NEW YORK: Ana Ivanovic crashed out of the US Open first round on Monday, losing 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova and giving Serena Williams a helping hand in her Grand Slam history bid.

Serbian seventh seed Ivanovic, a quarter-finalist in 2012, was in Serena’s half of the draw, a section which had already lost Maria Sharapova through injury even before the tournament started.

World number one Serena is bidding to become the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1988 to complete a calendar Grand Slam.

Cibulkova, ranked 50th in the world after sitting out three months to undergo surgery on her left foot, will face American qualifier Jessica Pegula for a place in the last 32.

Injury rules Sharapova out of the fourth Grand Slam of the year

David Goffin of Belgium and Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan won their respective matches in the men’s draw, beating Simone Bolelli and Lu Yen-Hsun.

Sharapova, winner of five Grand Slam events, pulled out of the US Open for the second time in three years because of a lingering right leg injury.

The US Tennis Association announced the withdrawal via a press release at about the same time that Sharapova, 28, who won the title in New York in 2006, posted the news on her Facebook page.

“Unfortunately I will not be able to compete in this [year’s US] Open. I have done everything possible to be ready but it was just not enough time,” Sharapova’s message said.

“To all my amazing fans, I will be back in the Asian swing in a few weeks and look forward to finishing the year healthy and strong.”

Results:

Men’s:

14-David Goffin (Belgium) bt Simone Bolelli (Italy) 6-4, 6-1, 6-2; Mikhail Kukushkin (Kazakhstan) bt Lu Yen-Hsun (Taiwan) 6-3, 6-3, 3-0.

Women’s:

Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) bt 7-Ana Ivanovic (Serbia) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3; Jessica Pegula (US) bt Alison Van Uytvanck (Belgium) 7-5, 6-3; 13-Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) bt Teliana Pereira (Brazil) 6-3, 6-3; Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia) bt Lara Arruabarrena Vecino (Spain) 6-2, 6-2; Anett Kontaveit (Estonia) bt Casey Dellacqua (Australia) 7-5, 6-2; 15-Agnieszka Radwanska (Poland) bt Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-3; Mariana Duque (Colombia) bt Sofia Kenin (US) 6-3, 6-1.—Agencies

Published in Dawn, September 1st, 2015

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