The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Bertens refreshed and back
NEW HAVEN — Neither rain nor fatigue dampened Kiki Bertens’ spirits on Wednesday.
One day after withdrawing at the last minute from the singles draw at the Connecticut Open, citing a viral illness, Bertens returned to the court physically and mentally refreshed. Playing alongside Sweden’s Johanna Larsson, Bertens, the No. 13 singles player in the world, advanced to the second round of doubles play with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Monique Adamczak and Oksana Kalashnikova on Sportmaster Grandstand Court.
“Yesterday was just one day too soon to play, to be ready for singles,” Bertens said. “I stayed another day in bed to get my rest.”
The seventh-seeded Bertens was slated to face Anett Kontaveit on Tuesday, two days after topping world No. 1 Simona Halep to win the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati. However, after warming up for 15 minutes prior to the match, Bertens pulled out from the field, realizing she was just too worn down to continue.
“It was like a busy week last week,” Bertens, 26, said. “Monday was my day off, but it was my travel day to get here. I just slept so many hours that day, and I was just not ready to play. I had a little bit of a cold. It was better to take my rest and to see if I could play doubles today. Yeah, I was ready for them.”
Although some speculated that she might drop out of the doubles field as well to prepare for next week’s U.S. Open, Bertens was leery of taking too much time off with a Grand Slam just around the corner. There was no better way to stay sharp, she thought, than by playing in a competitive match.
“I think playing matches is the best practice you can have,” she said. “Here, I can still practice and play some matches and not have the busyness of New York City. If I’m fit enough to play, then I want
to play.”
Mother Nature disrupted Bertens — and Larsson, for that matter. Play was suspended because of rain for 42 minutes in the first set and for 23 minutes in the second set. Neither delay, however, seemed to bother them.
“It’s always tough, especially in doubles because it’s going so quick,” Bertens said. “But, I think, both times we started really well again. We are kind of used to it, playing with the weather.”
No matter what happens during the remainder of her stay in the Elm City, this much is true: Bertens will head to into next week near the top of her game. Since her run to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, she’s beaten six of the current top 16 players in the WTA rankings: Halep, Petra Kvitova, Elina Svitolina, Caroline Wozniacki, Karolina Pliskova and Venus Williams. Sandwiched between Cincinnati and Wimbledon was a quarterfinal finish at the Rogers Cup in Montreal.
“It’s great. I feel great on the court now,” she said. “Just hitting the ball, [I feel] really well. … I’m just really looking forward to playing in New York again.”
Rain also twice halted the afternoon’s first singles match, which saw Ekaterina Makarova rally past Magdalena Rybarikova 2-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Both delays were welcomed respites for Makarova, who wasn’t exactly brimming with confidence even after a first-round upset of Pliskova.
“I was kind of in a rush in my head and couldn’t calm down and just play point by point,” she said. “We had a little break, and I was just sitting there thinking what I needed to change and how I needed to play.
“When we started again, I was a little bit more quiet and more … relaxed in my head.”
Makarova, 30, advanced to Thursday’s quarterfinals to face world No. 9 Julia Goerges, whom she defeated in three sets to win the 2017 Citi Open in Washington, D.C.
“We’ve had some good matches together,” she said. “The last one was quite important for me. I really wanted to win because as a kid, there was some good memories for me.”
Makarova’s victory preceded a marathon singles match, in which Aryna Sabalenka knocked off defending tournament champion Daria Gavrilova 6-3, 6-7, 7-5 in two hours and 45 minutes.