Rogers rides momentum
Young American pulls off upsets to reach Round of 32
Walking through a sea of fans Wednesday at the French Open, Shelby Rogers could weave through unnoticed. The American was the second-to-last player accepted into the main draw and is ranked No. 108, but suddenly she’s into the final 32 after winning twice this week.
She was on her way to the Tennis Channel set for a live interview in which producers flashed a photo of her at the WTA tournament in Charleston in 2001. She was a ball girl at the event, close to where she grew up in Mount Pleasant, S.C.
“Jennifer Capriati kissed me on the cheek, and I never wanted to wash my face again,” Rogers, 23, said on air of one her childhood heroes. “I was 8. I remember Venus being so nice.”
What has been nice — and even more than that — has been Rogers’ week in Paris. She shocked No. 17 seed Karolina Pliskova in the first round Monday, one of the biggest upsets of the tournament, and followed up with a decisive 6-4, 6-2 effort against Elena Vesnina, a former top-25 player.
“It’s impressive,” Rogers said of her effort while walking back to the locker room. “I’m really happy with the way I’m playing. I hope to keep it going.”
Rogers will be tested again Friday in a third-round encounter with Petra Kvitova, the No. 10 seed and two-time Wimbledon champion.
Can Rogers compete with the hard-hitting Czech left-hander?
“I have to think that, don’t I?” she said. “Otherwise I’m not a contender. I think I do a lot of things really well. Any given day you can beat anyone. It’s exciting.”
Rogers, who has spent time in Florida training, moved to Los Angeles two years ago to base herself from the U.S. Tennis Association’s training center in nearby Carson. She works with Marc Lucero, a former USTA coach.
After reaching a career-high No. 70 in 2014, Rogers had a slew of injuries last year, including a torn medial collateral ligament and back problems. But she qualified and made the third round in the 2015 U.S. Open, losing to then-No. 2 Simona Halep.
Rogers has had a healthier season since missing the Australian Open. She made her second career WTA final in February in Rio de Janeiro.
“The biggest change is that I’ve just been able to play,” she said. “I’ve been able to get my match count up and get in a groove. Last year I had a bunch of injuries, so I was resetting all the time. It’s about momentum.”
The momentum was stolen away from Rogers’ favorite team — the Tampa Bay Lightning — Tuesday in the NHL playoffs against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Rogers, who trained near Tampa for a time, closely watches her team’s results, though she’s had to force herself to go to bed on time in Paris.
“That’s not very good match prep,” Rogers said of middle-ofthe night hockey watching during a Grand Slam tournament. “I love hockey. I just love the aggression of it. I love the atmosphere at the games, and you can get rowdy and shout. It’s a fast-paced, fun sport to watch.”
Rogers had just one player ranked below her get into the main draw. (“I kept refreshing the entry list page,” she said. “It was stressing me out.”)
What she knows — and believes with wins against Pliskova and Vesnina — is that confidence can pay dividends, particularly at a time in women’s tennis when there is no dominating force aside from Serena Williams.
“I think all of us (Americans) are confident that we can compete with anyone on any surface,” she said. “Right now in the women’s game, anyone can win. As a collective group, we’re pushing each other and helping each other to be more confident. Everyone is on the same page: We want to be great and do great things.”