Steady As She Goes

Aside from her beaming smile, Caroline Wozniacki has never been known to show much emotion on court. But early in the second set of her quarterfinal against Dominika Cibulkova, she lost her temper at the chair umpire. A linesman wavered on a call on a ball that Cibulkova returned out, causing the point to be replayed. “There’s no way in this world that this ball is replayed,” Wozniacki said. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

It wasn’t even close to a Serena Williams-grade tirade, but it was more than we’re used to seeing from the soft-spoken Dane. The scene showed how much she loathes giving away any point, even if it’s only fair to her opponent. For a counter-punching player who lacks killer weapons, that’s key.

Wozniacki’s short-lived loss of temper may have also shown her frustration with the conditions. The wind put Wozniacki’s long ponytail in her face and littered napkins all over the court.

Cibulkova, who was on the brink of the Top 10 a year ago but who has struggled with injury since, went for too many risky shots in the first set, a bad move on a windy day. But she tightened up her game and aimed inside the lines in the second. She ramped the set up to 5-5 with safe, grinding play followed by forehand winners.

But there’s a reason why Wozniacki is the No. 1 seed here at age 20. When it came time to end the match, she did. Cibulkova struggled with mishits in the last couple of games, but Wozniacki was collected. She had braided her ponytail to keep it out of her face, and she stayed steady to win 7-5.