Serena Williams still struggling as she enters US Open run, but never count her out in a slam
Serena Williams won her first-round match at the Cincinnati Masters 1000 event, the Western and Southern Open, but lost in a captivating second round with Petra Kvitova.
Serena Williams hasn’t had it easy since coming back after giving birth to baby Olivia this year and dealing with health complications. She’s played just five tournaments, mostly going out in the first few rounds. Except for Wimbledon, where — like Tiger Woods at the PGA Championship — Williams surged into the final stretch, in a surprise, exciting return to form, making it to the finals against recent odds. Despite the loss to Germany’s Angelique Kerber in London, Serena’s performance at the All England Club signaled that the 23-time grand slam champ is back, and a contender for titles.
But the Wimbledon loss seems to have affected the tennis legend as well. Williams followed Wimbledon with her worst loss on the WTA tour, being crushed by England’s Johanna Konta in just 52 minutes in San Jose a few weeks ago, 1-6, 0-6. She didn’t repeat the feat, however, at the Western and Southern opening round, defeating opponent Daria Gavrilova in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2, in dominating fashion. Gavrilova is ranked No. 23, and the victory over her was by all accounts is an indicator of Serena’s confidence going into her warm up to the U.S. Open. She looked strong in the set with Petra Kvitova, rallying in the second to even it out before running out of gas in the third.
Still, Serena is back in the Top 30, ranked as high as 27 after her resurgent drive at Wimbledon. She was seeded at the grass grand slam and one would guess will likely be seeded at the U.S. Open. Her rise back to top fitness will continue to reward her with ranking increases. Each tournament gives her the match play she needs to improve her competitive fitness.
“I’m still at the very beginning. You know, this is a long comeback. I just began. Definitely at the very, very beginning,” Williams said after the match.
“I’m getting there, and I’m going to just continue to work hard, and hopefully I’ll start winning more matches.”
The loss in Cincinnati may be a tough blow to the 36-year-old, but we all know that the sports icon always brings her A game to the grand slams. Ms. Williams went out in the third round at Indian Wells and the first in Miami, but somehow was able to dig deep and progress to the fourth round in Roland Garros, defeating two Top 20 players along the way.
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Serena skipped out on the grass season prior to Wimbledon, but managed to make the final there. She is still considered the major contender for the U.S. Open. Serena is going for her seventh title at Flushing Meadows, which would equal the number of slam titles she owns from Australia and Wimbledon each — an amazingly impressive stat. Nadal only surpasses her with just the French Open titles, Roger with just his Wimbledon tally. Serena stands alone with her hat trick dominance over the Australian, U.S. Open, and Wimbledon slams.
The loss to Petra Kvitova was also a bittersweet accomplishment for the Czech player, who has been building herself back up since being attacked by knifepoint in December 2016.
“It was a pleasure to share the court with Serena, she’s such a champion,” said Kvitova afterwards. “We are both coming back – from injury, from motherhood – so it’s something really special to play her.”
Kvitova is the most successful WTA player this year, having won the most titles in 2018, not bad for a player who wasn’t sure she would even be able to move her hitting hand again. However, she is yet to make a grand slam final in 2018 and is looking to Flushing Meadows as a chance to add to her two grand slam trophies.