Strong start for defending champs at U.S. Open
Canada's Wozniak wins but Polansky, Tetreault ousted
Last Updated: Tuesday, September 1, 2009 | 3:43 AM ET
CBC Sports
Aleksandra Wozniak hits a forehand in Monday's 6-1, 7-6 win. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) Defending champions Roger Federer and Serena Williams rolled over their opening-round opponents at the U.S. Open on Monday.
So did Canadian hopeful Aleksandra Wozniak.
Federer, seeking to become the first man to win six consecutive U.S. crowns in the Open era, demolished mistake-prone teenager Devon Britton 6-1, 6-3, 7-5 at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.
Bill Tilden won the American Grand Slam tournament six times in a row from 1920-25.
"That is what I'm here for, trying to equal Bill Tilden's record," Federer said. "But I have never met Bill Tilden.
"Never saw him play, so it is hard to kind of relate to him in any way — except through records. It is fantastic to be sort of compared to someone who played such a long time ago, I guess."
It marked Federer's 35th straight win at the Open, and lifted the Swiss superstar over $50 million US in career earnings — an ATP Tour record.
"I didn't ever expect to be this successful," Federer said. "I knew I had something special in me, [perhaps] more talent than other players.
"If my career came to an end today, you know, I'm a happy man. I achieved everything I could ever ask for, really."
Federer has enjoyed a record-setting season, winning the French Open and Wimbledon earlier this season to break the Tour mark of 15 career Grand Slam titles.
Federer is the first to...
- win 15 Grand Slam titles in men's singles
- win his first 4 Grand Slam finals (he won 7)
- win 3 different Grand Slams 3 times apiece
- win the same 2 Grand Slams 5 years running
- win 3 Grand Slams in a calendar year 3 times
- defeat 11 different opponents in Grand Slam finals
"He obviously looks unbelievable on TV but playing against him was even more tough. It was so scary. I was pretty scared. His forehand is crazy. I tried to keep it away but sometimes I hit it there just to see it it's so pretty." — Devon Britton on facing Federer
"I know tennis isn't everything," said Federer, the father of five-week-old twin girls. "But if I enjoy playing tennis, why should I stop just because I have beaten the all-time Grand Slam record?"
Britton, a wild-card entry competing in his first major, hit more winners than Federer (32-31) but committed more than twice as many unforced errors (40-18).
"My goal was to not get crushed and make it interesting for a little while," said Britton, the reigning NCAA champion out of Mississippi.
"He is the best — no weakness. I mean, I didn't know what to do."
Britton did manage to break Federer's serve for a 3-1 lead in the second set, prompting him to think: "I'm up a break. This is awesome!"
But Federer promptly broke back at love and proceeded to win the next 13 points.
"You know, it was fun for the 10, 15 seconds," Britton said, referring to the service break. "It was probably the best 15 seconds of my life."
"Tricky match for me, playing a guy who has got absolutely nothing to lose," Federer noted.
Williams, winner of the Australian Open and Wimbledon earlier this season, breezed past a jittery wild-card entry in Alexa Glatch, also of the U.S., 6-4, 6-1 in women's singles.
Williams owns an unblemished 40-0 record in opening-round matches at majors.
"It just feels amazing," she said. "It means the world for me to play here."
Williams, seeded second, looked shaky at the outset, making 12 unforced errors in the first set.
But in the second, she won the point on every foray to the net in disposing an awestruck Glatch.
"You try to pretend it is any other court and you're playing against any other opponent," Glatch said. "But it is very hard to do, especially when it is your first time out there in the biggest stadium there is."
Wozniak wins opener
Wozniak, from Blainville, Que., advanced to the second round with a 6-1, 7-6 (7) victory over Laura Granville of the U.S.
Wozniak, ranked 39th in the world, struggled a bit in the tiebreaker as she failed to convert a pair of set points and had to save a set point before closing out the match in 68 minutes.
"I had a good first set," Wozniak said. "My serve and return was working well and I was playing aggressively.
"In the second, she was getting more balls back and I lost some confidence. I just couldn't break her even if I was holding serve.
"It was an intense tiebreak, very close. But I began feeling my game to win it."
Valerie Tetreault of Ste-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., fell 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 to Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia.
Peter Polansky of Thornhill, Ont., the lone Canadian in men's singles, battled 50th-ranked Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain for 3½ hours before losing 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, 6-1.
Polansky's serve was broken early in the fifth set and he never recovered.
With files from The Associated Press
