Serena Williams saved the honor of the favorites in New York to advance to the round of 16 of the Western & Southern Open in a game whose outcome was a roller coaster of emotions. The American was about to lose a match that she had more than won in the third set and that finally He resolved in an atypical tie-break, where he nailed a donut to the Dutch Arantxa Rus. Almost 3 hours of battle (7-6, 3-6, 7-6), which we will see if they take a physical toll on him in a round of 16 where he will be measured with Sakkari.
The first set was very tight, with no service breaks by any player, so only the tie-break could undo the equality. There the 23 Grand Slams weighed in and Serena closed her sleeve, yes, with tremendous suffering. The breaks that were missing in the first set came at a stroke in the second. Williams broke first, but Rus did not take the hit. He signed the counterbreak and went unstoppable for the set with a run of four consecutive games. Serena showed discomfort, puffing after each exchange and sweating profusely under a few Conditions that were harsh today in the Big Apple: 31 degrees and 58% humidity. There the Dutch moved better and closed the set 3-6.
The third set had a mixture of emotions, between dramatic and surreal. Serena reacted after passing through the changing rooms, including changing clothes, and got 5-2 up, a gap that seemed insurmountable. Not for Rus, who did not lose face to the game at any time and took advantage of Serena's doubts, who was a nervous wreck. The feat of the Dutch woman seemed close, He got 6-5 ahead, but the American forced the tie-break and there he did not forgive: rosco 7-0 and eighths. Honor intact, but full of doubts …
Kvitova says goodbye to the Czech duel
Women's tennis is not spared from that constant swing of ups and downs. More now in this atypical 2020 that we are living because of the pandemic. The irregularity is still latent among the favorite calls to win tournaments, as happened on the day of this Monday with Petra kvitova at Western & Southern Open. The number 12 of the WTA ranking was eliminated in the Czech duel of the day against the semi-unknown Marie Bouzkova after diluting like a sugar. The initial 6-2 was a mirage and his rival turned the clash around in the next two sets: 5-7 and 2-6. Inexplicable.
The game started quietly, with both players maintaining their serve without excessive difficulties. But the fifth game was no longer scoring for Kvitova, who he put one more gear to chain four games in a row that gave him the set: 6-2. In this first round, Kvitova finished with half of her rival's unforced errors and signed almost twice as many winners, making her superiority clear.
But as we said before, what happened in the first set was a mere mirage. Inexplicably, unless physical problems are confirmed, Kvitova's game dropped significantly, which translated into greater confidence for her young rival, 22 years old. Kvitova's bleed of errors in the second heat was terrible: 15 for just 2 Bouzkova, so the set fell on her side. The script did not change in the final set, with a favorable momentum for Bouzkova that allowed her to seal her ticket to the round of 16 while Kvitova languished on the track.
More favorites say goodbye
But the Czech was not the only favorite who said goodbye. since he joined the previous defeats of the top title candidates: Karolina Pliskova and Sofia Kenin, top seeds in the absence of Ashleigh Barty (# 1) and Simona Halep (# 2). They did meet the forecasts Konta, by defeating Flipkens on the fast track (6-2 and 6-0), and Mertens, after beating Mladenovic (6-1, 6-7 and 6-3).
Results of the day of August 24 in the Premier 5 of Cincinnati
Second round
Elise Mertens (BEL) to Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) 6-1, 6-7 and 6-3
Jessica Pegula (USA) to Amanda Anisimova (USA) 7-5 and 6-2
Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) to Catherine Bellis (USA) 6-7, 6-4 and 7-5
Naomi Osaka (JAP) to Karolina Muchova (RCH) 6-7, 6-4 and 6-2
Dayana Yastremska (UCR) to Bernarda Pera (USA) 7-6, 4-6 and 6-3
Anett Kontaveit (EST) to Jill Teichmann (SUI) 6-3 and 6-4
Marie Bouzkova (RCH) to Petra Kvitova (RCH) 2-6, 7-5 and 6-2
Johanna Konta (GBR) to Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) 6-2 and 6-0
Vera Zvonareva (RUS) to Laura Siegemund (ALE) 6-1 and 6-1
Maria Sakkari (GRE) to Yulia Putintseva (KAZ) 6-4 and 7-6
Serena Williams (USA) to Arantxa Rus (NED) 7-6, 3-6 and 7-6
Ons Jabeur (TUN) to Madison Keys (USA) 6-4 and 6-1
Christina McHale (USA) to Ekaterina Alexandrova (RUS) 6-1 and 7-6
Victoria Azarenka (BLR) to Caroline Garcia (FRA) 6-2 and 7-6