Vergeer Looks To Continue Winning Ways At US Open

Written by: Staff on 5th September 2011

Vergeer Looks To Continue Winning Ways At US Open

epa01616031 Esther Vergeer of Netherlands returns the ball during her women's wheelchair singles quarterfinals against Lucy Shuker of United Kingdom at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, 28 January 2009. Esther Vergeer won 6-1, 6-2. VVergeer is now five-fold Paralympics tennis champion, eight-fold consecutive world-champion, and has been the world's top ranked player since 1999. Unbeaten since January 2003, she may be the most dominant player in any professional sports. EPA/MAST IRHAM |

Japan’s Shingo Kunieda, Esther Vergeer of the Netherlands and American David Wagner go into this week’s US Open wheelchair tennis competition in New York as defending champions. However, only Vergeer approaches the final Grand Slam of the year on the back of victory at the final Super Series event of the season in St. Louis, MO, over the weekend.

Vergeer defeated countrywoman and world No. 2 Jiske Griffioen 60 60 in Sunday’s women’s singles final in St. Louis to take her tally of US Open USTA Wheelchair Tennis Championships titles into double figures.

Such is Vergeer’s current dominance that the 426th successive singles victory in her winning streak was perhaps more remarkable for the fact that it was her first 60 60 victory over Griffioen in the 49 matches they have played.

Australia’s Daniela di Toro played her first tournament since recovering from injury in St. Louis and the world No. 3 may have her work cut out in New York if she is to

reach the US Open final for the second successive year.

Vergeer and Griffioen’s fellow Dutch players could mount bigger threats, with world No. 5 Marjolein Buis having finished runner-up to Vergeer at Roland Garros, ending Vergeer’s run of four successive Grand Slam singles finals without dropping a game.

Kunieda also goes to New York as world No. 1, but an elbow injury prevented him from lining up in Sunday’s men’s singles final in St. Louis against Dutch world No. 7 Robin Ammerlaan. Kunieda’s unbeaten run of Grand Slam singles victories came to an end at Roland Garros in June when he was beaten by world No. 2 Maikel Scheffers of the Netherlands. However, Scheffers had a poor tournament in St. Louis by his own standards, losing in the second