Vinci Continues US Open Love Affair
Roberta Vinci continued her love affair with the US Open by brushing aside Lesia Tsurenko to reach the quarterfinals once again.
Roberta Vinci continued her love affair with the US Open by brushing aside Lesia Tsurenko to reach the quarterfinals once again.
NEW YORK, NY, USA – Martina Hingis and CoCo Vandeweghe continued to strengthen their fledgling partnership with a hard-fought win over Xu Yifan and Zheng Saisai at the US Open on Sunday.
As in the previous two rounds, Hingis and Vandeweghe did not have things all their own way, coming from a break down in the final set to see off their Chinese opponents, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, in a little over two hours.
“It was an early break so we knew we had a whole set to play. Obviously after losing the second [set] it wasn’t the greatest situation,” Hingis said about their rousing finish. “I mean, they played really well in that first game too – they kept it away from me and made a lot of returns on CoCo’s serve.”
The No.6 seeds looked well set for a smooth passage into the quarterfinals when they took the first set and then moved 3-1 ahead in the second. “I think it was more frustrating to lose the second set because it was kind of there for us to take it,” Hingis added. “But, I mean, this happens, and it’s not a surprise for a tennis player to be broken in the first game after losing the momentum.
“But we were right back on it and I think that was the key; we broke them right back and then won a couple of tight games.”
Vandeweghe is playing only her second event alongside Hingis – they teamed up to reach the final in Cincinnati – and admits the unison was not an expected one: “I got a call from and unusual number and the only reason I answered it – because I usually don’t pick up numbers I don’t know – was that it was such a bizarre number, plus whatever, so I knew it had to be some tennis player!
“I was just at home and Martina asked if I wanted to play Cincinnati and US Open. I told her that I already had two partners but let me think about it, and I almost felt a little big headed for telling her, ‘Let me think about it’. I told my coach and he told me I was crazy to even think about it. I just enjoyed my time at home to let her sweat it out before calling back!”
Also advancing were a couple of more established pairs, including top seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic, who had few problems defeating Eri Hozumi and Miyu Kato, 6-2, 6-3. No.5 seeds and recent Olympic champions Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina were made to work somewhat harder, fighting back to defeat Vania King and Monica Niculescu, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2.
Another team battling back from a slow start were wildcards Asia Muhammad and Taylor Townsend. Taking on No.3 seeds Timea babos and Yaroslava Shvedova, the young Americans looked well out of their depth for the opening 20 minutes only to produce a stunning turnaround to eventually triumph, 0-6, 6-4, 6-3.
The decisive moment came at 3-3 in the final set, Muhammad and Townsend harnessing the energy of a partisan crowd to break in a marathon game before repeating the trick a few games later to complete the unlikely upset. Their reward is a meeting with compatriot Bethanie Mattek-Sands and her partner Lucie Safarova, after they saw off No.8 seeds Julia Goerges and Karolina Pliskova, 2-6, 7-5, 6-3.
NEW YORK, NY, USA – Week 1 is in the books at the US Open, and catch up with all the best moments on Day 6’s Daily Dispatch from the WTA Insider Podcast.
Save for a three-set struggle from No.5 seed Simona Halep, all the big names progressed into the second week with relative ease on Saturday, include World No.1 Serena Williams, No.4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska, No.6 seed Venus Williams, and No.10 seed Karolina Pliskova, who reached the fourth round at a major for the first time in her young career.
Analyzing the week that was, the WTA Insider team looks ahead to Day 7, and whether there might be an upset or two on the table come Sunday.
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NEW YORK, NY, USA – Who is the lowest-ranked player left at the US Open? Which player’s serve has been on song? And how many hours has Madison Keys spent on court?
With the field at Flushing Meadows now whittled down to 16, wtatennis.com and SAP thought it time to go looking for answers…
320 – Keys has spent 320 minutes on court thus far – the most of any remaining player.
307 – Serena Williams’ third-round win over Johanna Larsson was her 307th at a Grand Slam tournament, overtaking Martina Navratilova for sole ownership of the Open Era record.
99 – World No.99 Lesia Tsurenko is the lowest-ranked player left in the draw, closely followed by No.92 Ana Konjuh.
85 – The percentage of first-serve points won by Serena Williams in her opening three matches – the best among the 16 players left in the draw.
50 – In 2016, no WTA player has won more matches than Angelique Kerber, who notched up number 50 by seeing off CiCi Bellis in the previous round.
36 – At 36, Venus Williams is the oldest player to reach the last 16 at a major since Martina Navratilova, then 37, at Wimbledon in 1994.
31 – Serena has unsurprisingly hit more aces, 31, than anyone else en route to the fourth round. Following closely behind is Keys with 25.
