The 2007 US Open main draw ceremony was held this morning at the Empire State building in New York City.
As expected, world number one Justine Henin leads the field as the top seed, placing her in the same quarter of the draw as 2007 Australian Open champion Serena Williams.
Henin, who won her fourth Roland Garros trophy earlier this year, will play her opening match against a qualifier.
Second seed Maria Sharapova is at the bottom of the draw and could potentially face her fellow Russian Anna Chakvetadze in the quarterfinals. Getting to the quarterfinals will not be easy for the defending champion; she could face Polish teenage sensation Agnieszka Radwanska in the third round, followed by heavy hitters Shahar Peer or Nicole Vaidisova in the fourth.
Justine Henin’s best rival of the season, third seed Jelena Jankovic, also received a tough draw and may be up against 2004 US Open finalist Elena Dementieva in the fourth round, followed by Venus Williams or Ana Ivanovic in the quarterfinals.
Serena Williams’ thumb injury kept her off the Tour for the entire summer hardcourt season, hence, she heads into the Grand Slam seeded at No. 8. That position placed her in the same quarter of the draw as Justine Henin, and she will face Germany’s Angelique Kerber in the opening round.
Two additional Grand Slam winners will also be lower seeds at the US Open.
2007 Wimbledon champion Venus Williams was seeded at No. 12, and could possibly face Ana Ivanovic in the fourth round. Despite Ivanovic’s recent form, she has never managed to win a set against the six-time Grand Slam champion.
Martina Hingis has had an injury-plagued summer and is seeded at No. 16. Ironically, she probably could not have received a better draw. If Hingis arrives in Flushing Meadows healthy, she should be able to easily set up a fourth round match against 2004 US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. Head-to-head, they are tied 2-2, with Kuznetsova victorious at their last match in Zurich last fall.
[...] be posting an overview of the draw – and how it could possibly play out for the title contenders – in the next hour or [...]
[...] (Henin Leads Field at US Open, Sharapova and Jankovic Receive Tough Draws) [...]
i was a bit worried when i saw Venus might play Ivanovic in the 4th round. then i remembered the 6-2 6-4 drubbing Vee gave her at Wimbledon. I cannot believe Serena might have to play Justine in the quarters AGAIN! i think Serena will win this time through willpower alone. my pick is Venus beating Sharapova (what do you mean tough draw? shes got a cakewalk to the final as usual, especially since Vaidisova’s been ill and Peer’s form has been pretty lousey lately) in the final.
The cakewalk won’t begin until at least after the quarters for Sharapova. . .
Shahar Peer’s results have been seesawing, but Maria has never had an easy time getting past her. I love Shahar’s game, especially on hard courts. Plus, remember she did make it to the fourth round last season before getting demolished by Henin.
I didn’t know this until I looked it up, but Vaidisova and Sharapova have never actually played each other. Nicole is almost as good a fighter as Maria (especially in 3 sets), so that could be pretty interesting if she heads into the USO healthy. Rust may come into play for Vaidisova, but Sharapova’s been battling injury after injury for most of the season.
Also, I’ve watched a lot of Maria this season, and I hate to say it, but I’ve not been impressed. At this point, I’d pick Anna Chakvetadze over her in the quarterfinals.
Venus has a pretty nasty draw as well. If she makes it past Ivanovic in the fourth, then she could get Jelena in the quarters, followed by Henin or her sister in the semis. Ouch.
As for cakewalk, take a look at Henin’s draw. She’s all but a lock on for a spot in the quarters and if Serena’s thumb is still acting up, she’s got a direct route straight to the semifinals.
Cheating, Screaching Sharapova once again has a CAKEWALK. Vaidisova hasnt played in months, Chakvetadze has proven over and over again to wilt under Maria’s decibels. granted Justine’s first two rounds are easy, but I feel she ONCE AGAIN has the hardest draw. The bottom half of the draw is like a kindergarten compared to the upper half.