U.S. Open: Round 2 Preview
The 2015 U.S. Open tennis tournament is proving to be all about the women. Or, rather, one woman: Serena Williams. While her chances of completing a calendar Grand Slam sweep seem likely, especially with fierce competitor Maria Sharapova out due to an injury, there are several other contenders that could give her a run for the title.
Williams breezed through round one with a swift victory over Vitalia Diatchenko (Russia). After two sets, both of which scored 6-0, Diatchenko retired from the match due to an injury. Williams is set to play Kiki Bertens (Netherlands) in the second round on Tuesday.
Like Williams, Simona Halep’s (Romania) match against Marina Erakovic (New Zealand) ended quickly after two sets – 6-3 and 2-0 – when Erakovic forfeited due to injury. Halep will meet Kateryna Bondarenko (Ukraine) for the first time in the second round on Thursday.
Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) welcomed newcomer Jamie Loeb (US) into the world of professional tennis with an easy 6-2, 6-0 win. Not only was this Loeb’s first appearance at the Open, it was her first professional tournament ever. Wozniacki will face Petra Cetkovska (Czech) in round two.
Other women worth watching are number five seed Petra Kvitova (Czech) and Belinda Bencic (Switzerland), who defeated Williams earlier this month in Toronto.
The men’s singles are shaping up to be an early cakewalk, too, with heavyweights Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic steamrolling early opponents.
Number one seed Novak Djokovic (Serbia), blew through his opponent, Joao Souza (Brazil). Djokovic gave Souza a merciless ending with all three sets stacking up in his favor 6-1. Djokovic will take on Andreas Haider-Maurer (Austria) in the second round.
Roger Federer (Switzerland), the men’s second seed, took on Leonardo Mayer (Argentina) for his first match. Federer broke a sweat with his favorite new trick –running up to the service line in response to a serve – to put Mayer our of his misery. Federer is looking to at least make it to the finals for the first time since 2009 – a year after his last US Open win. He will play Steve Darcis (Belgium) in round two.
Andy Murray took on tennis’ newest hothead, Australian Nick Kyrgios. Murray had a tougher fight than other top title contenders, but walked away with the win in a four-set match scored 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1. Unfortunately for Kyrgios, his bad attitude and lack of maturity are all anyone will remember from his performance. Murray will face Adrian Mannarino (France) in the second round.
For the men, keep a watchful eye on Rafael Nadar (Spain), seeded number 8, and last year’s Open champ, Marin Cilic (Croatia), who is seeded number 9.
Find the schedule of play here.
Watch the 2015 U.S. Open tournament live on ESPN starting at 1pm eastern.