Iga Swiatek reaches first US Open final, will face fifth seed Ons Jabeur in the semifinals
The sun had barely set when a handful of grass-hoppers, all from the US Open’s top players, came out to play one last game of tennis in San Jose on Monday night.
It was a scene of utter chaos.
The women’s singles final was on the verge of being stopped by a sudden rain shower. The men’s final, meanwhile, was about to take a sudden turn as well.
And the players didn’t stop just because the match had to be called. They pulled out their most aggressive shots to try finding an edge.
Serena Williams, the four-time US Open champion, was the first to go. She had to retire from the third set because of a knee injury, leaving Williams, Maria Sharapova and Lucie Safarova in a group of four.
As it turns out, the only thing this team of four had going for it was experience.
“Maria, Lucie and Serena are in better form than we were,” Williams said. “When you lose it is hard on everyone, including yourself. We all felt it. We knew what was happening.”
The rain came and all four players were unable to play at all. The players who were able to play, however, knew that they only had two minutes to do it for.
“That was the last thing we had to do,” Williams said. “Just to get through it.”
“Serena Williams retired with a knee injury,” Serena S. said on her way to her locker room after losing her semifinal match to Japan’s Kurumi Nara. “It’s a shame. She’s a great player.