By Chris Oddo | Sunday August 27, 2017
The last major of 2017 is upon us. Each day we’ll run down a few key numbers for you to gulp down with your coffee. Here’s today’s stipend.
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0-6
Simona Halep’s lifetime record against Maria Sharapova. The Romanian will face the Russian in the first night session match on Arthur Ashe Stadium. It’s a tough draw for both players, and while the head-to-head favors Sharapova, she has struggled with form and only completed one WTA match since May. She’s not exactly a fine-tuned machine at this stage of her career.
That said—we all know she’s dangerous in any form.
Halep appears to be taking the tricky draw in stride. She must know that this will be a golden opportunity to finally get on the board against Sharapova. She’s in much better form, having won 39 of 51 matches on the season.
“It's going to be a big challenge, first round of Grand Slam to face her,” Halep said on Saturday. “She beat me six times. So maybe I will change this. We will see Monday. I just want to do my best, to try to win the match and of course to enjoy it. It's a big, big match.”
7
Darian King of Barbados snapped a string of seven failed qualifying attempts at majors by reaching his first Grand Slam main draw in New York. He will be the first player from Barbados to play a Grand Slam main draw match when he meets No.4-seeded Alexander Zverev on Monday.
Win or lose that's cause for celebration.
19
Venus Williams will make her 19th appearance at the U.S. Open, which is good for third all-time behind only Chris Evert (21) and Amy Frazier (20). More remarkable is the fact that her first round opponent, Viktoria Kuzmova, was not even born when the elder Williams sister made her U.S. Open debut in 1998.
0
No ATP player has won an Open Era U.S. Open without dropping a set. Roger Federer has won the Australian Open without the loss of a set. Rafael Nadal has won Roland Garros three times without the loss of a set, and Federer won Wimbledon this year without losing a set. There have been others at the other three majors, but never has the feat been accomplished in Open Era U.S. Open action.
99
Caroline Wozniacki will bid for her 100th Grand Slam win on Monday when she faces Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania in round one. The No.5 seed leads the WTA with 48 wins this season. If she wins, she will become the 10th active WTA player to claim at least 100 wins at majors.
34 of Wozniacki’s 99 major wins have come in New York, where she is a two-time runner-up and has reached at least the semifinals on five occasions.