World number one Simona Halep surprisingly dropped out in the first round of the US Open in New York. The 26-year-old Romanian lost to the Estonian Kaia Kanepi 2:6, 4:6.
Halep is only the sixth top seeded player in the history of professional tennis who failed at a Grand Slam to start. Angelique Kerber last suffered this fate at the French Open in 2017.
Despite the bankruptcy, Halep remains at the top of the WTA ranking even after the tournament. Her lead over the pursuers is enormous, this year she had reached the Australian Open final and won her first Grand Slam title in Roland Garros. After the surprising third round finish in Wimbledon, she was back in top form on Hardcourt, triumphed in Montreal and was only stopped in the final in Cincinnati.
Kanepi had reached the quarter-finals last year in New York as a qualifier, the 33-year-old currently ranks 44th in the world rankings. However, her last victory over a top 20 player was more than three years ago.
Favourite falls among the women had also taken place in Wimbledon in July, and none of the top 10 reached the quarter-finals in London. In general, the women’s competition at the Grand Slams has been balanced for years. There were seven different winners in the last seven majors. By comparison, five men (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka) divided 54 of the last 57 Grand Slam titles.