Players who could Beat Serena Williams in the US Open

Beat Serena Williams? Let’s look at the players who could make that possible.

To beat Serena Williams in the upcoming US Open may seem like a discussion out of fantasy for most critics. Perhaps it’s because on so many occasions after she won her first Grand Slam tournament over Martina Hingis (and in that match as well), experts have constantly predicted that she would lose. Critics are simply paying penance by making Serena the overwhelming favorite at Flushing Meadows for 2015.

• Serena won last year’s US Open as well as every Grand Slam since
• Petro Kvitova is the only player to defeat Serena this year
• Azerenka was almost the first to defeat Serena this year in Madrid

At almost 34 years of age, Serena is at the top of her game with 21 career Grand Slam titles. She is on pace to beat Steffi Graf’s record of 22 Grand Slams. Even more impressive is that she won last year’s US Open as well as every Grand Slam since. Serena has won the US Open for three straight years. Although she is currently resting with a slight elbow injury, there are some players who could possibly beat Serena Williams and make US gambling news.

Sharapova and Halep may have a chance to beat Serena Williams

It’s only fair to mention Maria Sharapova among those who could beat Serena. Despite their intense rivalry, which at times seems inflated by the media, Sharapova is ranked number two in the World. Although she has slightly less than half as many WTA points as Serena, Sharapova was able to reach number two without winning a single Grand Slam all year. In their last encounter, Sharapova was defeated in straight sets by Serena.

Although Serena has beaten Sharapova the last 17 times they played, she had a relatively good last year in tennis. She won four WTA titles, reached the fourth round in the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open as well as reached the final at the French Open. More interestingly, Sharapova defeated Simona Halep, currently ranked at number three, twice. Halep beat Serena once last years at the WTA championships last year.

Simona Halep beat Serena Williams last year. The number three ranked player in the world certainly has her expectations cut out for her. That defeat last year was Halep’s only victory over Serena in five attempts. This year Serena paid back the favor at the semi-final of the Miami Masters. It took Serena three sets to beat her which may prove interesting to punters looking to make a few bucks using online sportsbooks in the US.

Halep has yet to reach the quarter finals at the US Open. But she is having a good year on the hard court surface which is proving to be where she’s the most suited. Halep is excited about her arrival in Singapore where she said that every “match feels like a final.” Last year Halep beat Serena in the round robin tournament which led to her defeat (also my Serena). More importantly, Halep enjoys playing Serena.

Kvitova and Azarenka are the most proven bets to beat Serena Williams

Statistically speaking, Petra Kvitova could be the one to beat Serena Williams simply because she’s the only one this year that has done it at the Madrid Open. Although the match was on clay and she’s never advanced past the fourth round, the eighth time could be a charm. She has won 16 career Grand Slam titles which includes two at Wimbledon. The Czech player is known for her left-handed baseline ground strokes – which greatly worked in her favor.

Her early defeat from Wimbledon by Jelena Jankovic last month might have taken a bit of steam out of her, but we will see. Kvitova has had a peculiar year choosing to sit out of Indian Wells and Miami which are two of the most important tournaments outside the four Grand Slams. Kvitova also suffered a French Open loss by Timea Bacsinszky. She has never made the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam apart from Wimbledon. But she did beat Serena once this year.

Victoria Azarenka is currently ranked at 19th in the world. Don’t let this number mislead you. Often wins can be determined just as much by the history of the two that are playing as their ranking. Azarenka and Serena definitely have history which makes her the top person on this list who could beat Serena Williams. The two squared off in the last two US Open finals. Both finals matches ended in three sets. A month ago at Wimbledon, the two also had a three-set match.

Critics see the rivalry between Azarenka and Serena far more seriously than with fan friendly rivalry between Serena and Sharapova. Although Serena has beaten Azarenka 16 out of 19 times, Serena had to work for her victories. In Qatar in 2013 Azarenka managed to beat Serena Williams after her second straight Australian Open title, but lost her number one ranking to Serena. This year in Madrid, Azerenka almost made news by being the first to defeat Serena in match play, mobile betting sites report. Being up and three points from a victory, Azarenka had three consecutive double faults and lost in the tie break.