Serena and Venus Williams saw their bid for the U.S. Open doubles title checkmated. The sisters were the overwhelming favorites despite being unseeded, but Czech duo Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka pulled off a shockingly easy 6-4, 6-2 semifinal win Friday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Serena, playing just 90 minutes after her singles semifinal win over Li Na, had been the last woman to sweep the singles and doubles titles here. But the Williamses — who have 13 Grand Slam doubles crowns, including 1999 and 2009 at the Open — had the disjointed look of a relay team with shaky handoffs, each playing well at times but not in sync, like their Czech counterparts.
Hlavackova had won the mixed doubles title earlier in the day with Max Mirnyi, and Hradecka clinched it with a forehand winner.
“I think I was a little mentally tired and I didn’t play well,” said Serena, adding with a rueful laugh, “They took advantage of our playing miserably.”
“Venus usually feeds off my energy and she didn’t do as well as she usually does, so it was obvious we didn’t play great.”
Tornado Black hasn’t played on the big courts yet as a 15-year old in the Junior Girls’ singles draw at the U.S. Open, but if she keeps up her current play, that could change soon. After a 7-6 (3), 6-4 win over Iryna Shymanovich on Friday, Black has advanced to the semifinals and will play No. 7 Antonia Lottner on Saturday. She’s two wins away from a junior singles slam title.
“It motivates me a lot because maybe one day I’ll be playing in Arthur Ashe,” said Black, who lost in the second round of the junior tournament here last year.
The Boca Raton, Fla., native entered this tournament as a wild card, but has yet to drop a set on her way to the semifinals. On Friday, she faced her toughest test yet. Shymanovich was serving for the first set, but Black broke her at love before dominating in a tie-break to win the set.
“It was [the turning point]. The same thing happened [Thursday],” she said. “This is my second U.S. Open. I want to get better, and I want to get the trophy.”
Growing up, Black idolized two of the best American female tennis players in the Williams sisters, but she has never met them.
“I was practicing next to them [Thursday], so that was pretty cool,” Black said. “I was taking selfies, and trying to get them in [the picture].”
Black is the last American girl standing in the juniors tournament, as 17-year-old Westchester native Louisa Chirico was defeated in straight sets on Friday.
Mirnyi knows how to pick a mixed doubles partner. On Friday, he won his fourth mixed doubles slam title, and first with Hlavackova as the pair beat Abigail Spears and Santiago Gonzalez, 7-6 (5), 6-3.
Mirnyi won the U.S. Open mixed title in 1998 with Serena Williams and in 2007 with Victoria Azarenka. The two women are ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the world, respectively, and will face off Sunday night for the women’s singles championship.
“Both of them were 16 years old at the time,” Mirnyi said. “No one could have predicted that they were going to have careers they’re having today and would win so many more major titles. I’m happy and proud to have been part of those moments, because I was a much older and experienced player.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation on Friday which will grant almost an acre of land to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center complex. It will allow for more tennis courts, a new space for the Grandstand stadium and fenced-in areas for safety. Improvements will also be made to infrastructure and outside seating areas on the grounds. The bigger area will also allow for about 10,000 more fans to attend the U.S. Open per day. The project, which will take several years to complete, will also create more than 1,500 new jobs.