If Knicks can’t win, then at least Vandeweghe can
CoCo Vandeweghe’s address is in California but her heart and history are still in New York, where her hometown U.S. Open crowd spurred her to a 7-6 (6), 6-2 second-round win over Ons Jabeur.
Vandeweghe — a diehard Knick fan descended from grandpa Ernie and uncle Kiki — soaked up the cheers at Thursday night. The 20th seed fought her way to her first-ever win in Arthur Ashe Stadium and first third-round appearance at Flushing Meadows.
“To be out there on Ashe and feel the energy, the vibe of it, was a lot of fun. I had fun out there playing, competing. I think it definitely showed to everyone,’’ Vandeweghe said. “It’s hard to beat a New York crowd when they’re for you. It’s a lot to go against. That’s what I was trying to make happen out there. I felt like I did.”
After reaching the Wimbledon quarterfinals and the Australian Open semis, Vandeweghe is in the midst of a career-best season. She overcame not only the unororthodox Tunisian’s variriety of slicing backhahands and tricky drop shshots, but the disappopointment of blowing trtriple set point and get- ting taken into a tiebreaker.
“The only thing I did after not getting that was just kind of visualize where I was going to hit the first serve, where I wanted to hit it,’’ Vandeweghe said. “It’s like lining up for a free throw. You visualize your free throw, go through your routine, you shoot it, because you can control all of that. It’s the same with a serve.”
It was a fitting analogy for Vandeweghe, 25, whose grandfather played his entire six-year NBA career with the Knicks. Her uncle played three seasons in the Garden and served as both general manager and interim coach of the Nets.
“[I lived here for] 10 years. I was born in New York City and lived in Long Island, and went to California with my mom,’’ Vandeweghe said in a TV interview. “I feel like I got both ends of the spectrum. I’ve got an edge while I’m competing, but off the court I’m chill and relaxed.”
The younger Vandeweghe, a longtime Knick fan who once ripped Carmelo Anthony as soft, showed that edge against Jabeur. She fended off a pair of Jabeur set points in the tiebreaker and took a 7-6 lead. On set point, Jabeur gaffed and sent her forehand return into the net.
Vandeweghe — closing her eyes and appearing to meditate between sets — settled in and broke Jabeur in the first game of the second set, then again for a 5-2 lead. She spurred the crowd’s cheers on before closing out the win and a date against No. 10 Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.
Now, about fixing her hometown Knicks …
“I’ll be more excited when games are won. I’ll leave it to when the actual season starts to save my excitement,’’ said Vandeweghe, adding on court, “I’m still a New York Knicks fan, so that’s all that matters.”