The final Grand Slam is the centre of attention for the best women in the tennis world this week when they head to New York for the US Open with plenty of players believing they can get their hands on the last major of the season.
Naomi Osaka won this tournament in the surreal surroundings of no spectators last year and despite her well-publicised issues she is here to attempt to win the title for the third time. So many women will be out to deny her though.
Recent Winners
2020 – Naomi Osaka
2019 – Bianca Andreescu
2018 – Naomi Osaka
2017 – Sloane Stephens
2016 – Angelique Kerber
2015 – Flavia Pennetta
2014 – Serena Williams
2013 – Serena Williams
2012 – Serena Williams
2011 – Sam Stosur
The Format
The normal Grand Slam rules apply to the women’s draw too in that 128 ladies qualify for the tournament and are placed in a knockout draw which was revealed on Friday. The entire tournament is the best of three sets with a tiebreak in the final set at 6-6 should it be needed. The winner is crowned on the second Saturday evening inside the Arthur Ashe Stadium assuming the weather cooperates.
Top Quarter
The Wimbledon champion Ash Barty still sits on top of the world rankings and she’ll head in here as the number one seed as she goes in search of back-to-back Grand Slam titles. She is in the top quarter but has never even made the quarter final here let alone go beyond that. That will give encouragement to the other seeds in this section which includes the 2020 French Open winner Iga Swiatek. The other six seeds in this quarter are Veronika Kudermetova, Karolina Muchova, Jennifer Brady, the Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, Jessica Pegula and Anett Kontaveit.
As with the men’s draw there are plenty of recognisable names among the unseeded players this fortnight and they start with the veteran Vera Zvonareva while the American pair of Shelby Rogers and Madison Brengle will both be eyeing up a strong showing. Sorana Cirstea has done some damage in the past and there is British interest in this section in the form of the teenager Emma Raducanu who made a name for herself at Wimbledon. The surprise Cincinnati finalist Jil Teichmann is also here.
Second Quarter
Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova has had a good time of it recently and has made her way up to be the fourth seed this week. She is still looking for a first Grand Slam title and might have her work cut out for it to come here. That is because the other main seed in this quarter is the 2019 champion Bianca Andreescu who will be defending a lot of ranking points here and needing to go well. The six other seeds in this section are Jelena Ostapenko, Maria Sakkari, Petra Kvitova, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova whose path to America to compete here was pretty surreal, Paula Badosa and Petra Martic.
Some young stars and players who have had good years are also in this section. America has high hopes for Caty McNally while Ajla Tomljanovic will be hoping to replicate her Wimbledon exploits here. Alison Riske has seen her ranking slip while she has been inactive so she’ll hope for a good fortnight while Anastasija Sevastova, Marta Kostyuk and Viktorija Golubic are all dangerous. Katie Boulter offers a British flavour to the section.
Third Quarter
The Olympic bronze medallist Elina Svitolina comes here off the back of a win in Chicago last week and she is one of the higher seeds in the third quarter of the draw however all eyes will be on the defending champion this week to see just what state the game of Naomi Osaka is in after we’ve not seen much of her since she pulled out of the French Open. Those two would be a pretty tasty quarter final if they get there but Daria Kasatkina, Elena Rybakina, Simona Halep, former champion Angelique Kerber, Coco Gauff and Yulia Putintseva will all be looking to ensure that match doesn’t happen.
A former champion and previous finalist head up those who aren’t seeded this week with Madison Keys and Sloane Stephens in the quarter. Kaia Kanepi, Danaya Yastremska, the Montreal champion Camila Giorgi, Caroline Garcia and Rebecca Marino are all in this section as well and all could offer up a strong showing here. Once again there is British interest in this quarter as well with Harriet Dart having made it through to here.
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Bottom Quarter
The number two seed in this tournament is Aryna Sabalenka and as such she will head up the bottom quarter for the fortnight. Her run to the semi-final at Wimbledon remains her best effort in a Grand Slam which might well keep the French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova interested this fortnight. She is the other main seed in this quarter but she isn’t bulletproof either. That might open the door for the other six seeds who are Ekaterina Alexandrova, Victoria Azarenka the beaten finalist of last year, Garbine Muguruza, Elise Mertens, Ons Jabeur and Danielle Collins.
Once again we have players who will think they can go well this week. Tamara Zidansek had a good French Open while Carla Suarez Navarro is getting plenty of respect as you would expect. Alize Cornet was the runner up to Elina Svitolina in Chicago last week so she arrives here in decent form while Donna Vekic, Irina Begu who made the final in Cleveland last week, Sara Errani and Kiki Mladenovic are all capable. Two more British players are in the draw. They are Jo Konta and Heather Watson.
Outright Betting
With the likes of Serena Williams, Sofia Kenin and Venus Williams all out of the competition and doubts over the big three with Barty having never won a hard court Slam, Sabalenka a pressure cooker waiting to explode and the issues we’ve heard all about with Osaka, there is a real open feel to the competition this year. I’m going to take a couple of players who are slightly deeper in the market to go well here. The first of those is Elena Rybakina who hits a ball as clean as anyone on the circuit and whose booming serve could be a major weapon in these conditions. Rybakina beat Garbine Muguruza in the Olympics before narrowly missing out on a medal twice but these conditions should suit her and in that third quarter where Osaka might not be ready and Svitolina might have played too much, the Kazakh looks a leading contender to me.
I’ll also have a small bet on the 2019 champion Bianca Andreescu to find her best stuff again. Although she has struggled of late, we should remember it is only five months or so ago that she made the final in Miami before pulling out after a set of that match. Andreescu is someone who goes very well on hard courts, enjoys the unique atmosphere of this tournament and has the power throughout her game to be a massive feature. Just as importantly she’s in with Karolina Pliskova in the second quarter and that isn’t a bad part of the draw to be in. There is an erratic nature to Andreescu’s game but if she can build some confidence with a couple of early wins she could take a lot of stopping.
Quarter Betting
I’m not massively keen on the quarter betting in the women’s draw either in truth but something tells me that Ash Barty is to be taken on in the top quarter with all the pressure that is on her as the number one seed this week. To be fair with five titles in the calendar year she is certainly not feeling any pressure but this tournament tends to bring it all out if there is any doing the rounds. I’m happy to take her on with the Olympic champion Belinda Bencic.
Bencic showed all her class in Tokyo when she stormed to the gold medal and I expect that to have given her a lot of confidence and belief to take into this tournament. Bencic was a quarter finalist on debut here in 2014 and made the last four two years ago before she was downed by the eventual champion Bianca Andreescu. Interestingly in that run she beat the number one seed Naomi Osaka so the big names don’t faze her. I sense the Swiss ace is ready to kick on in her career and she is capable of reaching the semi-final from this section.
Tips
Back E.Rybakina to win Women’s US Open (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 34.00 with Coral (1/2 1-2)
Back her here:
Back B.Andreescu to win Women’s US Open (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 41.00 with 888sport (1/2 1-2)
Back her here:
Back B.Bencic to win 1st Quarter for a 1/10 stake at 10.00 with BetVictor
Back her here:
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