THE 2015 U.S. OPEN LADIES TENNIS DRAW REVIEWED BY ROS SATAR, HER PICKS

Written by: Staff on 27th August 2015

THE 2015 U.S. OPEN LADIES TENNIS DRAW REVIEWED BY ROS SATAR, HER PICKS |

“Look back at it.” – Photo by @serenawilliams via Instagram.

US Open Draw – Is it all systems go for Serena’s career Slam?

Will Serena achieve a Grand Slam, winning all four majors in the same year, or will WTA Rising Star Belinda Bencic, or Maria Sharapova trip her at the final hurdle?

Sharapova winds up in her half of the draw, and the pair look set (on rankings anyway) to clash in the semi-final, but… that is of course not the full story! We break down the draw for the top seeds and highlight our potential picks

[1] Serena Williams

There are a few bumps in the way to her becoming the first woman since Steffi Graf to capture all four titles in the same year. First will be Mirjana Lucic-Baroni. Few will forget her outstanding run through qualifying last year as she dispatched this year’s Wimbledon finalist Garbine Muguruza and last year’s No. 2 seed Simona Halep in the second round. She is a tricky customer and if ever Serena is nervy, it is the opening rounds.

Round three could see another encounter with Sloane Stephens – a lot of water has passed under the bridge in the relationship with this pair, and there is a healthy respect, partly because Stephens has matured and was rewarded with her first title this year.

Round four could be either Madison Keys again, or Agnieszka Radwanska – a lot is expected from either of this pair, and can be big stage players.

Quarter-finals could be a rematch with talented teen and WTA Rising Star Belinda Bencic. She stunned a rusty Williams in Toronto, The elbow injury she has struggled with kept her out of her usual warm-up in Stanford, but Bencic has played a lot of tennis, and had to withdraw in Cincinnati so it will be interesting to see if she can manage her fitness… and her expectations.

Semi-finals can be the highlight of a Slam, where they just want it more, and this will be a phenomenal potential clash – Either Sharapova or either of the Serbian warrior princesses.

[2] Simona Halep

Has the gritty Romanian turned a corner? Popular with fans, and more at ease with the jind of attention she attracts around the world, Halep has been a lot more like the player we saw follow through on her title breakthrough, when she made her first Slam final last year. Since then the expectations may have knocked her for six, along with multiple coaching changes.

But she has found her hard-court feet after a disappointing jaunt around Europe, and for our money, she is one of the real contenders this year to stand in Serena’s way. She should get though a potential third round with Alize Cornet, but will need to be sharp as tacks against either Timea Bacsinszky (also enjoying a real resurgence at the start of the year) and Sabine Lisicki.

Get the popcorn out people (well we are in the US, after all) – we have a great potential match up in the quarter-final that could pit the ever-dangerous Victoria Azarenka against her. She is another person who has come to New York with niggling injuries, so it remains to be seen if her decision to pull out of Cincinnati will pay off for the Belarusian.

She is set to face either Petra Kvitova or Caroline Wozniacki in the semi-final.

[3] Maria Sharapova

After arriving full of hope in Cincinnati, Sharapova had to pull out before even striking a ball. She lost her World No. 2 ranking to the eventual finalist Halep, and she comes into this match having not played since losing to Williams in the Wimbledon semi-final.

This is a tough draw for the Russian. She is set to face fellow countrywoman Svetlana Kuznetsova, another former champion in New York who last bettered Sharapova in Madrid this year, before she potentially comes up against either WTA Rising star Elina Svitolina, who gave a decent account of herself against Williams in Cincinnati, or Ekaterina Makarova, who fell against Williams in last year’s semi-final.

The quarter-finals could see her set her stall out against either Jelena Jankovic or Ana Ivanovic. Both have had their ups and downs in the season with injuries and form, but both are coming into form, while Sharapova will have to rely on experience to play herself into form.

Sharapova has only met Williams a couple of times now in the same bracket of the draw – twice at Wimbledon (R16, 2010 and semi-final this year). An in-form Sharapova, such as the one who faced Williams in the first Slam of the year could maybe put up a competitive fight, but she will need to draw on all her trademark grit to battle her way past the World No. 1 at this stage, but that will not stop this being one of the potential matches of the tournament.

[4] Caroline Wozniacki

This time last year I really thought that Wozniacki had the tools to take the battle to Williams. They had some great battles during last year’s US Open Series swing, and it was her second attempt to win that elusive Slam, but Wozniacki was over-powered in the final.

She has had a less than convincing start to her US hard court season, and is another one carrying niggling aches and pains, and will need to play herself into form. Her draw is not great to be honest – she faces last year’s quarter-finalist Flavia Pennetta in the third round, former champion Sam Stosur and could face Petra Kvitova in the quarter-final. The Czech always struggles in this part of the swing, and both have opted to play in New Haven this week, so how much they will have in the tank remains to be seen. For our money, this quarter is the one that could be blown wide open, making life maybe a little simpler for Halep.

We can’t wait to see how it plays out as Serena continues to chase history, and more importantly as we gather once more at Flushing Meadows for the final slam of the year. Expect recaps, shock and awe when the US Open begins on Monday 31st August.

Ros Satar (@rfsatar) is a regular contributor to 10sBalls.com and runs Britwatch Sports

Topics: 10sballs.com, 2015 US Open, Caro Wozniacki, Maria Sharapova, Ros Satar, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Sports, Tennis News, US Open tennis, Wta

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10sBalls_com says:

August 27, 2015 at 1:54 pm

THE 2015 @usopen LADIES #tennis DRAW REVIEWED BY @rfsatar, HER PICKS- http://t.co/ykK6PBU4Xb #WTA #USOpen2015 #usopendraw #USOpen
rfsatar says:

August 27, 2015 at 2:03 pm

RT @10sBalls_com: THE 2015 @usopen LADIES #tennis DRAW REVIEWED BY @rfsatar, HER PICKS- http://t.co/ykK6PBU4Xb #WTA #USOpen2015 #usopendraw…
dusanVemic says:

August 27, 2015 at 5:47 pm

RT @10sBalls_com: THE 2015 @usopen LADIES #tennis DRAW REVIEWED BY @rfsatar, HER PICKS- http://t.co/ykK6PBU4Xb #WTA #USOpen2015 #usopendraw…