WHAT HAPPENED
On Day 2 of the US Open, Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova avoided being the highest ranked women’s player to lose with a comeback win over unheralded American Katie Volynets on Monday.
After a ragged and slow start, the No. 6 seed won 11 of the last 12 games to move on with a comfortable 7-5, 6-1 victory. After the first set took 73 minutes, the Czech right-hander raced through the second set in 24 minutes.
Equally fortunate was the decision by tournament organizers to move the match from an outside court to Louis Armstrong Stadium with the roof closed as late afternoon rain caused scattered delays throughout the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center grounds.
No. 78 ranked Volynets looked poised to score her biggest career win and her first ever at the US Open as she raced out to a 5-2 lead. Many times Noskova was her own worst enemy, making 29 unforced errors.
"The first set was horrible for me," Noskova admitted in her on-court interview. "It’s never easy to stay positive but somehow I turned it around."
Noskova started the comeback by breaking serve in the next game. She dug deeper in the next game, escaping two set points on her serve to finally hold on her second game point to get to 4-5.
However, it was not smooth sailing quite yet for the hard-hitting Noskova. Serving at 5-5, she was extended to five deuces, saving five break points before holding to finally grab her first lead of the match at 6-5.
Noskova kept a firm grip on the match the rest of the way, running out to a 5-0 final set lead before Volynets got back on the scoreboard.
“The second set was much more like myself,” said Noskova.
WHAT IT MEANS
The Flushing Meadows hard courts have not been easy for the 21-year-old Noskova. Today’s win leveled her career US Open record at 4-4, with her best result the third round last year.
The Czech struggled in the summer hard-court tournaments, losing in the second round in Toronto and the fourth round at Cincinnati. Her best showing on hard courts this season was the Indian Wells semifinals.
MATCH POINT
There is a very long way to go for Noskova to do what only two other Czech born women have done at the US Open—and that is winning the title. The legendary Martina Navratilova won here four times (1983, ‘84, ‘86, ‘87) and Hana Mandlikova put her name on the champions’ trophy in 1985, beating Navratilova in the final.
