The WTA half of the U.S. Open will not have Serena Williams or Victoria Azarenka. Meanwhile, Maria Sharapova will play after being injured for most of the summer and barely playing any live matches. Someone might think that the tournament will lack high drama, but that person hasn’t been paying attention. A lot of players have been playing well this summer, creating a U.S. Open full of highly interesting storylines.
Elina Svitolina
Svitolina rolled to the championship in Toronto, marking her third Premier 5 championship of the season without a single loss. Svitolina moved to 15-0 for the year in Premier 5 tournament matches. She put in a lot of work in Canada, so the fact that she lost early in Cincinnati should not have any meaning or relevance at all. She is 16-1 in Premier 5 events, which means she has taken on top competition and done very well. She led Simona Halep a set and 5-1 in the Roland Garros quarterfinals before losing her nerve and composure and falling in three sets. She is on the doorstep of becoming the No. 1 player in the world. She has played highly consistent tennis and has the game necessary to break through and win a Grand Slam tournament. She might not win the U.S. Open, but she has certainly put herself in very good position to win the event.
Garbine Muguruza
This is probably the favorite to win the tournament in New York. Muguruza, before entering Wimbledon, had been a very up and down player, bowing out of some tournaments early and playing really well in limited spots. Since her Wimbledon championship, however, Muguruza seems to have awakened to the idea that she can do whatever she wants on the court and control any match if she wants to. She is realizing her power and command, going to the semifinals in Stanford, the quarterfinals in Toronto, and then to the championship in Cincinnati, blowing away Karolina Pliskova and Simona Halep in the semifinals and final, respectively. Muguruza is crushing her groundstrokes, hitting her spots on her serve, getting great depth on just about every shot she hits, and covering the court. She is leaving no hole or gap or flaw for opponents to exploit. If she continues to play at this level, no one in New York will beat her. The rest of the WTA needs a letdown from her – which is possible. Nevertheless, Muguruza has set the highest standard of anyone over the past six weeks.
Sloane Stephens
Stephens, due to a prolonged injury absence, fell several hundred slots in the rankings, but by making the Toronto and Cincinnati semifinals, she has soared back into the top 90, at No. 84. She will be in the U.S. Open, and her low ranking means she will not be a seeded player, which in turn means that she will be a tough opponent for a seeded player in either the first or second rounds, possibly both. She is what is called a “dangerous floater,” someone who might not win the tournament, but who could eliminate a few top players and open the path for someone else in the tournament.
Caroline Wozniacki
The Danish star has not won a tournament this year, but she has made six finals, one of them coming in Toronto. She has been extremely consistent but has simply not been able to win that last match to get over the top. If she makes the final of the U.S. Open, though, her season will grow in quality relative to the rest of the tour. She will not be an easy out in New York.
Taking a look at her season as a whole, it hasn’t been too bad. She is 48-17 on the year and has definitely thrived on the hard courts. She is 7-2 on grass and 12-6 on clay, but is 29-9 on the hard courts. It would be a great story if she finally broke through and won her first grand slam.
Odds To Win 2017 U.S. Open
Garbine Muguruza +425
Karolina Pliskova +450
Maria Sharapova +1850
Angelique Kerber +1315
Simona Halep +915
Johanna Konta +1050
Petra Kvitova +1850
Elina Svitolina +1150
Venus Williams +1850
Jelena Ostapenko +2050
Madison Keys +1050
Coco Vandeweghe +1550
Caroline Wozniacki +1650
Agnieszka Radwanska +6550
Kristina Mladenovic +9050
Daria Kasatkina +8050
Svetlana Kuznetsova +6050
Dominika Cibulkova +9050
Belinda Bencic +14000
Sloane Stephens +2050
Anett Kontaveit +5050
Eugenie Bouchard +10000
Lucie Safarova +13000
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova +14000
Ana Konjuh +8050
Naomi Osaka +9050
Caroline Garcia +6550
Ekaterina Makarova +10000
Ashleigh Barty +12000
Marketa Vondrousova +13000
Click here to bet on tennis – including all of the major grand slams this season – and many other sports at BetDSI!