18 – Konjuh, 18, is the youngest player left in the draw. It is the third year in succession a teenager has reached the fourth round.
13 – The number of nations represented in the last 16. Countries with multiple players are USA (Keys, Serena and Venus) and the Czech Republic (Petra Kvitova, Karolina Pliskova).
12 – Kvitova has dropped fewer games, 12, than any other player en route to the fourth round.
7 – Seven of the Top 10 on the Road To Singapore leaderboard are still in contention for the US Open title: Serena, Kerber, Agnieszka Radwanska, Carla Suárez Navarro, Keys, Simona Halep and Pliskova. The only absentees are Dominika Cibulkova and Garbiñe Muguruza.
5 – An unseeded player has reached the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows on each of the past three years. Konjuh, Anastasija Sevastova, Yaroslava Shvedova, Tsurenko and Caroline Wozniacki are all bidding to keep this run going.
4 – Madison Keys, Agnieszka Radwanska, Carla Suarez Navarro and Serena Williams have all advanced to the fourth round at all four Slams this year – the only four players to do so.
3 – Three players – Konjuh, Karolina Pliskova and Tsurenko – are through to the last 16 at a Grand Slam for the first time
1 – For the last eight years, at least one Italian has reached the US Open quarterfinals. Roberta Vinci, the 2015 runner-up, looks to make it nine when she takes on Tsurenko. The Americans have been even more dominant: 1993 was the last time a home player failed to make the last eight (Lindsay Davenport and Navratilova fell in the last 16).
0 – The number of times Shvedova has beaten Serena in four career meetings. She did famously come within a couple of games of doing so four years ago at Wimbledon.
WTA Insider | On the first WTA Insider Live Blog of the second week, can World No.2 Angelique Kerber defeat Petra Kvitova to reach the US Open quarterfinal?
NEW YORK, NY, USA – A battle of elite southpaws highlights the Day 7 schedule in New York. We preview Sunday’s Round of 16 tilts at wtatennis.com.
Sunday
Round of 16
[2] Angelique Kerber (GER #2) vs. [14] Petra Kvitova (CZE #16)
Head-to-head: Tied, 4-4
Key Stat: Kerber will ascend to the No.1 ranking if Serena Williams does not reach the semifinals in New York.
Two talented southpaws and former Grand Slam champions will meet in one of the most heavily anticipated matches of the tournament on Day 7. Angelique Kerber is in hot pursuit of the No.1 ranking and she has been fit and focused in New York, dropping just ten games in three rounds. But Sunday’s task promises to be far more daunting than her first three challenges. Kerber will have to square off against a menacing lefty who is finally learning how to excel at the US Open. Kerber has faced Petra Kvitova eight times before, with the pair splitting the pot, but never have they met at a Grand Slam. “Playing against lefties is always a little bit different,” Kerber said on Friday after racing past 17-year-old American CiCi Bellis, 6-1, 6-1. “I played a lot of matches against Petra and we had great matches in the past, so I think it will be a good match. I will try to go for it, go out there to win the match.” Kerber has won 15 of 18 this hardcourt season and has every reason to like her chances on Sunday. “I’m confident. I will go out there and try to enjoy every moment here,” she said. But Kvitova is a confident player herself. A quarterfinalist for the first time at the US Open last season, Kvitova says she is finally starting to understand how to harness the energy of the Big Apple. “I feel that the crowd, it’s always, you know, cheering,” she said after defeating Elina Svitolina on Day 5. “I think finally I find the way how I should take the energy from them as well.”
Pick: Kvitova in three
[7] Roberta Vinci (ITA #8) vs. Lesia Tsurenko (UKR #99)
Head-to-head: Vinci leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Tsurenko is the lowest-ranked player left in the draw.
Roberta Vinci has been here before. The Italian who stunned Serena Williams in last year’s semifinals clearly is having a love affair with the US Open and it shows in the form of nine wins in her last ten matches in Queens. Lesia Tsurenko, on the other hand, is into uncharted waters. The Ukrainian reached the second week of a major for the first time on Friday when she shocked No.12-seeded Dominika Cibulkova in three sets. Tsurenko, playing at her lowest ranking in two years, entered the event with a four-match losing streak at majors and a lifetime 8-20 record at the Grand Slam level. But she’s a battler, and she has five career Top 10 wins to her name as well. But can Tsurenko take the play to an in-form Vinci that is playing her best tennis of the season? The Italian had only won five of her last 15 heading into New York, but she is clearly resonating with the place of her greatest Grand Slam achievement.
