Very early this morning Mountain Standard Time, Victoria Azarenka maintained her number one ranking with the defense of her title at the Australian Open. For the Americans, the theme of the tournament was hope and change – led by Serena Williams and Sloane Stephens. There is hope that the change in American women’s tennis will include players who have the potential to consistently play at the level of the Williams sisters.
Oddly enough, Taylor Townsend was absent. As the 2012 junior winner, Townsend was given an automatic slot in the qualifying tournament for the Open; however, she reportedly did not enter the event because the USTA did not provide sponsorship funding. (Last fall, the USTA chose to stop funding her because she was “out of shape.”)
The Americans were represented by 3 junior girls and 11 women.
Junior Girls
Overall, it was a weak performance for the girls (3-3).
First Round
Jamie Loeb and Alexandra Kiick won their first round matches.
Christina McHale lost in the first round.
Second Round
Kiick advanced and Loeb was defeated.
Third Round
Kiick lost to eventual champion Ana Konjuh.
Women’s Open
Overall, the 11 American women won 14 matches and lost 11. Serena and Venus Williams accounted for 6 of the 14 wins and Sloane Stephens added another five victories.
First Round
Jamie Hampton, Varvara Lepchenko, Serena Williams, Sloane Stephens, and Venus Williams won their first round matches.
Lauren Davis, Christina McHale, Vania King, Melanie Oudin, Coco Vandeweghe, and Madison Keys lost their first round matches.
Second Round
Jamie Hampton, Serena Williams, Sloane Stephens, and Venus Williams won their second round matches.
Varvara Lepchenko lost in the second round.
Third Round (Round of Sixteen)
Serena Williams and Sloane Stephens won their third round matches.
Jamie Hampton and Venus Williams lost their third round matches.
Quarterfinals
Stephens upset Williams in the best win of her career.
Semifinals
Stephens was ousted by Azarenka.
Stephens demonstrated that she may have the ability to follow in the footsteps of the Williams sisters.
Unfortunately the other “talent” appears to be several notches below Stephens. The other unknown in the equation is Taylor Townsend. It seems rather bizarre that the USTA would drop sponsorship of her at a time when she was number 1 in the world in juniors. Hopefully that situation can be resolved to the benefit of all parties.