Serena Williams earns the nod as a favourite heading into the US Open by virtue of her Olympic and Wimbledon titles, but the field of contenders is otherwise wide open entering the year's last Grand Slam. The Flushing Meadows fortnight begins on Monday with Williams having had her 19-match win streak halted at Cincinnati, in her final Open hardcourt tune-up, by Angelique Kerber, the German who ousted Venus Williams at the Olympics.
"I embrace being that," Serena Williams said of the favorite's role. "Like at Wimbledon I wasn't the favourite and I was shocked. I actually got angry. So I don't know if it's better not to be a favourite or for me to be a favourite."
The World No 4, a 14-time Grand Slam champion, was a shock loser to Australian Samantha Stosur in last year's US Open final, and is a favourite despite her 2008 triumph being her only US Open singles crown since 2002. A hefty crowd in the title hunt also includes top seed and World No 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, the reigning Australian Open champion, and Poland's World No 2 Agnieszka Radwanska, the Wimbledon runner-up to Serena.
Russian third seed Maria Sharapova, who completed a career Grand Slam with her fourth major title at this year's French Open, won the 2006 US Open and should contend as well.
"I've been training for a few weeks now. I got here a little early," said Sharapova. "I know if I feel healthy and have enough practice, I'm OK. I don't feel like I need to play three tournaments in a row in order to be ready for the US Open."
In all, the past seven Grand Slam women's singles crowns have gone to seven different players, a run that's one shy of the Open Era record from the 2004 French Open through 2006 Australian Open and two shy of the all-time run of different winners from the 1937-1939 Australian Opens.
"There's not one dominant standout player. It doesn't mean everyone is rubbish," Stosur said. "Everyone is playing extremely well. Certain players are finding their time at these big events.