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[VIDEO] “Pretty mad at her for not showing up at my match”: Caroline Wozniacki about Serena Williams snub after US Open win

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Caroline Wozniacki and Serena Williams

Caroline Wozniacki and Serena Williams are former rivals but also close friends. So when the latter arrived on site at the US Open, it seemed likely that she was going to watch the Dane in action.

But instead Williams was seen on Arthur Ashe watching Jannik Sinner and also Tommy Paul play. This jokingly annoyed Wozniacki. The former World No.1 sealed passage through to the Last 16.
“I hope so. I’m gonna text her. I’m pretty mad at her for not showing up at my match I saw she was watching Tommy. We have to talk about that a bit later,” said Wozniacki post match.
Caroline Wozniacki and Serena Williams

JUST IN : Jannik Sinner reacts to Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz’s shock US Open exits after statement win

She defends her points that she accrued on her return last year and has battled a pretty open section of the draw. With Elena Rybakina falling by the wayside, Wozniacki has had it pretty comfortable and likely will until the latter stages.
But still a player no doubt looking to the end not the start, she wasn’t sure on her plans for the rest of the season but presumably may even prolong it if results continue.
She infamously took off the rest of the 2023 season after making her return which in a hunt for ranking points isn’t exactly the best move. As well as all the drama surrounding wildcards. But now putting that behind her, she is thriving again.

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TENNIS

Coco Gauff makes admission about ‘collapsing mentally on court’ ahead of Emma Navarro rematch

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Coco Gauff US Open

Coco Gauff came through a tough three-setter against Elina Svitolina to set up a fascinating rematch with Emma Navarro at the US Open and she acknowledged ahead of the clash that she will “need to bring it and mentally”.

Defending champion Gauff made a sluggish start against Svitolina in the third round as she looked to be on her way out after she lost the first set and found herself break point down in the second set.

But she held her serve and broke in the sixth game before dominating the deciding set for a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory in what was her 10th consecutive win at the US Open.

Coco Gauff Emma Navarro US Open

READ: Iga Swiatek admits she ‘doesn’t feel safe’ as ‘hate’ flows in her direction

Up next is fellow American Navarro, who defeated Gauff at Wimbledon just over a month ago.

The 20-year-old was world No 2 at the time and was the heavy favourite, but she was never at the races as her compatriot came away with a 6-4, 6-2 win.

“With Emma, I feel like that match at Wimbledon I think I mentally just literally collapsed on the court. I was very frustrated, and she played well. That was, I think to me, the best tennis she played, like that tournament,” she explained.

“Obviously, I didn’t see her first round, but I watched a little bit her second and third. I think that was like the best she played that week.

“Yeah, so I think going into this match, I have to expect her to play her best tennis, and I just need to know that I need to bring it and mentally be there from the beginning to the end because she’s going to be a tough opponent.”

Gauff is looking to become the first player since Serena Williams won three in a row from 2012 to 2014 to successfully defend her title.

But she knows there is still a long way to go in the tournament and needs to keep the expectations to a minimum.

“At the end of the day, to defend would be great,” the third seed said. “But I feel like it’s an unnecessary amount of pressure to put that on yourself. When you step on the court, you just have that feeling. It’s like, ‘OK, I know I can perform really well here. I’ve done it before in the past, and I’ll do it again.’

“That’s been my motto. I know I have the chance to do it again, whether it happens 2024 or years in the future, I think I have the belief that I will do it again.”

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TENNIS

Iga Swiatek joins Serena Williams and other legends with two stellar achievements at US Open

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Iga Swiatek Serena Williams US Open

Iga Swiatek achieved two impressive feats that highlight her immense success and consistency with her opening round victory at the 2024 US Open.

The world No 1 earned a hard-fought 6-4, 7-6(6) win against world No 104 Kamilla Rakhimova on Arthur Ashe Stadium to begin her quest to win a second US Open title.

Swiatek was broken when serving for the match at 5-3 in the second set and won five straight points after trailing 3-6 in the tiebreak — saving three set points in the process — to prevail.

Iga Swiatek's US Open peaks with overdue Serena Williams meeting, selfie

READ: Iga Swiatek stands firm on ‘crazy’ scheduling comments and insists tennis is going in the wrong direction

The Polish star is seeking her sixth Grand Slam title, having won the French Open in four of the last five years and the US Open in 2022.

“At the beginning [it was] good, but then I got a little bit tight and my opponent used that, so I was trying to get back to my game,” Swiatek said in a post-match interview. “I’m pretty sure that day by day I’m going to get more rhythm.”

With her opening round triumph at Flushing Meadows, Swiatek became the fifth-youngest woman in the Open Era to win 20 consecutive Grand Slam first round matches at 23 years and 88 days.

Swiatek started the streak at the 2019 US Open after suffering the only opening round exit in her major career at the 2019 Wimbledon Championships.

Maria Sharapova is the youngest player to win 20 straight opening round women’s singles Grand Slam opening round encounters, having achieved this at the age of 21 years and 37 days.

Caroline Wozniacki (21 years, 321 days), Lindsay Davenport (21 years, 351 days) and Gabriela Sabatini (22 years, 247 days) are the only other woman to accomplish this at a younger age than Swiatek.

In addition, Swiatek’s win was her 80th Grand Slam victory in her 97th match and only two tennis legends have reached this milestone in fewer matches this century.

Serena Williams earned 80 wins from her first 93 major singles matches, while Venus Williams achieved this in 94 matches.

