By ADAM ZAGORIA
NEW YORK — Serena Williams skipped US Open media day on Friday to attend to her daughter, Alexis Olympia, who is “under the weather,” USTA officials said.
Despite her one-day absence, Serena remains the Vegas favorite to win the Open for a seventh time despite the fact that she hasn’t won a tournament in 2018 and is just 3-4 on outdoor hardcourts this year.
“You know, Serena is always…a favorite,” said No. 4 seed Angelique Kerber, who beat Serena in the Wimbledon final and won here in 2016. “Because, I mean, she won the tournament so many times. She knows how to play. She have so many experience to playing the big matches on big stages, and I think that this is what she’s looking for, to playing big matches in front of the crowd here at home.”
A year ago, Serena sat out the Open to give birth, which she did during the fortnight. In her absence, four American women closed out the semifinals and Sloane Stephens won the title.
Now Stephens, along with Serena, Kerber, No. 1 seed and French Open champ Simona Halep and No. 14 and US Open runner-up Madison Keys are among the favorites this year.
“She’s one of the greatest players to ever play, if not the best of our generation,” Stephens said of Serena. “I’m sure she’s ready. I’m sure she’ll have another great tournament.”
Williams has yet to win a tournament since giving birth last September, and her coach Patrick Mouratoglou insisted she stop breastfeeding in order to up her game.
“I felt the decisions were taken through the angle of the family, where before, every decision was taken through the angle of tennis,” Mouratoglou told Time magazine. “This is a big difference. Even if you are Serena, if you want to be successful in tennis, tennis has to be priority No. 1.”
Williams said it was hard to take the advice from a man.
“It’s absolutely hard to take from a guy,” Williams said. “He’s not a woman, he doesn’t understand that connection, that the best time of the day for me was when I tried to feed her. I’ve spent my whole life making everyone happy, just servicing it seems like everyone. And this is something I wanted to do.”
Tennis legend Virginia Wade, who won the first US Open of the Open Era, in 1968, says she’d love to see Serena win her 24th career Grand Slam title here, but points out that she’s got a tough draw.
Serena could meet older sister Venus Williams, the No. 16 seed, in the third round and Halep in the fourth.
“I think it would be phenomenal if she could get herself to win this tournament,” Wade said “Absolutely phenomenal. It would be a worthy win for somebody who has done so well and is such an icon. I think she’s still got a way to go to get herself into fitness, and she’s got a lousy draw. If she had a few more comfortable matches, and she didn’t waste too much energy in them, I think she could do it.
“Getting out of the box, playing tough people, playing Venus to play Halep, that’s going to be very demanding. So, listen, if she can win the tournament, I’m going to bend over backwards giving her applause because that would be a major achievement, well-deserved reward.”
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