“I don’t want to really talk about that now”.
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Pliskova said she knew facing Serena would be “a little bit about the same match” as playing Venus.
Williams must reach the final at Flushing Meadows to have a chance of retaining top spot and would need to win that match if Kerber were her opponent.
Wozniacki whipped her best weapon, the two-handed backhand, crosscourt to keep Keys from commanding the court with her favored forehand. I still believe and feel like I’m one of the top players and grinding my way back, so that’s why I’m saying for me the ranking is just a number right now, because I’m not No. 1 and there is a long way for me right now to get back to No. 1. “I was pretty nervous in the last game, telling myself, “Please, serve, hold on for me”. and I did”.
The woman nicknamed “Sunshine” for her positive disposition played the role of buzz kill today blunting Keys’ superior power and using her quickness and consistency to drain 33 unforced errors while committing just seven errors of her own. “I think it’s just been equal love, you know, for NY and then the crowd for me since I reached the finals in 2009”, said Wozniacki, a resident of NY.
“Obviously right now I’m a little disappointed not to win today, but at the end of the day it’s been a good tournament, something I can be proud of”. She’s in confidence. When the moment is tough and both players are so close, she’s focused. I could have played awesome but still lost. She’s in good shape.
Wozniacki, a US Open finalist in 2009 and 2014 but unseeded this year after being sidelined for two months by an ankle injury, dominated and wrapped up victory in just 78 minutes on Arthur Ashe Stadium court. At the US Open Kerber won all their meetings dry.
“I know it’s tough to repeat again the same results of previous year, but I’m in the quarter-final”.
The 26-year-old former world No. 1’s quarterfinal triumph came in the wake of comments from her father, claiming retirement could be on the cards as she struggled with form and consistency in the last couple of years.
“I actually haven’t waited because people have been so sweet that they’ve let me in”, she said.
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She was criticized during her run as No. 1 for failing to win a major tournament. Still, her varied game, filled with slices and drop shots and net rushes, gave Kerber fits for most of the first set. “I definitely felt like I got off to a bad start, and then I felt like I was trying to catch up from there. I know that the court here suits me, the balls suit me, so I’m going to make the most of the opportunity that I get here”, said the Dane. “The crowd is always supporting me and is sweet to me and it helps I’ve played here in the past”. “I feel really sorry for her as I have had that injury before”, said 26-year-old Wozniacki who will now return to the top 30 as a result of her surprise run in NY. She’s a hard worker, ‘ said the Dane.
