Jule Niemeier’s flight at the US Open continues. The Dortmund native is in the round of 16 of the Grand Slam tournament in New York, where she meets number one in the world rankings, Iga Swiatek.
Jule Niemeier actually has no chance: In the round of 16 of the US Open, the last remaining German tennis player will meet number one in the world, Iga Swiatek, at the Grand Slam tournament in New York on Monday (September 5th, 2022). That alone doesn’t account for Niemeier’s poor starting position, who started the tournament from 108th place in the world rankings. Particularly sobering: The Pole has never lost to a player outside the top 100 in the WTA world rankings in one of the four major tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open).
Niemeier’s starting position is anything but ideal. However, the 23-year-old from Dortmund would have been much higher in the ranking if she had recently been credited with world ranking points at Wimbledon. There she only lost in the quarterfinals against her German competitor Tatjana Maria. Due to the ban of the Russian athletes and those from Belarus, however, the World Association WTA for the first time refrained from assigning points to the individual rounds.
However, due to her recent results, Niemeier has moved much closer to the top in women’s tennis than her ranking suggests. After the tournament she will have worked her way up to at least 71st place. Now she wants to emphasize that. “Now it’s against a big player, I’m looking forward to it,” said Niemeier after the win against the Chinese Zheng Qinwen (6: 4, 7: 6) on Sunday night.
Swiatek is a strong return player
The 23-year-old from Dortmund can go into the game with confidence despite the gloomy statistics. With her hard serve, she always creates the conditions for quick point wins on the fast hard court in Flushing Meadows. She scored 79 percent of rallies when her first serve landed in court. Their service is one of their guarantors of success. In addition, she has scored impressively with her forehand. 83 percent of their forehand attack balls also end with a direct point (winner).
However, Niemeier meets an opponent whose return game is above average. Almost half of all balls (47 percent) that Swiatek played back after her opponent’s first serve were points for the 21-year-old. Not least because of this record at the US Open, Swiatek is considered one of the strongest return players on the WTA tour. It is therefore very likely that Niemeier will have a harder time penetrating Swiatek with her powerful serves than last time.
Risky attacking game
The game of the Germans is risky, they play aggressively, like to go to the net often and take risks. She also makes a few mistakes. However, the opportunity-benefit analysis is clear. Niemeier likes to take matters into his own hands. She would rather seek her chance than react too much to her opponents. That will also be the motto against Swiatek.
Niemeier’s coach Christopher Kas is well aware of his player’s great opportunity. Niemeier has strengths that “can be uncomfortable for Swiatek,” he says. He believes in her because Niemeier remains “stable and clear” in important situations. She can prove that again against Iga Swiatek.
