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Wimbledon was also sneakily surprising, with no fewer than 17 seeded players eliminated in the first round (across men and women). Up to this point, this year’s rain-interrupted US Open has surprisingly maintained the status quo, with only four seeded ladies eliminated in completed first-round clashes. Here is my personal ranking for the women’s four biggest first-round casualties.
4. Taylor Townsend bt Maja Chwalinska (20) (6-2, 6-3)
The fact that this result crept onto the list tells you just how uneventful the first round has been. Defensive counterpuncher Maya Chwalinska produced one of the true Cinderella stories of this year’s tour, using those moonballs and her court-craft to reach a truly unexpected Grand Slam final in Paris. But she went 1-4 in her subsequent four outings, making the prospect of a deep New York all but impossible. American serve-and-volley specialist Taylor Townsend- who was rocking a custom-made J. Bolin kit- took the nuggety baseliner to task, overpowering the Pole in a one-sided 6-2, 6-3 win. As I said, it was hard to fill this final spot.
3. Cristina Busca bt Sara Bejlek (28) (7-5, 4-6, 6-1)
Thus far, this hasn’t been the greatest tournament for Czech tennis (men or women). Sara Bejiek was on everybody’s radar following that giant-killing semifinal run in Cincinnati (she accounted for the likes of Sabalenka, Keys and Alexandrova). I thought the all-action counterpuncher could use her awkward lefty serve to open up these New York courts. Conversely, nothing much was expected from Spanish baseliner Cristina Busca, who had gone 3-10 since claiming the Merida Open title in March. But Busca had other ideas, outduelling the pugnacious Bejlek in a good old-fashioned grind-fest. Bejlek appeared to get frustrated with Busca’s stubborn consistency, coughing up an alarming 48 unforced errors to contribute to her own demise.
2. Kamilla Rakhimova bt Barbora Krejcikova (27) (7-6, 6-2)
Two-time Grand Slam champion Barbora Krejikova was the first female seed to perish, losing to Rakhimova in straight sets to bring her awful Grand Slam season to a close (she suffered three first-round losses this year). Uzbekistani Rakhimova played solid, clean tennis against a jaded Krecikova, forcing the Czech into uncharacteristic errors with her penetrative groundstrokes. This match clocked in at nearly two hours, as Krejcikova saved six match-points in a marathon final game. Krejcikova probably felt a twinge of déjà vu, having saved eight match points before beating Taylor Townsend to progress to last year’s quarterfinals. But Rakhimova kept her composure, burying the Czech at the 7th time of asking. Krejcikova – who will crash out of the top 50 at the end of the tournament- needs to take some time away from the game to clear her mind.
1. Yulia Putintseva bt Belinda Bencic (12) (4-6, 7-5, 6-3)
Another slam, another Belinda Bencic disappointment. A perennial nearly-woman on the Grand Slam circuit, Bencic always seems to get in her own way on the biggest stage. To be fair, gutsy Putintseva is never the nicest opponent to draw in the early rounds. The Kazakh journeywoman is a noted disruptor, using her strong return game to harry the more decorated players. Former US Open semi-finalist Bencic got off to a solid enough start, claiming the first set 6-4. But the Kazakh underdog just chipped away at Bencic’s fragile serve and even more fragile mentality, winning the 2nd set to take the match into a decider. Bencic totally collapsed during the final 15 minutes of the match, handing Putintseva the match with a deflating double-fault. In the process, Bencic became the first top 20 casualty in the women’s draw.
