Cornet conquers Kenin in Cincy upset

NEW YORK, NY, USA - Alizé Cornet scored her best win in two years at the Western & Southern Open, shocking No.2 seed Sofia Kenin, 6-1, 7-6(7) to roar into the Round of 16.

"I'm a fighter," Cornet said after the match. "I'm always fighting, so that's nothing new, but tonight was tough because I was 6-1, 5-2 up with two match points. Somehow I let it go a little bit, and I got really tight, so I never thought I could win the set the way I did."

Cornet last defeated a Top 5 player at the Coupe Rogers in Montréal, where she ousted former World No.1 Angelique Kerber, and played tidy tennis to hold off a late surge from the reigning Australian Open champion in one hour and 43 minutes on Grandstand court.  

"It was a really tight second set, and in the tie-break, oh my God, I was just praying for the best on every single shot."

Kenin triumphed in both of their 2019 meetings, but Cornet came out on top a year prior when the pair played in Cincinnati proper back in 2018. Though both women last played a WTA event at the Open 6ème Sens – Métropole de Lyon - where Kenin won her second title of 2020 - Cornet had the benefit of playing an opening round match on Saturday, easing past American Catherine McNally in straight sets to book the clash with Kenin, who received a bye.

"I did a good job at the end of the lockdown. I came back to court very quickly to practice again. I actually feel very physically fit right now, like I could run for hours to every ball. This six month break gave me some mental freshness, too. I definitely feel fresher than I did at the start of the year, when I was feeling much more tired. This break did some good to my tennis, so now I just want to go as far as possible because I really believe in my chances."

That extra match may have proved vital in the early stages as Cornet raced out to a 5-0 lead. Kenin struggled mightily to regain the form that helped her capture a maiden major title in Melbourne, but tapped into some of her signature fighting spirit to get on the board and push the Frenchwoman as she served for the set.

Saving a break point in the match's first marathon game, Cornet nonetheless edged ahead on her fifth set point thanks to a service winner, putting herself six games from the upset.

Kenin, who struck 21 unforced errors in the opening set (to Cornet's nine), continued to struggle with her range early in the second set, missing a backhand wide to fall behind an early break. The No.2 seed soon steadied and broke back with a clean drop volley.

Cornet responded with aplomb, winning 12 of the next 15 points to find herself serving for the match. An ace from Cornet and forehand error from Kenin brought her to a pair of match points, but the American began to battle from the brink, saving both with some brutal hitting from the baseline and engineering a break point. 

"I was more focused on my game and what I had to do. Until 5-2 in the second set, I was doing that perfectly and there was nothing to say. I wasn't making a lot of unforced errors, running everywhere, making her play, and being aggressive when I could. It got less easy from there, but overall I was solid, playing my game, being intense with my legs."

Kenin converted her fourth opportunity with a smooth forehand, and soon had Cornet on the ropes, punctuating a fourth straight game with a big serve.

Serving to prevent a deciding set, Cornet regrouped in style to force a tie-break, opening the subsequent Sudden Death with a mini-break and leading 4-1 before the change of ends.

Kenin came to life from there, reeling off five straight points with some relentless offense to earn set points. Cornet's responded with brilliance defense, saving both to gain two more match points, ultimately converting her fourth to secure victory.

In all, Cornet struck five fewer winners (12 to 17) but also managed 24 fewer unforced errors (29 to 53), and played some of her best tennis on key points, wining five of seven break points and hitting five aces in total.

Up next for the former World No.11 is either two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka or Caroline Garcia, who staved off a challenge from 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens earlier in the day.