Month of September , 2010

There’s no rest for the pros during Grand Slams. After Victoria Azarenka took out slice-n-dicer Monica Niculescu Monday, she was back at the National Tennis Center Tuesday to whack serve after serve down the T on Practice Court 5. But her delivery wasn’t the only thing she worked on. After a serious practice, she had a little fun trying her hand at the between-the-legs shot, what used to be known as the “Sabatweenie.”

After a difficult summer lead-up, she was perhaps ripe for the picking. But playing at her best major, Jelena Jankovic's fighting spirit never waned, and the former No.1 battled hard to quell the uprising of rising star Simona Halep on Arthur Ashe Stadium on a hot Tuesday, 64 46 75.

Jankovic, the No.4 seed at the final Grand Slam of the season, battled for over two hours in scorching conditions, with Halep even serving for the match at 5-4 in the third set. But a few big down-the-line forehands and long rallies sealed it.

Victoria Azarenka's US Open took an unfortunate and dramatic turn when the Belarusian collapsed and was helped off the court in a wheelchair during her second round match against Gisela Dulko on Wednesday.

Azarenka looked out of sorts from the first point of the match, which she double-faulted, and quickly fell to an 0-4 deficit. On the first changeover she summoned a trainer who appeared to test her for signs of dizziness and exhaustion, but did not request a medical timeout.

Former world number one Ana Ivanovic took another step forward in her recent renaissance when she beat 21st seed Zheng Jie 6-3 6-0 to reach the third round of the US Open.

The Serbian, who topped the rankings just two years ago, smashed 22 winners en route to an impressive victory in just 56 minutes on a hot Arthur Ashe Stadium court.

Ivanovic was beaten in the first round in New York last year but has been slowly making her way back up the rankings and was far too strong for Zheng.

Britain's Andy Murray enjoyed a trouble-free start to his U.S. Open title bid on Wednesday as he cruised to a 6-3 6-2 6-2 win over unheralded Slovakian Lukas Lacko.

The Scot, runner-up in New York in 2008 and chasing his first grand slam title, needed just one hour 51 minutes to see off the world number 71 in hot conditions inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The number four seed broke serve in the fourth game of the match on his way to the first set and was never unduly tested, breaking twice more to take the second set.