(Rank/Seed)
The final had all the drama of last year's but the result was still the same, (1/1) Williams beating (2/2) Azarenka, this time 75 67(6) 61. Williams now has 17 Grand Slams; only Graf, Navratilova and Evert have more in the Open Era. She now has 5 US Opens, which only Evert and Graf can claim in the Open Era and is now the oldest champion at this event in the Open Era. It was also her 9th title of the year (a personal best) and she pocketed the biggest tennis pay out in history; $3.6 million ($2.6 million for the title and $1 million for winning the Olympus US Open Series).
1st Set
Both players struggled early on in swirling winds, trading breaks in the first 2 games. Azarenka looked the more comfortable throughout most of the set and was 2 points away from the set at 5-4 deuce on Serena's serve. However, an ace that was called a foot fault pushed Williams into another gear as she edged a thrilling set with a second break.
2nd Set
Azarenka quickly fell behind 0-2 and after serving her 1st double faults to lose her serve again, she fell 1-4 behind and looked set for a bruising loss. Then, the drama started. Williams became tense and started to miss frequently, an ill timed big screen appearance from former president Bill Clinton at 15-40 in the 6th game contributing to Azarenka breaking serve. However, no one expected Azarenka to break again when Serena served for the match at 5-4 and then again at 6-5, but she did as Williams grew more and more irate. In the tiebreak, Williams saw a 3-1 lead become a 4-6 deficit and even though she staved off the first 2 set points, an error on the third saw Azarenka steal the set in an unbelievable comeback.
3rd Set
Azarenka missed some opportunities early in the set as Williams was shaken and mistiming her forehand particularly. However, a poor 4th game where Azarenka threw in 2 double faults to get broken having initially led 40-15 signed her fate. Williams was now 3-1 up, relaxed again and serving bombs (one serve hitting 126mph!). Azarenka faded mentally and Williams romped to the title in roughly 2 hours 45 minutes; the longest women's US Open final since records began in 1980! She was ecstatic in her success, having overcome her opponent, the wind and mostly herself! Azarenka was unsurprisingly tearful after missing out in yet another close final, but couldn't quite keep up with perhaps the greatest of all time.
Monday, 9 September 2013
Saturday, 7 September 2013
US Open Champion prediction
So, it comes down to the worlds top 2, Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka as I and most others predicted. It's a repeat of last year and if that's anything to go by, we're in for a real treat. It is the first US Open final since 2002 between the Williams sisters to feature the top 2 players and 2013 is now the first year since 2002 to feature 2 Grand Slam finals between the top 2 (2013 French/US Open-2002 Wimbledon/US Open).
Williams has dropped only 16 games in the tournament in beating 1 top 10 player and 2 top 20 player's! Azarenka has dropped 2 sets along the way and has only played 1 top 20 player.
Williams is 16-4 in Grand Slam finals; 4-2 at the US Open. Azarenka is 2-1; 0-1 at the US Open.
Williams dominates the head to head 13-3, leading 7-0 at Grand Slams and 2-0 at the US Open. However, Azarenka leads this year's series 2-1 and they are 3-3 in finals; Azarenka winning 3 of the 4 hard court finals, missing out only in last year's US Open having served for the match!
Neither player played anywhere near their best in the semis. Azarenka has edged Serena twice in three sets this year, including just recently at Cincinnati. The fear factor in playing Williams is no more, but her serve will have to improve threefold if she's to stand a chance. Serena is keen for Grand Slam number 17, so she may get nervous but I still think she'll do it, winning in straight sets.
Williams has dropped only 16 games in the tournament in beating 1 top 10 player and 2 top 20 player's! Azarenka has dropped 2 sets along the way and has only played 1 top 20 player.
Williams is 16-4 in Grand Slam finals; 4-2 at the US Open. Azarenka is 2-1; 0-1 at the US Open.
Williams dominates the head to head 13-3, leading 7-0 at Grand Slams and 2-0 at the US Open. However, Azarenka leads this year's series 2-1 and they are 3-3 in finals; Azarenka winning 3 of the 4 hard court finals, missing out only in last year's US Open having served for the match!
