Rafael Nadal has not played in a Grand Slam tournament since he withdrew from Roland Garros on May 27 due to an injury in his left wrist.
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“I’m just hoping that Monday when the tournament starts I’ll be able to get as close to the maximum of executing my backhand shot as possible”, said Djokovic, who sounded a bit more optimistic than Williams on Friday.
Juan Martin del Potro has been the feel-good story of summer, as the Argentinian took silver in Rio and finally looks to be in top form following three wrist surgeries and a prolonged tour absence.
Venus and Serena Williams were the No. 1 seed in the women’s doubles tournament and had just won their 14th Grand Slam championship title at Wimbledon in July, but were beaten handily by Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strýcová of the Czech Republic in the first round. I did serve pretty well at Wimbledon this year. But for Williams to have the record all to herself, she’ll need to at least reach the semi-finals in the last major of the year, the U.S. Open.
Despite those losses, Kerber is in confident mood.
“Because Serena is one of the best players and athletes in the world”, she said. She would also pass Chris Evert for the most U.S. Open singles titles with seven.
This is the first career meeting between the top seed and the unseeded Pole in the first round of the US Open.
Williams admits that her preparations for her home Grand Slam event have been far from ideal. All she had to do to displace Williams, who had been forced to pull out of the Cincinnati with a shoulder injury, was win the title. “This is the way I would like to say goodbye to tennis”, she said.
Murray, in the opposite half of the draw to the 12-time grand slam victor, does not face Lukas Rosol until Tuesday and the Scot has downplayed the effect his rival’s injury could have on his own chances.
“Before Wimbledon it was like, just hand the trophy to Djokovic, but now it’s shifted ever so fractionally and that’s what makes it so exciting, because, if Murray wins, that’s two majors apiece this year, which hasn’t happened in a long while, and there could be a real shift of the guard happening”. A trip to Las Vegas to see Graf, her childhood idol, inspired her to new heights before an experience at the end-of-season WTA Finals proved a catalyst for her breakthrough at the Australian Open. Having won three ATP titles this year “Stan the man” made it to the semis of the French Open later this year eventually going down to the runner-up Andy Murray. “If the day will come when I reach No. 1, that would be wonderful”, said the German. “I tried to use that experience from Singapore and change my mentality”. She trains there at a tennis centre named after her which is run by her grandfather, who has been one of the biggest influences on her career. It was a freaky finish to a women’s tournament many thought they knew the ending to, as the world No. 43 Vinci met friend and countrywoman Flavia Pennetta, seeded No. 26, in an all-Italian final. “The first and most important for me being that I can compete with the best”.
Kerber has German and Polish passports. I am sure he wouldn’t be risking it if it was bad. “I’m definitely going to enjoy this”.
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“I love the question (of the number one ranking)”.
