, the day after the finals of Wimbledon,” she said during her US Open pre-tournament press. “I was like, how did I win?”

The injury followed her through the Emirates Airline US Open Series, forcing her withdrawal from the Rogers Cup and Western & Southern Open, with a third round loss at the Olympic tennis event in between.

“At the end of the day I knew I gave the best effort I could, and it just wasn’t enough. I just. For the, Olympics I just practiced two days before playing my match. It’s not ideal, but it was all I could do.”

Serena heads to the site of her first major triumph with less than ideal preparation, but feels stronger than yesterday as she attempts to not only break Graf’s record with a 23rd major crown, but also break the all-time US Open record with a seventh victory (currently tied with Chris Evert).

“I haven’t played a lot, I haven’t practiced a lot, but I’m just now starting to feel a little better.

“Hopefully just every day I will keep going higher.”

Still, the top seed will have to hit the ground running in Flushing; her first round is a rematch of her 2014 semifinal with Russia’s Ekaterina Makarova, who won the Olympic Gold medal in women’s doubles.

“I think I try to look at it we all have tough matches. I know she’s a good player. I’ve just got to do the best I can.”

Makarova and partner Elena Vesnina were just the third team to grab a gold medal in women’s doubles since 2000, when Serena and sister Venus Williams began their dominance of the event – winning three times overall.

“She’s a big fighter. She never really stops.

“I think one thing I think that’s pretty impressive is she gets a lot of balls back. You think she’s not super quick, but she is.”

Even with a difficult stretch, Serena bore a quiet confidence in press, knowing that her best tennis is never too far behind her.

“I did serve pretty well at Wimbledon this year. I felt like I was able to hit aces when I wanted to. So, a couple months ago, a few weeks ago.”

DUBAI, UAE – World No.47 Barbora Strycova employed her brand of unpredictable tennis to power past Caroline Garcia, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, and reach her sixth career WTA final at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Watch live action from Dubai & Rio de Janeiro this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

She was up against a very familiar opponent in the day’s second semifinal: Strycova and Garcia have played each other four times, with Strycova winning their last three matches in straight sets, including a first-round encounter earlier this year at the Australian Open.

The players started out this encounter very evenly-matched – and they stayed that way for most of the match.

Garcia played her trademark aggressive all-court game, sending Strycova on the defensive early on until the Czech grabbed the first break of the match at 3-2. Garcia used all of her weapons – even throwing in some serving and volleying – but Strycova’s unpredictable style was just too full of surprises, a two-handed backhand slice drop shot throwing Garcia completely off kilter and bringing up the break.

Strycova went on to win the next five games to take the opening set at 6-2 and go up 2-0 in the second.

Not to be outdone, the Frenchwoman held her nerve – and came up with some incredible service games – to win six of the next seven games to take the set 6-3 to level the match.

In the final set, the two were toe-to-toe, neither woman giving an inch: when Garcia broke to start the match, Strycova broke her right back; when Garcia held her serve at love, Strycova held serve at love in reply. They stayed deadlocked until Strycova finally broke for 5-3 – Garcia saved two break points to bring it to deuce, but after a 22-shot-rally Strycova emerged victorious. Serving for the match, Strycova erased both of Garcia’s break opportunities and sealed the match with an ace.

“I kept telling myself play your game and go for it – you have nothing to lose,” Strycova said after the match. “I wasn’t serving well the whole match but in that last game it was important that I pull it through.”

“That last game I was like, ‘Okay, pull something through. And then I made good serves. I’m so happy about it because it wasn’t easy match for me. But to be in the final it’s great.

Awaiting Strycova in the final is 2013 Dubai finalist Sara Errani, winner of the day’s first semifinal against Elina Svitolina. Errani leads their head-to-head record 5-1.

“We always have tough matches with Sara,” Strycova said of her opponent in the final. “Last time I lost from two match points.