Neither player played anywhere near their best in the semis. Azarenka has edged Serena twice in three sets this year, including just recently at Cincinnati. The fear factor in playing Williams is no more, but her serve will have to improve threefold if she's to stand a chance. Serena is keen for Grand Slam number 17, so she may get nervous but I still think she'll do it, winning in straight sets.
Serena and Azarenka through to final
The top 2 players in the world made it through to the US Open final; a repeat of last year.
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams beat (6/5) Li 60 63 in a match that looked easier than it was. Serena was content to stay in the points throughout the match, winning 24 straight games from her 4th round match through to her 60 10 lead. She was only broken once in the third game of the second set and even though she was nervous towards the end, her victory was never in doubt. Li in contrast was a bundle of nerves, missing her forehand time and time again. Even though she took a 2-1 40-0 lead in the second set, 3 errant backhands proved costly. Though she saved 6 match points in the eighth to prolong the match with some of her vintage best, she just couldn't take advantage of a less than spectacular Serena on the day. Williams now leads the head to 9-1!
2/2 Azarenka came through a scrappy 64 62 match against (83/-) Pennetta. It was a match of many service breaks as both players struggled with the wind behind them. Azarenka held just twice in the 1st set and Pennetta once as each time the number two went ahead, Pennetta clawed her way back. The set ended after a long game where Azarenka finally converted her 6th set point after Pennetta had made some courageous winners. The second set quickly got away from Pennetta who fell 1-4 behind and even though, as predictable, Pennetta broke back, she couldn't hold her own serve. In terms of the final, Azarenka really must sort out her serve, which was woeful at times and cut out the lob drop shots!
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams beat (6/5) Li 60 63 in a match that looked easier than it was. Serena was content to stay in the points throughout the match, winning 24 straight games from her 4th round match through to her 60 10 lead. She was only broken once in the third game of the second set and even though she was nervous towards the end, her victory was never in doubt. Li in contrast was a bundle of nerves, missing her forehand time and time again. Even though she took a 2-1 40-0 lead in the second set, 3 errant backhands proved costly. Though she saved 6 match points in the eighth to prolong the match with some of her vintage best, she just couldn't take advantage of a less than spectacular Serena on the day. Williams now leads the head to 9-1!
2/2 Azarenka came through a scrappy 64 62 match against (83/-) Pennetta. It was a match of many service breaks as both players struggled with the wind behind them. Azarenka held just twice in the 1st set and Pennetta once as each time the number two went ahead, Pennetta clawed her way back. The set ended after a long game where Azarenka finally converted her 6th set point after Pennetta had made some courageous winners. The second set quickly got away from Pennetta who fell 1-4 behind and even though, as predictable, Pennetta broke back, she couldn't hold her own serve. In terms of the final, Azarenka really must sort out her serve, which was woeful at times and cut out the lob drop shots!
Thursday, 5 September 2013
US Open final prediction
These are my predictions for the final.
Williams will edge Li in two close sets. She dominates the head to head 8-1 and often beats Li in very close matches, just as in their Cincinnati semi final from a few weeks ago. Williams has won 6 out of 7 US Open semi finals and 20 of 23 in all majors! Li is 3-1 in all majors.
Azarenka will beat Pennetta, but maybe in 3 sets. The head to head is 1-1, but they haven't played since Dubai 2011 and both have changed so much since then. Azarenka may start slowly, but will use her experience to come back having gone 3-3 in her previous major semis. Pennetta in contrast hasn't played one before, but hasn't dropped a set yet. Expect plenty of service breaks!
Final prediction: Williams VS Azarenka, I hope!
Williams will edge Li in two close sets. She dominates the head to head 8-1 and often beats Li in very close matches, just as in their Cincinnati semi final from a few weeks ago. Williams has won 6 out of 7 US Open semi finals and 20 of 23 in all majors! Li is 3-1 in all majors.
