NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 03: Serena Williams of the United States serves during her Women’s ... [+]
Serena Williams moved into the third round of the U.S. Open on Thursday and will next face fellow American and former U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens.
Normally such an All-American matchup on Saturday of Labor Day weekend would draw a capacity crowd in a buzz-filled Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Not so much this year at the fan-less U.S. Open.
“I know if there were fans it would be so lit, and I'm kind of sad that we're not playing in front of fans because it would be so fun,” Stephens, the 2017 Open champ and the world’s 39th-ranked player, said after her 6-2, 6-2 victory over Olga Govortsova of Belarus.
“Obviously no fans, the atmosphere won't be as big, but obviously a big opportunity to play against the greatest player in the world.”
Williams, the No. 3 seed, advanced via a 6-2, 6-4 win over Margarita Gasparyan of Russia. The match was played with the roof closed in Arthur Ashe Stadium, while played was canceled on the outdoor courts Thursday night due to rain.
After playing five straight three-set matches entering the Open, Serena has now won both matches at this event in straight sets.
Serena said she actually likes playing without fans.
“It something kind of calming about it. It’s just a little more calming, I think,” she said in her on-court interview.
Williams, who turns 39 later this month, is seeking her record-tying 24th Grand Slam title and needs five more wins to do so.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 03: Sloane Stephens of the United States returns the ball during her ... [+]
Serena is 5-1 against Stephens, but they haven’t played since 2015, also the last year they met on an outdoor hardcourt.
“She’s such a good player,” Serena said. “She’s so smooth and she looks like she’s not taking a lot of energy, and then bam there’s five winners.
“So she’s obviously won here before and she’s beaten me before so she knows how to play well. So yeah, it’s not easy.”
Since becoming a mother to daughter Olympia three years ago — Olympia turned 3 on Tuesday — Serena is 0-4 in Grand Slam finals, having lost back-to-back U.S. Open finals to Naomi Osaka and Bianca Andreescu.
Speaking on ESPN before Serena’s latest match, four-time U.S. Open champion John McEnroe said Serena remained the favorite to win the tournament but doesn’t inspire fear like she used to.
“She’s been in four Slam finals [in the last two years],” McEnroe said. “You’d think she would’ve won at least one or two of those babies but she hasn’t. She’s tightened up, which is also surprising.
“I’m not even close to being in the same league as Serena, as far as what she’s accomplished, but as you get older and you realize your days are numbered, you put a little bit more pressure on yourself. That’s only human...
“Here’s the one problem, the players aren’t as afraid of her as they used to be. That’s the issue that she’s going to have to contend with, so she’s going to have to bring her A game to win this.”
Still, Thursday’s results seemed to bode well for mothers in this year’s draw.
There were nine to start the tournament, including 37-year-old mother of three Kim Clijsters, who lost in three sets Tuesday to No. 21 Ekaterina Alexandrova.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 01: Kim Clijsters of Belgium serves during her Women's Singles first ... [+]
Five mothers had a chance to move into the third round on Thursday.
Govortsova lost, as did Patricia Țig, who fell to No. 18 Donna Vekić, 6-2, 6-1.
Victoria Azarenka, a two-time Grand Slam champion and a mom, moved into the third round with a straight-sets win over No. 5 Aryna Sabalenka.
Earlier Thursday, Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria, who had her son Alexander in April 2018, took out No. 10 seed and two-time major champion Garbine Muguruza, 7-5, 6-3.
Asked how she balances motherhood with her pro career, Pironkova said:”It's definitely not easy. I mean, it's just my first tournament back. Obviously there's a lot of challenges, but they are priorities in the first place. That would always be my son and my family and their health and happiness. I would never make a compromise with that.
“But, you know, if you make a good schedule, if you really have the right motivation, I guess you can combine the two things, motherhood and being a professional tennis player. It makes a lot of work, but everything takes work, so...”