“But it’s a final so I will enjoy it. Or I’ll try to enjoy it, actually.”

NEW HAVEN, CT, USA – Sania Mirza and Monica Niculescu capped off their newly rekindled doubles partnership with their first title together at the Connecticut Open, edging past Kateryna Bondarenko and Chuang Chia-Jung 7-5, 6-4.

Watch live action from New Haven this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

The last time Mirza and Niculescu partnered up was way back in 2010, where they joined forces to reach the quarterfinals at the Western & Southern Open. They played that one tournament together before calling time on the partnership, but the pair have remained friends ever since.

So when Niculescu called Mirza last week asking them to team up again, it was inevitable that World No.1 Mirza would say yes.

“I asked Sania in Cincinnati,” Niculescu explained. “I had an idea maybe she wants to play here. I ask her. When she said yes, I was so excited. It seems we won the tournament, so I’m happy I asked her.”

“We know each other for a long time,” Mirza added. “Also our games kind of suit each other, so you have that confidence. I think it helped we got a couple first easy matches in terms of the way we played. We kind of found our rhythm almost immediately.”

The newly minted pairing opened their Connecticut Open campaign with a commanding straight sets win over American wildcards Alison Riske and Louisa Chirico, then overpowered regular duo Darija Jurak and Anastasia Rodionova in straight sets. They faced a close fight against the No.3 seeded Andreja Klepac and Katarina Srebotnik, squeezing out a comeback, 2-6, 6-3, 10-8, to make it to the final.

“It’s always nice to have the week before a Grand Slam where you’re able to ease up,” Mirza explained in post-match press. “We go to New York and there’s so much happening there. Here you have nice restaurants and even though we’re in the city, you feel quite quiet around here.

“I was actually not planning on completely playing this week. But when Monica asked me, I thought we could obviously win together.”

Despite winning a title on their first tournament back together, they both made it clear that this partnership is just for the short term and both will return to their regular partners in time for the US Open.

“I play with Barbora Strycova,” Mirza assured.

“I play with Vania King,” Niculescu added. “That’s why I said I hope it’s not the last time we going to play together.”

CHAMPS! Mirza/Niculescu win the #CTOpen16 doubles title 7-5, 6-4 over Bondarenko/Chuang pic.twitter.com/Yi8WMVeUxX

— Connecticut Open (@connecticutopen) August 27, 2016

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Ready? Set? Go! The final major of 2016 is about to get underway, and Chris Oddo has your US Open Day One preview right here at wtatennis.com.

Monday, First Round

Arthur Ashe Stadium
[2] Angelique Kerber (GER #2) vs. Polona Hercog (SLO #120)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 3-2
Key Stat: Kerber will ascend to the No.1 ranking if Serena Williams does not reach the semifinals in New York.

Angelique Kerber has won her last 13 matches against players ranked outside of the Top 100 at majors, and one would think that the German would be able to take care of business against Slovenia’s Polona Hercog without too much fuss on Monday. The 28-year-old southpaw has been having a banner year, and she’s the tour’s win leader as well as its hardcourt win leader. And that’s not all. Kerber was a match away from claiming the WTA’s No.1 ranking in Cincinnati, but she fell in the final to Karolina Pliskova and remains No.2 this week at Flushing Meadows. Will being the hunter rather than the hunted work in Kerber’s favor in New York? Or will she be bothered by the fact that she came so close in Cincinnati but fell short? Carrying the No.1 ranking into New York could have been a tricky proposition for Kerber, and maybe starting out in New York without it will help her relax. Kerber has been one of the tour’s steadiest players all season, winning 47 matches and claiming her maiden Grand Slam title in Australia. Unless Hercog, who has not won a hardcourt match since February, comes up with a performance for the ages, Kerber should cruise.

Pick: Kerber in two

[8] Madison Keys (USA #9) vs. Alison Riske (USA #60)
Head-to-head: Keys leads, 4-1
Key Stat: Keys owns a 15-6 hardcourt record this season, with a runner-up finish in Montréal.