Azarenka will beat Pennetta, but maybe in 3 sets. The head to head is 1-1, but they haven't played since Dubai 2011 and both have changed so much since then. Azarenka may start slowly, but will use her experience to come back having gone 3-3 in her previous major semis. Pennetta in contrast hasn't played one before, but hasn't dropped a set yet. Expect plenty of service breaks!
Final prediction: Williams VS Azarenka, I hope!
Serena & Azarenka move one step closer
The quarter finals went well for the top players with the 3 top 10 players progressing. The semi finals feature three 30+ players; only the 2nd time that's happened in an open era Grand Slam!
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams was unstoppable against (20/18) Suarez Navarro, crushing her 60 60! It was a horrible 25th birthday present for the Spaniard who couldn't get into the match in tough windy conditions, hitting only 3 winners. In contrast, Serena was the epitome of calm, hitting 20 winners to just 9 unforced errors in beating Suarez Navarro for the 3rd time in as many meetings; winning at least 1 set to love in each meeting! Serena moves through to her 8th US Open semi final, going 6-1 in her first 7!
2/2 Azarenka played her best match in a long time, beating (48/-) Hantuchova 62 63. In general, Hantuchova made too many loose errors and didn't serve as well as she had done throughout the tournament. Azarenka was good under pressure, despite being 0-2 down in the second set. She hit 19 winners, including some fine drop shots to only 15 unforced errors and dropped serve only twice. With the win, she edged the career head to head 3-2 and moved into her 2nd US Open semi final, winning last year's.
6/5 Li became the first Chinese US Open semi finalist, edging (25/24) Makarova 64 67(5) 62 for as many wins in 4 meetings. Li started the stronger, taking a 64 3-1 lead before being pegged back. She admitted that nerves struck her when leading 3-0 and 4-2 in the tiebreak, but she remained composed in the third, hitting 14 of her 44 winners and only 5 of her 42 unforced errors to put the dangerous lefty away.
83/- Pennetta continued her brilliantly unprecedented march through the tournament, reaching her 1st Grand Slam semi final with a 64 61 win over close friend (13/10) Vinci. She hit 23 winners to subdue her tenacious compatriot, despite seeing an early break lead dissipate. Overall, it was her 5th win in 9 meetings with Vinci as she continued her straight sets march through her best tournament since her wrist surgery in 2012 and of her career.
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams was unstoppable against (20/18) Suarez Navarro, crushing her 60 60! It was a horrible 25th birthday present for the Spaniard who couldn't get into the match in tough windy conditions, hitting only 3 winners. In contrast, Serena was the epitome of calm, hitting 20 winners to just 9 unforced errors in beating Suarez Navarro for the 3rd time in as many meetings; winning at least 1 set to love in each meeting! Serena moves through to her 8th US Open semi final, going 6-1 in her first 7!
2/2 Azarenka played her best match in a long time, beating (48/-) Hantuchova 62 63. In general, Hantuchova made too many loose errors and didn't serve as well as she had done throughout the tournament. Azarenka was good under pressure, despite being 0-2 down in the second set. She hit 19 winners, including some fine drop shots to only 15 unforced errors and dropped serve only twice. With the win, she edged the career head to head 3-2 and moved into her 2nd US Open semi final, winning last year's.
6/5 Li became the first Chinese US Open semi finalist, edging (25/24) Makarova 64 67(5) 62 for as many wins in 4 meetings. Li started the stronger, taking a 64 3-1 lead before being pegged back. She admitted that nerves struck her when leading 3-0 and 4-2 in the tiebreak, but she remained composed in the third, hitting 14 of her 44 winners and only 5 of her 42 unforced errors to put the dangerous lefty away.
83/- Pennetta continued her brilliantly unprecedented march through the tournament, reaching her 1st Grand Slam semi final with a 64 61 win over close friend (13/10) Vinci. She hit 23 winners to subdue her tenacious compatriot, despite seeing an early break lead dissipate. Overall, it was her 5th win in 9 meetings with Vinci as she continued her straight sets march through her best tournament since her wrist surgery in 2012 and of her career.
