Despite Summer Losses, Angelique Kerber Still Upbeat About US Open
Angelique Kerber hasn’t had the luckiest summer. She’s been knocked out of four tournaments in the early rounds, including New Haven.
She’s still upbeat about her chances at the US Open, where she made the semis of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career. I don’t think her summer suggests another such run, but she does seems to play better tennis when more is on the line.
Caroline Wozniacki tipped her decision to head to New Haven.
“I talked to Caroline. She won here a lot of times. She told me it’s great because everything is the same, it’s not so far, you can have a good preparation here and it’s a great place.”
I like the US series. Everything started in my career in New York two years ago, and its great to be back here. I like America and I have great memories of that time. When I reached the semis, I was like #92 in the rankings. After that, I started to believe in me. I started to practice harder, because I thought I could beat the top players and now I’m one of them. I think my fitness is improved from two years ago. I’m feeling more relaxed. I have more energy now.
On Bartoli’s Retirement:
“I was surprised because I think nobody would know that she would retire so soon after she won Wimbledon. She’s a great player and also a great personality. It’s sad to say goodbye to her.”
On meeting Steffi Graf for the first time:
“I was so nervous. I was waiting for her for 10 minutes and I was feeling like I was waiting for two hours. And then I met her and it was great. We were talking like we knew each other for the last 20 years. She’s a really great person.”
—Stephan Fogleman
Tennis Atlantic 