Kunieda advances in wheelchair competition, collegiate action begins at U.S. Open

Written by: Staff on 5th September 2014

Kunieda advances in wheelchair competition, collegiate action begins at U.S. Open |

No. 1 seed Shingo Kunieda advanced to the semifinals of the men’s wheelchair singles draw with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over France’s Michael Jeremiasz on Thursday afternoon at the U.S. Open. Kunieda was put on the big stage of Louis Armstrong stadium and he did not disappoint, striking 23 winners to just 11 unforced errors while prevailing in one hour and 10 minutes.

The Japanese man is ranked No. 1 in the ITF wheelchair rankings. He is looking for his fifth U.S. Open singles title, having previously triumphed in 2007, 2009, 2010, and 2011. Kunieda has also won the Australian Open seven times and the French Open on four different occasions.

Elsewhere on the grounds of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, the inaugural American Collegiate Invitational got underway. Sixteen college players–eight men and eight women–played their first-round matches.

On the men’s side, NCAA champion Marcos Giron beat Raymond Sarmiento of Southern California 7-6(8), 6-3. Giron also participated in the men’s singles event as a wild-card entry and lost to John Isner in the opening round. Fellow Bruin Clay Thompson, Ohio State’s Peter Kobelt, and Alexander Sarkissian of Pepperdine also reached the semifinals.

“I came from a small town in Ohio and never thought tennis would take me this far,” Kobelt said. “If I don’t go farther in tennis, I can say I played the U.S. Open, and it’s an achievement I’ll have for the rest of my life.”

In the women’s competition, NCAA title winner Danielle Collins of Virginia fought past Florida’s Olivia Janowicz 6-2, 6-4. Collins made a name for himself by pushing No. 2 seed Simona Halep to three sets in round one of the women’s U.S. Open. She is joined in the last four of the collegiate invitational by fellow Cavalier Julia Elbaba, North Carolina’s Jamie Loeb, and Kristie Ahn of Stanford.

“It’s awesome being here,” Ahn assured. “It’s great exposure for college tennis and to be a part of the first one is such an honor. From here this event is only going to get better. It’s not quite main draw, but it’s pretty amazing.”

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: Michaël Jeremiasz, Shingo Kunieda, Tennis News, US Open 2014, wheelchair sports, Wheelchair Tennis

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10sBalls_com says:

September 5, 2014 at 12:20 am

Kunieda advances in wheelchair competition, collegiate action begins at @usopen – http://t.co/PteWdIw5Pr @ITF_Tennis @ITFWheelchair @usta
ITFWheelchair says:

September 5, 2014 at 4:18 am

RT @10sBalls_com: Kunieda advances in wheelchair competition, collegiate action begins at @usopen – http://t.co/PteWdIw5Pr @ITF_Tennis @ITF…