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Sunday, September 4, 2011
Ana Ivanovic has won the French Open, reached the final of the Australian Open and the semis of Wimbledon but has never reached the quarters of the US Open.
The engaging Serbian has a shot to do so this year, but her foe in the fourth round will be Serena Williams, who has come into the tournament as the favorite and now looks like an even heavier one after she knocked out No. 4 Victoria Azarenka in the third round.
Ivanovic, who bested the admittedly nervous U.S. teen Sloane Stephens, 6-3, 6-3, behind a barrage of searing forehands, has not hit her top form yet but said she's feeling more comfortable on court under her coach of six weeks, Nigel Sears, and isn't planning on laying down for Serena.
“She can play well,” Ivanovic said. "If opponent does play well, you can't do much about them. You congratulate them and move on. I think that's a big part of the game of Serena and Venus, as well; they do intimidate players. That's something that I expect that's how they approach. I have my ways of approaching match. I know what they have got. So I'm going to try and match that, you know, and do better. But if they play well, all credit to them.”
The Serbian realizes she'll have to play better than she has all year if she is to upend Williams. She's had some bright spots in 2012, but she's also suffered injuries, changed her team, fiddled with her strokes and endured crises of confidence. But she has had a decent summer on U.S. hard courts, reaching the semifinals of San Diego, and while her service toss is still frequently fluttering away from her, she's hitting her money shots more consistently, which makes her a very dangerous foe.
“I think with all the work I've done, you do gain confidence,” said the 23-year-old, who has reunited with her trainer, Scott Byrnes. “Obviously when you win, you have more confidence, you enjoy competing much more. That's something that I gain back. It makes a big difference because you don't doubt so much when you step on the court and you can play a lot freer.”
While much of the crowd rooted for home-country girl Stephens, Ivanovic's enthusiasm was infectious. After breaking Stephens to 4-3 in the second set by short-hopping a pretty forehand down the line, she jumped up, twirled twice, fist pumped, nearly started dancing and then broke into her huge smile. Playing on the big stage on Ashe Stadium and showing off her best stuff felt very nice.
"I was a little bit excited," she said with a laugh. “It was emotional. And the crowd really got behind us. It was a lot of excitement, a lot of build up. I think it was a great rally. We were hitting the ball so well. To finish the point on that note and on a shot like that, it was really exciting… It's exciting to be back in the mix and to challenge top players.”
Ivanovic called confronting Serena a huge test, and it certainly will be. The Serbian has a tremendous forehand return when she has her feet set, but in order to attack Serena's serve, she's going to have to get her racquet on the ball, which won't be easy, given how big Williams serves and how adeptly she places the ball.
The 16th seed can hurt Serena if she can control the point with her forehand, but Williams' down-the-line game is so strong that it will be hard for Ivanovic to plant in her favored left-hand corner for very long. She's going to have to do everything well to win, and even then it might not be good enough, but she's quite pleased to have a shot, and sometimes that's all a player can ask for.
“I'm actually very, very excited about it,“ said Ivanovic, who has reached the fourth round of a major for the first time this year. ”Just happy to have the opportunity to be in the second week. You know, it's been awhile. I just want to go out there and enjoy and be competitive.”
The engaging Serbian has a shot to do so this year, but her foe in the fourth round will be Serena Williams, who has come into the tournament as the favorite and now looks like an even heavier one after she knocked out No. 4 Victoria Azarenka in the third round.
Ivanovic, who bested the admittedly nervous U.S. teen Sloane Stephens, 6-3, 6-3, behind a barrage of searing forehands, has not hit her top form yet but said she's feeling more comfortable on court under her coach of six weeks, Nigel Sears, and isn't planning on laying down for Serena.
“She can play well,” Ivanovic said. "If opponent does play well, you can't do much about them. You congratulate them and move on. I think that's a big part of the game of Serena and Venus, as well; they do intimidate players. That's something that I expect that's how they approach. I have my ways of approaching match. I know what they have got. So I'm going to try and match that, you know, and do better. But if they play well, all credit to them.”
The Serbian realizes she'll have to play better than she has all year if she is to upend Williams. She's had some bright spots in 2012, but she's also suffered injuries, changed her team, fiddled with her strokes and endured crises of confidence. But she has had a decent summer on U.S. hard courts, reaching the semifinals of San Diego, and while her service toss is still frequently fluttering away from her, she's hitting her money shots more consistently, which makes her a very dangerous foe.
“I think with all the work I've done, you do gain confidence,” said the 23-year-old, who has reunited with her trainer, Scott Byrnes. “Obviously when you win, you have more confidence, you enjoy competing much more. That's something that I gain back. It makes a big difference because you don't doubt so much when you step on the court and you can play a lot freer.”
While much of the crowd rooted for home-country girl Stephens, Ivanovic's enthusiasm was infectious. After breaking Stephens to 4-3 in the second set by short-hopping a pretty forehand down the line, she jumped up, twirled twice, fist pumped, nearly started dancing and then broke into her huge smile. Playing on the big stage on Ashe Stadium and showing off her best stuff felt very nice.
"I was a little bit excited," she said with a laugh. “It was emotional. And the crowd really got behind us. It was a lot of excitement, a lot of build up. I think it was a great rally. We were hitting the ball so well. To finish the point on that note and on a shot like that, it was really exciting… It's exciting to be back in the mix and to challenge top players.”
Ivanovic called confronting Serena a huge test, and it certainly will be. The Serbian has a tremendous forehand return when she has her feet set, but in order to attack Serena's serve, she's going to have to get her racquet on the ball, which won't be easy, given how big Williams serves and how adeptly she places the ball.
The 16th seed can hurt Serena if she can control the point with her forehand, but Williams' down-the-line game is so strong that it will be hard for Ivanovic to plant in her favored left-hand corner for very long. She's going to have to do everything well to win, and even then it might not be good enough, but she's quite pleased to have a shot, and sometimes that's all a player can ask for.
“I'm actually very, very excited about it,“ said Ivanovic, who has reached the fourth round of a major for the first time this year. ”Just happy to have the opportunity to be in the second week. You know, it's been awhile. I just want to go out there and enjoy and be competitive.”
WTA PLAYERS AT US OPEN 2011
Christina McHale, USA of Cuban background
Flavia Panetta, Italy
Shuai Peng, China
Maria Kirilenko, Russia
Samantha Stosur, Australia
Christina McHale, USA of Cuban background
Flavia Panetta, Italy
Shuai Peng, China
Maria Kirilenko, Russia
Samantha Stosur, Australia
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