Pick: Vinci in two
[8] Madison Keys (USA #9) vs. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN #74)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Keys owns a 14-4 record in three-setters in 2016.
Fresh off the greatest comeback of her young career, 21-year-old American Madison Keys will set her sights on reaching the US Open quarterfinals for the first time. But standing in her way is a suddenly resurgent two-time US Open runner-up who has always thrived in New York. Caroline Wozniacki is finally finding her form after a long and unspectacular season, and she will be a very dangerous opponent for the No.8-seeded Keys. But Keys is confident and feeling lucky after narrowly escaping defeat in two of her first three matches. “I think the biggest thing is I’m never giving up and I’m fighting to the very end,” Keys said after battling back from 5-1 down in the third set to defeat Japan’s Naomi Osaka on Day 5. “That’s something to pat myself on the back for.” Wozniacki has had to fight through her fair share of injuries in 2016, but she’s hoping it’s all behind her. “Every time I have come back something else has been hurting,” she said. “Knock on wood, right now I’m feeling good.” Does she feel good enough to deconstruct Keys’ lethal game or will it be the young American who moves on?
Pick: Keys in three
[13] Johanna Konta (GBR #14) vs. Anastasija Sevastova (LAT #48)
Head-to-head: Konta leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Konta owns a 27-10 hardcourt record in 2016.
The first British player to hold a Top 20 ranking in nearly 30 years will take a shot at reaching her first US Open quarterfinal on Sunday against an unlikely opponent. Johanna Konta and Anastasija Sevastova will meet for the first time in a main draw and the second time overall. Konta will be the favorite based on her higher ranking and impressive hardcourt record this season, but Sevastova is putting the cherry on top of a solid season by making her first run to the second week of a major in over five years. The Latvian No.1 shocked Garbiñe Muguruza on Day 3 and on Friday she won for the first time in four meetings against Kateryna Bondarenko. Konta, who nearly had to retire due to heat-related exhaustion in her second round win over Tsvetana Pironkova, rebounded smartly on Friday by trouncing Belinda Bencic, 6-2, 6-1. Having recovered fully, Konta looks set to make another deep run at a hardcourt major. Is there anything Sevastova can do to stop her?
Pick: Konta in three
By the Numbers:
1-0 – Wozniacki’s record against the Top 10 this season. The Dane defeated No.10 Svetlana Kuznetsova in the second round.
36-11 – Kvitova’s career record against left-handers. Kerber’s career record against lefties is 26-15.
1 – Number of players in Top 10 to have yet to play in a Grand Slam final (Madison Keys).
WTA Insider | World No.1 Serena Williams trades spots with sister Venus, who headlines her first night session of the US Open; keep up with the action on the latest WTA Insider Live Blog.
NEW YORK, NY, USA – No.5 seed Simona Halep survived a gutsy upset bid from No.31 seed Timea Babos, who kept her on the ropes for much of the second half of the match before Halep scraped through, 6-1, 2-6, 6-4.
“Today I had in my head just that I can win the match, and I have just to take point by point,” Halep reflected in her post-match press conference. “So it was a good thing, and I want also to improve more in this. I feel safe when I’m on court. That’s why I refuse to lose.
“I’m stronger mentally and I don’t give up any more during the matches, even if I’m down.”
Halep looked set to cruise to a quick victory after she snapped up the first set in just 24 minutes. She made only four unforced errors to Babos’ nine, and despite the Hungarian entering the tournament ranked third on the WTA for most aces, Halep was able to contain that big serve and break three her three times.
But after being thoroughly outplayed in the opening set, Babos settled into her game and began to read Halep’s shots better. Babos suddenly began to outlast Halep at the baseline – the Romanian’s stronghold – and seemed to be one step ahead of her in the rallies.
With Babos firing off winner after winner, Halep began to play the kind of nervous, fast game that betrayed her mounting frustration. Babos rattled off six unanswered games to grab the second set and carry that momentum into the third, yanking Halep from line to line to draw out the errors and earn an early break.
The momentum shifted once as Halep refused to wilt and kept her cool to stay within touching distance. The Romanian eventually broke back at 3-3 to put them on even ground for the first time in over an hour.
Point of the match? #Halep gets the break she needs to lead her to a three set win over #Babos. #usopen @Chase https://t.co/eywEXaKjsJ
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 3, 2016
After a tense couple of games, with Babos serving at 5-4, 40-15 for a chance to extend her stay in the match, the Hungarian sprayed a string of nervous errors to gift Halep match point, before surrendering the match on a double fault.
“It feels good that I could win the match,” Halep said afterwards. “It was really tough. She played unbelievable second and third set. She didn’t miss at all. She was hitting very strong, so it was a good challenge for me and it was a good match.”