Tuesday, 3 September 2013
Radwanska hits stumbling block, again
The 4th round wrapped up and more big seeds fell by the wayside. I only guessed two right before the tournament began, unsurprisingly Williams and Azarenka!
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams handled the most hyped match of the tournament thus far, beating (16/15) Stephens 64 61. As expected, Williams was focused from the outset and looked in the mood for revenge. The first set was a real struggle, whereby Williams was often the one on the defence. Stephens battled back from a break down to level the set but ultimately didn't play as well as Serena on the big points.
2/2 Azarenka was forced once again to fight back from a set down to beat (15/13) Ivanovic 46 63 64 in a rain postponed match. Throughout the match, Victoria struggled to find her range against the hit and miss style of her opponent. In the end, Ivanovic's 42 unforced errors helped Azarenka break her serve 9 times, which contributed to her downfall.
4/3 Radwanska failed for a 4th time to go beyond the 4th round at the US Open, as (25/24)Makarova scored a 64 64 win; her 1st win in 4 meetings with the Pole. Radwanska was guilty of complacency in the 1st set as she lost 8 games from 4-0 up, to trail 46 0-2. As always, the dangerous left handed was dominant as soon as she had shrugged off the nerves, reaching her 2nd major quarter final of the year. For Radwanska, it's the only major in which she hasn't reached the quarters this year.
6/5 Li was ruthless against (12/9) Jankovic, breaking her opponents serve on all 7 opportunities to win 63 60 under the lights.
20/18 Suarez Navarro put everything on the line to edge (9/8) Kerber 46 63 76(3), having initially led 4-2 in the 1st set and served for the match at 5-4. She is the 1st Spaniard to reach the quarters here since 1998, whilst Kerber has now failed to reach any major quarter final since Wimbledon 2012!
Elsewhere, (13/10) Vinci beat the rain and a 1-4 deficit to end the run of qualifier Giorgi 64 62, moving through to her 2nd straight quarter final here. Pennetta defeated the red hot (19/21) Halep 62 76(3) for her 3rd win in as many attempts to move through to her 4th quarter final here. Hantuchova ended the run of wildcard Riske 63 57 62, hitting 15 aces to move into her 1st major quarter final since 2008; her 1st in New York since 2002!
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams handled the most hyped match of the tournament thus far, beating (16/15) Stephens 64 61. As expected, Williams was focused from the outset and looked in the mood for revenge. The first set was a real struggle, whereby Williams was often the one on the defence. Stephens battled back from a break down to level the set but ultimately didn't play as well as Serena on the big points.
2/2 Azarenka was forced once again to fight back from a set down to beat (15/13) Ivanovic 46 63 64 in a rain postponed match. Throughout the match, Victoria struggled to find her range against the hit and miss style of her opponent. In the end, Ivanovic's 42 unforced errors helped Azarenka break her serve 9 times, which contributed to her downfall.
4/3 Radwanska failed for a 4th time to go beyond the 4th round at the US Open, as (25/24)Makarova scored a 64 64 win; her 1st win in 4 meetings with the Pole. Radwanska was guilty of complacency in the 1st set as she lost 8 games from 4-0 up, to trail 46 0-2. As always, the dangerous left handed was dominant as soon as she had shrugged off the nerves, reaching her 2nd major quarter final of the year. For Radwanska, it's the only major in which she hasn't reached the quarters this year.
6/5 Li was ruthless against (12/9) Jankovic, breaking her opponents serve on all 7 opportunities to win 63 60 under the lights.
20/18 Suarez Navarro put everything on the line to edge (9/8) Kerber 46 63 76(3), having initially led 4-2 in the 1st set and served for the match at 5-4. She is the 1st Spaniard to reach the quarters here since 1998, whilst Kerber has now failed to reach any major quarter final since Wimbledon 2012!
