US Open '09: Women's Draws, Previews, and Predictions

The week before the Grand Slams is no less hectic than the two weeks that follow it.

Observing the pre-Slam performances and form of the players, predictions about the possible matchups, the potential gains or losses for each player, qualifying draws, and finally scratching the head once the draw is released—all of them take up quite a lot of time, but it is fun!

A good buildup has already been made out of the men's draw, but, as is usually the case, the women's draw has gone under the shadows. The Open has been preceded with lot of potential questions for the fairer sex of the game.

Continuous doubts over Safina's No. 1, the dominance of Serena “only” at the Slams, the return of the Queens—Kim Clijsters and Maria Sharapova, emergence of new players like Sabine Lisicki, the continual floundering of Ana Ivanovic, the exclusion of the surprise French Open semi-finalist Cilbulkova...one can go on. Hence, without further ado, let's look at the draw and try to gain some predictions out of it.

Safina's Quarter

Safina doesn't thrive on fast surfaces—as her results in the pre-US Open series have shown—but she grinds hard and does more than enough to extract fully out of her limited ability compared to her colleagues, still making her a worthy No. 1 (when did you see Serena last win a smaller title?).

Barring a third-round prospect with the Russian Alisa Kelybanova—who lost to Jelena Dokic in a tightly fought match at Melbourne—her road toward the quarterfinals looks smooth, after which it will get tougher, as she might face any one of Ivanvoic, Lisicki, or Jankovic.

Jankovic recently defeated her at Toronto, while Liskci has been the star newcomer of the year. Ivanovic is no slouch on fast courts as well; in fact, her serve would be a major factor at the Arthur Ashe.

Matchups to watch out for: Safarova vs. Schnyder, Ivanovic vs. Lisicki

Prediction: Lisicki

Dementieva's Quarter

Aha! This looks to be an intriguing quarter. With heavyweights like Dementieva, Sharapova, Kuznetsova, Wozniacki, and Petrova, combined with ladies who can cause big upsets like Jie Zheng, Alize Cornet, Melanie Oudin, and Sorana Cirstea, prepare for entertaining matches with lots of upsets.

Dementieva looks prepared for her New York campaign with her win in Toronto and two semis before that, but she will have to be wary of a daunting task in third round, as the big-hearted Sharapova will attempt to repeat her feat in 2006. She has been constantly improving since Wimbledon, reaching the final in Toronto, but her vulnerable serve will be a severe limitation on these fast courts.

Kuznetsova is still struggling after Paris, and Cirstea and Wozniacki have not delivered enough to make them strong contenders.

Matchups to watch out for: Dementieva vs. Oudin, Dementieva vs. Sharapova, Wozniacki vs. Cirstea

Prediction: Dementieva

Venus' Quarter

Venus has risen up the rankings to be seeded third in the Open and occupies the bottom part of the quarter, with Azarenka at the top. The comeback girls Clijsters and Dokic find themselves here as well.

The magic wand of Dokic has been missing since Melbourne, but Clijsters has proved that two years and motherhood has not blunted her skills.

With huge wins over multiple top-10 players, Clijsters will be the one to watch out for, and the sentimental favorite to survive the draw. A day's rest in between each match will certainly be helpful for her, but playing top players one after the other might be a little hard on her.

Venus has not shown any good results before the Open, but can we doubt the W sisters at the Slams?

Matchups to watch out for: Dokic vs. Clijsters

Prediction: Venus Williams

Serena's Quarter

Regardless of the champion, one thing that is for sure is that we are not having an all-Williams final this year. Unlike last year, though, when they met at the quarters, they might meet at the semis, as they are in the same half. Serena still continues to occupy the last slot in the draw despite being the defending champion of three Slams.

Pennetta is the new entry in the ever-volatile top 10, and she will feel confident after her recent victories over Sharapova and Venus. Despite the presence of Mauresmo, Stosur, Hantuchova, Pennetta, and Zvonareva, it is hard to see Serena being outlasted before the semis.

Matchups to watch out for: Sugiyama vs. Stosur

Prediction: Serena Williams

Semifinals: Dementieva def. Lisciki, Serena def. Venus

Champion: Serena Williams