“I’m really proud that I could win it and come back from 3-1 down in the third set.”
Next up for the Romanian is the No.11 seed Carla Suárez Navarro, who has been quietly making her way through the draw with her usual consistency. The Spaniard celebrated her 28th birthday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory against No.19 seed Elena Vesnina earlier in the day, and she’s yet to drop a set at the US Open.
A year ago, Suárez Navarro bowed out of the US Open in the first round, one of three first-round exits she suffered at Grand Slams. This year, she’s one of a handful of women to reach the fourth round at every Grand Slam.
“Last year in the Grand Slam I didn’t make the results,” she explained. “So I tried to be more focused, more relaxed. [Now] I play good in the Grand Slams but, you know, I want more.”
“I don’t want to lose in quarterfinals or the round before. I mean, if I’m staying in the second week I want more. I want to be in the final round.”
NEW YORK, NY, USA – No.4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska had little trouble overcoming Caroline Garcia in a tidy straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, to advance to the fourth round of the US Open for the fourth time.
“To be honest, I expect, as always, a long and tough match against her,” Radwanska said of her No.25-seeded opponent. “I know what to expect. We know each other for a while. What can I say? Just very happy I could win that match that quick.”
Radwanska had Garcia overwhelmed from the word go, immediately breaking the Frenchwoman’s serve to start the match. Despite Garcia getting the break back right away, she wasn’t able to pressure Radwanska enough after that. The Pole employed her tricky game of slicing and dicing her way through points, breaking Garcia two more times to quickly take the opening set.
Strong serves from @ARadwanska help her easily take the first set 6-2 against #Garcia. #usopen @MBUSA https://t.co/fZ5jMSivfq
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 3, 2016
The second set unfolded much like the first, with Garcia unable to produce her usual tennis against her No.4-ranked opponent. The Frenchwoman hit 34 unforced errors against Radwanska’s five, and produced only 14 winners to Radwanska’s nine. One last backhand error from a frustrated Garcia sent Radwanska into the last 16 after an hour and twelve minutes.
With the win, Radwanska keeps her bid for the WTA’s World No.1 ranking alive. After Garbiñe Muguruza crashed out earlier in the week, Radwanska is now one of three women who could emerge at the top spot at the end of the fortnight, although she faces the daunting task of needing to reach at least the US Open final for the first time in order to do so.
The Pole has yet to make a quarterfinals at this tournament in her previous 10 appearances, and she will face the on-the-rise Croat Ana Konjuh for another chance to try.
“Obviously against Konjuh I played at Wimbledon kind of a drama match, it was not really that long time ago,” Radwanska recalled in her press conference. “For sure she make huge progress last couple of months and she’s really playing good tennis at the moment.”
“Well, just very happy to be in the fourth round, and we’ll see what’s gonna happen.”
NEW YORK, NY, USA – Top seed Serena Williams eased to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Connecticut Open semifinalist Johanna Larson to not only advance into the second week of the US Open for the sixth straight year, but also clinch the Open Era record for total Grand Slam matches won, passing Martina Navratilova for 307 victories.
“Wow, that’s pretty awesome, and honestly, there’s no better place to do it than here, where everything first started,” she told ESPN’s Rennae Stubbs in her on-court interview. “That’s great!
“It was something I didn’t even know about until Wimbledon,” she added in her post-match press conference. “I was like, ‘Oh, I have a new goal.'”
Looking as strong as ever through three rounds, the World No.1 donned her “Superwoman sleeves” and shook off the shoulder concerns that plagued her Emirates Airline US Open Series with another decisive win, this time over an in-form Johanna Larsson.
Six sets played, six sets won.@serenawilliams dispatches #Larsson to move safely into week two. #usopen @MBUSA https://t.co/a2JWJ56Rpy
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 3, 2016
Larsson had just reached the semifinals in New Haven as a lucky loser, but had no answers to the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s high-octane game. Hitting 24 winners to just 17 unforced errors, Serena struck another six aces and dropped only five points behind her first serve to advance in just under an hour on Saturday.
“It was a really good match for me because she played a different type of game. It was really good for me to have a different type of rhythm and just to move around. Overall, it was pretty good.”
Awaiting Serena in the fourth round will be Kazakh powerhouse Yaroslava Shvedova, who survived a late surge from China’s Zhang Shuai to reach the second week of the Open for the first time, 6-2, 7-5.
Serena has won all four of her previous meetings with Shvedova; though the former World No.25 pushed the top seed to three sets at the 2012 Wimbledon Championships, their last two meetings have been one-sided affairs, including a 6-3, 6-1 win at the 2013 US Open.
