Remember the old expression, “Like being a one legged person at a you know what contest.”
Or something like that.
Well, that’s what Anastasija Sevastova felt today in her Quarterfinal match against Wozniacki.
In the second game of the match, the 26 year-old slipped, fell and twisted her ankle.
“For sure it was affecting my play, but I’m not a person that likes to retire during a match, so I just tried my best,” she said. “But the movement was different. It was harder to move. And also on serve it was harder to get out of the serve. Yeah.”
She had no shot. The Great Dane was just too much and won easily 6-0, 6-2 to reach the Semifinals and a date with old friend Angelique Kerber.
“I think I was just extra focused, because I saw her fall in that second game,” Wozniacki said. “She stood up, and I knew if she can still walk and still put weight on it and stuff then she’s going to go obviously more for her shots and stuff like that.
“But I thought, cool. I kept serving well and made her run. I’m pleased with how I managed to keep composed.”
Cool and composted, that’s Wozniacki at this tournament. She saw her opponent’s weakness and exploited it to her advantage.
It got so bad, the normally pro-Woz crowd let out the biggest cheers when Sevastova won her first game late in the second set.
That didn’t make Wozniacki flinch. She knew she had the match and took care of business.
And now she will go home to her pillow in the Manhattan apartment she owns.
“I definitely do feel like I have an advantage there,” Wozniacki said. “I sleep at home in my own bed, have home-cooked food, and have my friends and family here.
“I also feel like I have a bit of a home court advantage when I step out on court. The crowd is always supporting me and is sweet to me. I think it helps I played so well here in the past. It’s just a great combination.”
When she is here, Wozniacki is like any other New Yorker, who plays tennis, of course. She trains at the McEnroe Academy on Randall’s Island and also goes to the West Side Highway’s public courts.
Of course, she does get preferential treatment, being that she’s Caroline Wozniacki.
“I actually haven’t waited because people have been so sweet that they’ve let me in,” she said. “But if I had to wait, I would. What can I do? I have to follow the rules, right?”
And now she waits two days for a date with her friend Angelique Kerber, who she knows for years. This season, Kerber is playing well above her level, something that Wozniacki isn’t thinking about, since she didn’t watch tennis when she was hurt.
“I’m really happy for her. She’s a hard worker,” Wozniacki said. “I have to watch tapes. Obviously I have had tough matches against her in the past. She’s a great competitor. She looks fit, so it’s going to be a tough one.
“I haven’t really thought about it yet. I just kind of want to enjoy this moment first.”
After today, she deserves a moment for herself.
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