Wozniacki Recovers From Slow Start To Upset Kuznetsova At US Open
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) — Two-time US Open runner-up Caroline Wozniacki has defeated a top-10 opponent for the first time in nearly a year, bouncing back from a horrid start to beat 2004 Open champ Svetlana Kuznetsova.
The ninth-seeded Kuznetsova won the first four games of the match and was one point from going up 5-0. Then Wozniacki ran off seven straight games en route to a 6-4, 6-4 victory in the second round Wednesday at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, Queens.
Wozniacki's ranking fell to 74th after an ankle injury and on-court struggles, Wozniacki is unseeded at the US Open for the first time since her debut in 2007. She had won two matches at the same tournament just once since early March.
It's Wozniacki's first trip to the third round at a major since Wimbledon last year.
Meanwhile Wednesday, defending champ Novak Djokovic moved on to the third round of the US Open when his opponent withdrew before their match Wednesday. The top-ranked Djokovic had faced a potentially tricky matchup with Jiri Vesely, who defeated him last spring in their only meeting.
But a couple of hours before they would have taken the court, Vesely pulled out because of left forearm inflammation.
Djokovic has been dealing with some arm troubles of his own. He said he hurt his left wrist a few days before the start of the Olympics, where he lost in the first round to Juan Martin del Potro. That injury also kept him from playing at Cincinnati.
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Then in Monday's four-set victory over Jerzy Janowicz, Djokovic received treatment on his right arm during the opening set. He repeatedly winced and shook out the arm, his serves far slower than usual.
After dropping a set in his opening match at a major for the first time since 2010, Djokovic didn't want to talk about what was going on with his arm.
Vesely beat Djokovic 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 on clay in Monte Carlo in April. At the time, Djokovic hadn't lost a completed match since November.
Djokovic will face 51st-ranked Guido Pella or No. 61 Mikhail Youzhny in the third round Friday.
Earlier, 2015 women's runner-up Roberta Vinci cruised into the third round for the sixth straight year.
The seventh-seeded Italian beat American Christina McHale 6-1, 6-3 on Wednesday. Vinci needed just 22 minutes to win the first set.
The 55th-ranked McHale was trying to reach the third round at the US Open for the third time.
Vinci stunned Serena Williams in last year's semifinals to thwart her bid for the first Grand Slam since 1988, then lost to countrywoman Flavia Pennetta in the final.
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