Tennis Atlantic

Monica Puig A Certain Fan Favorite in Flushing Meadows #USOpen

What a great year for Monica Puig.

And it’s not over yet.

With a 30-19 record, Puig cracked the top 50 recently. She’s seen the Round of 16 at Wimbledon and the Semis in Marseille this on the summer tour. The two-time Junior Grand Slam finalist is ready to do it for real now. At #53, she’s poised for a great US Open and an even better 2014. We got a chance to speak with the San Juan and Miami resident after she beat Caroline Garcia to qualify for New Haven. Remember, she already beat Sara Errani at Wimbledon and Errani was the #1 seed at New Haven.

With no US Open points to defend, a win or two in Flushing Meadows next week will see her reaching the top 40.

Here’s Puig on Puerto Rico, her year to date and her ultimate goals:

Tell me about Puerto Rico. And you’ve got some fans here in New Haven!

I love Puerto Rico. Everything about it is so beautiful. The support is great. The amount of love and attention that I get is very special for me.

Expecting the same level of fan support in NYC?

I expect probably a little bit more. I understand several of my family members are going and a lot more people and there are a lot of Puerto Ricans in New York. I’m really looking forward to that.

Why is is that some people don’t always associate you with US tennis?

I mean, we’re a USTA section. We’re in the Caribbean section. I think since Puerto Rico is it’s own country, everybody always just thinks its Puerto Rico. I’m really happy representing Puerto Rico right now.

Her ultimate goals are bold and simple: “My career goal is to win a bunch of grand slams and be #1.”

—Stephan Fogleman