She was one of the hottest players on tour until she got cooled off at the Olympic tennis event. Madison Keys stormed to the Olympic semifinals on a 25-4 tear before dropping back-to-back matches to Angelique Kerber and Petra Kvitova in both medal rounds. Will the painful experience of coming so close then being deprived of an Olympic medal fuel Keys to higher highs or will it leave her shaken as the year’s final major begins? Keys will look to exorcise a few demons in her first-round matchup with fellow American Alison Riske, but she’ll have her hands full with her feisty compatriot. Riske has lost in the first round in New York in each of the last two years but in 2013 she made a surprise run to the second week, proving that she can both embrace and perform on the big stage in the Big Apple.

Pick: Keys in two

Louis Armstrong Stadium
[9] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS #10) vs. Francesca Schiavone (ITA #97)
Head-to-head: Kuznetsova leads, 9-6
Key Stat: Schiavone and Kuznetsova are two of the nine active Grand Slam champions in this year’s US Open main draw.

This pair of former Grand Slam champions played the longest match in Grand Slam history at the Australian Open in 2011, and at Roland Garros in 2015 they played the fifth-longest match in Grand Slam history. Both epics were won by Schiavone in marathon third sets, but anybody who witnessed these incredible encounters knows that tennis fans were the real winner. So, what will these two legends of the game bestow upon their legions of fans on Monday in New York? Kuznetsova has had the far better year, and she holds the edge in the pair’s head-to-head, but something about the Russian seems to bring out the very best in Schiavone. Though the Italian is ranked just inside the Top 100 we fully expect her to summon her Top 10 form and take Kuznetsova and fans on another turbulent, emotional ride.

Pick: Kuznetsova in three

Grandstand
[13] Johanna Konta (GBR #14) vs. Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA #109)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Konta has not been past the second round of her last two major appearances.

Johanna Konta’s impressive rise continues with nary a dip in form in 2016. The British No.1, who owns a 24-10 record on hardcourts this season, backed up her first career title in Stanford by notching back-to-back quarterfinals at Montréal and the Olympics. She fell in three sets in the third round at Cincinnati to Agnieszka Radwanska, and though it was a difficult loss it gave her plenty of time to come to New York and prepare for the year’s final major. Just last year Konta had to qualify for the US Open before she produced a stunning run to the second week that included a takedown of Garbiñe Muguruza in the second round. A year later the 25-year-old is just a touch shy of reaching the Top 10. It’s great news for Konta, but it comes with some added pressure and a target on her back. And 31-year-old Bethanie Mattek-Sands has always been one to shoot boldly for a target. The American pushed Serena Williams to three sets in the third-round last year at the Open, but she’ll need to find her form quickly if she is to surprise Konta – Mattek-Sands has gone winless on hardcourts this season, losing all six matches.

Pick: Konta in three

Around the grounds…
No.11 seed Petra Kvitova will seek her first career win against 19-year-old Latvian Jelena Ostapenko. Ostapenko has defeated Kvitova twice already in 2016. Olympic gold medalist Monica Puig will make her return to action against China’s Zheng Saisai in a first-time meeting on old Grandstand court. The youngest player in the draw, 16-year-old American Kayla Day, will make her Grand Slam debut against compatriot Madison Brengle.

By the Numbers…
19 – Number of players who are 30 or older in this year’s draw. 36-year-old Venus Williams is the oldest.
7 – Number of teenagers in this year’s draw. 16-year-old American Kayla Day is the youngest.
2014 – The last time four different players held major titles. That could happen again this year if someone other than Angelique Kerber, Garbiñe Muguruza or Serena Williams wins the title. It has only happened 11 times in the Open Era.
9 – Number of former Grand Slam champions in this year’s draw, of which four (Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Kuznetsova, Samantha Stosur) are former US Open champions.