As we reach the pointy end of a rather soggy US Open, Brissy girl done good Sam Stosur has a second shot at becoming the first Australian woman to win a Grand Slam since Evonne Goolagong Cawley in 1980.
And while I’m quietly excited about the prospect, I’ve never been the biggest Stosur advocate. Not to put myself in the same category as the media pundits who love to make character assassinations of our sports stars.
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But my issue is that Stosur seems to surrender too easily.
She’s strong, and tough, and has worked super hard over the years to solidify her place in the top 10. But on the big stage Stosur appears to capitulate once a match isn’t going her way; firing off erratic shots; making a ton of unforced errors and noticeably dropping her shoulders.
It’s almost as though you can see her self belief flickering out, which is incredibly frustrating given she looks like someone with plenty of fight.
She certainly came out swinging against Vera Zvonereva (2) on Friday, after a highly disruptive week. As bad weather wreaked havoc on the tournament, Stosur was forced to cool her heels for four days – meaning she could have been forgiven for having a slight dose of cabin fever.
But she took just 67 minutes to dispose of the Russian champ with military precision, before going on to break the heart of unseeded finalist Angelique Kerber.
2011 has been a particularly see-sawing year for the Queenslander. Early exits at both Wimbledon and the French Open took their toll, as the doubters began to question if she was even capable of making another final after Roland Garros in 2010.
But at the eleventh hour, Stosur has pulled her game – and her mindset – together and will now meet Serena Williams in the trophy round.
Williams, herself a three-time winner at Flushing Meadows, has left a trail of destruction in her wake over the past fortnight and, while Stosur has played a handful of three setters, Williams has breezed through in straight sets.
Despite coming into the tournament ranked 28, Williams dropped just three games during her first two matches.
But Williams’ ranking has mattered little. She has barely been troubled by her opponents and sent Caroline Wozniacki (1) back to the dressing room yesterday with little more than a whimper.
And just to keep things interesting, the notoriously hard-hitter surprised Wozniacki by charging to the net on 21 occasions, as well as flaunting her usual baseline strength.
Stosur is 2-4 against Williams in her career, including last year’s French Open quarters when Stosur signed Williams’ exit card with an 8-6 third set win.
If she is to challenge in this match, Stosur will need to hit the ball cleanly, throw herself behind Williams’ serve and keep her nerve – right to the end.
In the men’s draw, the awesome foursome have done it again. While John Isner (28) and Janko Tipsarevic (20) were welcome inclusions into the men’s quarterfinals, the semis were ultimately fought out between the best four in the business.
Nadal farewelled Murray (again) in four, while Federer pushed Djokovic to five thrilling sets before the Serbian sealed the last 7-5.
The match did get dangerously close to curtains in the fourth when Federer notched up back-to-back match points. But it wasn’t to be, and Fed will be sans Grand Slam this year for the first time since 2002.
With the Wimbledon and Australian Open trophies already won this year, Djokovic has certainly earned his favouritism for the championship match.
However, Rafa does has have a prolific history at Flushing Meadows and, if victorious, will equal Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver with an astonishing 11 Grand Slam titles.
I give it to Nadal in five.
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