Swiatek will face world No 217 Ena Shibahara, a 26-year-old Japanese qualifier, in the second round on Thursday.

Shibahara struck 57 winners during her three-set win over Daria Saville, which is the highest number any player hit in the first round of the women’s singles event in New York.

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TENNIS

Iga Swiatek leads Serena Williams with sensational record highlighting her WTA 1000 excellence

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Iga Swiatek Serena Williams WTA 1000

Iga Swiatek has improved a stunning statistic that demonstrates her remarkable consistency at WTA 1000 tournaments by reaching the semi-finals in Cincinnati.

The world No 1 won an enthralling first encounter with 17-year-old Russian star Mirra Andreeva 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 in the quarter-finals in Cincinnati.

Following her win against the world No 24, Swiatek said: “She’s playing and behaving like she’s older.

“I felt like we were playing at a similar level. It was really tight. Every point mattered at the end. It wasn’t easy.”

Tennis: Swiatek on why she has never spoken to Serena Williams

JUST IN: Why Carlos Alcaraz’s shock Cincinnati defeat could boost his bid for US Open glory

Swiatek will face world No 3 Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-finals in Cincinnati in what will be the pair’s 12th meeting. She holds an 8-3 record against her Belarusian rival and won their two previous encounters this season.

The Polish great is through to her 17th WTA 1000 level semi-final and she holds the record for the highest percentage of last four appearances at this category of tournament.

Here are the five players with the highest rate of WTA 1000 semi-finals reached since the format was introduced in 2009.

1. Iga Swiatek – 17 semi-finals from 31 appearances (54.8%)

Swiatek is playing the 31st WTA 1000 event of her career in Cincinnati and she has reached the last four or better in 54.8% of her appearances.

The 23-year-old has won 10 WTA 1000 titles from her previous 30 tournaments at this level and is looking to triumph in Cincinnati for the first time.

2. Serena Williams – 26 semi-finals from 49 appearances (53.1%)

Serena Williams progressed to 26 semi-finals at the 49 WTA 1000 tournaments she competed in, giving her a 53.1% semi-final rate.

The American legend won 13 WTA 1000 titles after the category came into force.

=3. Maria Sharapova – 22 semi-finals from 50 appearances (44%)

Maria Sharapova made 22 last four appearances from the 50 WTA 1000 events she featured in, giving her a 44% semi-final rate.

The Russian great claimed eight WTA 1000 titles from 2009 onwards.

=3. Ashleigh Barty – 11 semi-finals from 25 appearances (44%)

Ashleigh reached the semi-finals at 11 of the 25 WTA 1000 tournaments she played, which equates to 44% — an identical percentage to Sharapova.

The Australian icon secured three WTA 1000 titles.

5. Simona Halep – 29 semi-finals from 86 appearances (33.7%)

Simona Halep has advanced to 29 WTA 1000 semi-finals from her 86 appearances at this level to date, leaving her with a 33.7% last four rate.

The Romanian star has collected nine WTA 1000 titles so far in her career.

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TENNIS

Iga Swiatek closes in on Serena Williams record after opening Cincinnati win

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Iga Swiatek Serena Williams Cincinnati Open

Iga Swiatek could be in line to break a Serena Williams record after surviving a second-set wobble to reach round three at the Cincinnati Open.

After receiving a round one bye, Swiatek saw off French qualifier Varvara Gracheva 6-0, 6-7(8), 6-2 to keep her quest for a first title at the tournament alive.

However, the scoreline, while showing it was a battle at stages, does not tell the full story outright.

French Open 2022: Iga Swiatek takes down Serena Williams record - Yahoo Sport

READ: Iga Swiatek makes ‘scary’ admission as she highlights concerning tennis issue

The world No 1 led 6-0, 5-2 at one stage and held five match points in the second set, though was pegged back and forced into a decider.

But the five-time major winner held her ground and bounced back in the decider to set up a round three clash versus 15th seed Marta Kostyuk.

“Honestly, I knew I had the game to win it because I had five match points,” she said on court afterwards.

“It was my fault that I didn’t close it – but it happens.

“I didn’t want to have any regrets. I looked forward and tried to take a lesson from what happened and start playing differently, in the same way I played the beginning of the match.”

Victory for Swiatek continues her fine form at WTA 1000 events in 2024, with four titles at that level to her name coming into Cincinnati.

The Pole was triumphant at Doha, Indian Wells, Madrid, and Rome, and other strong results include a semi-final run in Dubai.

She now has 28 wins at that level this season, eclipsing her previous best total of 27 from 2023.

And that has put her in striking distance of Williams’ record for most WTA 1000 wins in an individual calendar year.

The American picked up a staggering 36 WTA 1000 match wins in 2013, in one of the most impressive seasons of her legendary career.

However, Swiatek now has a genuine chance of beating that tally.

The world No 1 has an opportunity to potentially pick up another four wins in Cincinnati – hypothetically winning the title in the process – and then has two more WTA 1000 events to play in 2024.

Swiatek will go into the China Open as the defending champion in September, before the return of the Wuhan Open the following week.

Meanwhile, the 23-year-old also extended her current record for the highest percentage of sets won 6-0 at WTA 1000 tournaments.

Swiatek has now picked up a bagel in 11.2% of sets she has played at WTA 1000s, well ahead of the likes of Williams, Victoria Azarenka, and Garbine Muguruza in the all-time standings.

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