Elsewhere, (13/10) Vinci beat the rain and a 1-4 deficit to end the run of qualifier Giorgi 64 62, moving through to her 2nd straight quarter final here. Pennetta defeated the red hot (19/21) Halep 62 76(3) for her 3rd win in as many attempts to move through to her 4th quarter final here. Hantuchova ended the run of wildcard Riske 63 57 62, hitting 15 aces to move into her 1st major quarter final since 2008; her 1st in New York since 2002!
Sunday, 1 September 2013
Kvitova and Wozniacki wilt
The third round wrapped up and a sizeable number of top players either struggled or went out.
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams handled Kazakh Shvedova consummately 63 61.
2/2 Azarenka struggled for over 2 hours against Frenchwoman Cornet before winning 67(2) 63 62. In the 1st set, Cornet served well and Azarenka made too many unforced errors, even though she fought back from 1-4 down to force the breaker. Though she was admittedly disappointed after dropping a close first set, her level improved over the next two sets as she found her rhythm and just as she did at the French Open, she came back to edge Cornet in three.
4/3 Radwanska raised her level at all the important stages of her 64 76(1) win over Russian Pavlyuchenkova.
6/5 Li served 11 aces in avenging last year's loss to Brit Robson 62 75, despite trailing 3-0 in the 2nd set.
8/6 Wozniacki was once again punished for her passiveness, losing to Italian qualifier Giorgi under the lights 46 64 63. The Italian was rewarded for her all out aggression, hitting 46 winners to 45 unforced errors; Wozniacki hit only 13 winners in contrast. The Dane saved 4 match points before falling, but was once again beaten by a more proactive player; letting a golden opportunity to reach the semi finals slip in an open section of the draw. This is the 1st year since 2008 that Wozniacki hasn't reached a Grand Slam quarter final.
9/8 Kerber avenged her Wimbledon loss to Estonian Kanepi easily 60 64.
10/7 Kvitova was crushed 63 60 by American wildcard Riske, a woman who she beat just last week in New Haven! Though Riske played consistently and within herself, Kvitova was in a slumber, lethargically hitting away at the ball to no avail. Worryingly, Kvitova was once again struggling with her health and had her blood pressure taken on the court. She later revealed that she was still afflicted by the same virus with which she suffered at Wimbledon.
(Rank/Seed)
1/1 Williams handled Kazakh Shvedova consummately 63 61.
2/2 Azarenka struggled for over 2 hours against Frenchwoman Cornet before winning 67(2) 63 62. In the 1st set, Cornet served well and Azarenka made too many unforced errors, even though she fought back from 1-4 down to force the breaker. Though she was admittedly disappointed after dropping a close first set, her level improved over the next two sets as she found her rhythm and just as she did at the French Open, she came back to edge Cornet in three.
4/3 Radwanska raised her level at all the important stages of her 64 76(1) win over Russian Pavlyuchenkova.
6/5 Li served 11 aces in avenging last year's loss to Brit Robson 62 75, despite trailing 3-0 in the 2nd set.
8/6 Wozniacki was once again punished for her passiveness, losing to Italian qualifier Giorgi under the lights 46 64 63. The Italian was rewarded for her all out aggression, hitting 46 winners to 45 unforced errors; Wozniacki hit only 13 winners in contrast. The Dane saved 4 match points before falling, but was once again beaten by a more proactive player; letting a golden opportunity to reach the semi finals slip in an open section of the draw. This is the 1st year since 2008 that Wozniacki hasn't reached a Grand Slam quarter final.
9/8 Kerber avenged her Wimbledon loss to Estonian Kanepi easily 60 64.
10/7 Kvitova was crushed 63 60 by American wildcard Riske, a woman who she beat just last week in New Haven! Though Riske played consistently and within herself, Kvitova was in a slumber, lethargically hitting away at the ball to no avail. Worryingly, Kvitova was once again struggling with her health and had her blood pressure taken on the court. She later revealed that she was still afflicted by the same virus with which she suffered at Wimbledon.
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