The two-time champion opens with Daria Gavrilova for the right to face Petra Kvitova in round two. Two-time champion Serena Williams will take the court for the first time since suffering her most lopsided loss as a WTA pro at next week's Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati. The 36-year-old American will open with Australia’s Daria Gavrilova, and if she wins she’ll take on No.8-seeded Petra Kvitova in the second round.
See the full women’s singles draw here:
Women’s singles draw at @CincyTennis
Serena Williams squares off with Daria Gavrilova in round one and the winner of that match faces Petra Kvitova in round 2. pic.twitter.com/g92R0AWUnm
— TennisNow (@Tennis_Now) August 11, 2018
Williams is a two-time champion at Cincinnati, last winning the title in 2015. The 23-time major champion currently owns an 11-4 record in 2018 but she has dropped her last two matches and won a total of seven games combined in them.
Williams is 2-0 lifetime against Gavrilova and has never dropped a set. The American owns a 5-1 lifetime record againt Kvitova but lost the pair's last meeting in 2015 at Madrid.
She's baaa-ack!
Hey there @serenawilliams 👋#CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/eQxUQ1nxhS
— Western & Southern Open (@CincyTennis) August 11, 2018
There are several enticing first-rounders at Cincinnati. Here’s five that we’ll be watching closely:
[9] Karolina Pliskova v Agnieszka Radwanska
[WC] Victoria Azarenka v Carla Suarez Navarro
[14] Venus Williams v Maria Sakkari
Johanna Konta v Aryna Sabalenka
[10] Julia Goerges v Kristina Mladenovic
If the seeds hold, the quarterfinals shape up as follows:
[1] Halep v [7] Muguruza
[4] Kerber v [6] Garcia
[8] Kvitova v [3] Stephens
[2] Wozniacki v [5] Svitolina
Main draw play begins on Sunday at the Lindner Family Tennis Center.
