No Warm Welcome for Serena Williams in WTA Cincinnati Draw: Preview

Serena is back, but gets a rude hello in Cincinnati where she will be tested from the get-go.
ADHEREL
A number of seeds receive early-round testers in a field loaded with unseeded landmines including Serena, former world No. 2 Aggie Radwanska, Johanna Konta, former No. 1 Victoria Azarenka, former No. 2 Svetlana Kuznetsova, and US Open semifinalist CoCo Vandeweghe.

WESTERN & SOUTHERN OPEN
CINCINNATI, Ohio; Surface: hard

Seeds: Simona Halep, Caroline Wozniacki, Sloane Stephens, Angelique Kerber, Elina Svitolina, Caroline Garcia, Garbine Muguruza, Petra Kvitova, Karolina Pliskova, Julia Goerges, Jelena Ostapenko, Daria Kasatkina, Madison Keys, Elise Mertens, Ashleigh Barty, Naomi Osaka

Floaters: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, (WC) Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Aggie Radwanska, Johanna Konta, (WC) Victoria Azarenka, Daria Gavrilova, Serena Williams, Magdalena Rybarikova, (WC) Svetlana Kuznetsova, Kiki Bertens, CoCo Vandeweghe

Notes:

Sixteen of the Top 16 were in attendance prior to Venus Williams’ late injury withdrawal, and the Top 8 seeds receive opening-round byes…

Tough starts for (4) Kerber vs. Pavlyuchenkova who she is 6-6 career against, the wrist-addled (13) Keys vs. (WC) Mattek-Sands in an all-American, (9) Pliskova vs. Radwanska (winner to meet Konta), (6) Garcia vs. (WC) Azarenka, (8) Kvitova vs. the Serena-Gavrilova winner, (15) Mertens vs. Rybarikova who she has a losing record against, (5) Svitolina vs. (WC) Kuznetsova, and (2) Wozniacki vs. the Bertens-Vandeweghe winner…

Wildcards were awarded to Americans Amanda Anisimova and Mattek-Sands, Azarenka, Kuznetsova, and Czech Marketa Vondrousova…

Withdrawing from the field were Mihaela Buzarnescu, Dominika Cibulkova, Maria Sharapova, Venus Williams and Zhang Shuai…

Muguruza beat Halep 6-1, 6-0 in last year’s final…

Former champs in the field are Muguruza (2017), Pliskova (2016), Serena Williams (2015-14), and Azarenka (2013).

 

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