Coast To Coast

Fan favorite Naomi Osaka’s Indian Wells triumph could foreshadow something grander in New York City

- Tom Perrotta

The WTA tour is in transition. Serena Williams, still in the midst of her comeback from childbirth, remains the game’s X-factor, but to what degree is unclear. Caroline Wozniacki and Simona Halep, who each won their first Grand Slam titles this season, are consistent but not dominant forces. Multiple time major champions Garbine Muguruza, Angelique Kerber and Petra Kvitova have all spent time at or near the top of the rankings, and they have all gone cold at one time or another. Then there was Wimbledon 2018. In a perfect storm of unpredictability, none of the top ten women’s seeds made it to the quarterfinal round—a first in the 50-year history of Open tennis.

With this top tier, no one really knows what to expect, especially at the next Grand Slam tournament, the US Open. It was there last September that Sloane Stephens came from nowhere to win her first major title. That never used to be the case. There was always a Billie Jean King, a Martina Navratilova, a Chris Evert or a Steffi Graf—and, most recently, Williams—who lorded over the field and won almost every Slam available.