U.S. Open 1st rounds of interest

Some first rounds in Flushing Meadows that may be of interest (there may be more when the qualifiers are added):

Petra Kvitova vs. Alisa Kleybanova--New balls, please. These two can hit the ball very hard. For those who like slugfests, this could be one.

Patty Schnyder vs. Lucie Safarova--Two under-achieving left-handers meet in the first round.

Yanina Wickmayer vs. Virginie Razzano--Both like to drag it out and squeeze the last drop out of a match.

Ana Ivanovic vs. Kateryna Bondarenko--Jon Wertheim picks this match as his Blue Plate Upset Special, and he could be right.

Aravane Rezai vs. Sabine Lisicki--Lisicki has missed most of the hard court season, and her lack of preparation could make her vulnerable against Rezai. The last time she returned from an injury layoff, she struggled.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs. Melanie Oudin--Two phenoms meet in the first round.

Tsvetana Pironkova vs. Maria Sharapova--Pironkova thrives on this type of thing. The relentless baseliner has had a so-so career, but at big moments, she has a tendency to raise her level and become pesky.

Katarina Srebotnik vs. Nadia Petrova--Srebotnik has been away for a long time and cannot be expected to do much at the U.S. Open. Petrova--with her big serving and wonderful net skills--should be a major force in women's tennis, but she isn't.

Agnes Szavay vs. Shahar Peer--It has been a hard climb back for both players. At her best, Szavay is very good, and at her best, Peer is a scary human backboard.

Julia Goerges vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova--Goerges is another player who, out of nowhere, can rise to the occasion. She could give Kuzzy quite a workout. Or not.

Kirsten Flipkens vs. Jelena Dokic--What an odd pairing. I really like to watch Flipkens play, and wish that she could move herself to a higher ranking. Dokic hasn't had the season she may have expected to have, and Flipkens might trouble her.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands vs. Iveta Benesova--Mattek-Sands is a good server and a decent hard court player, and Benesova has one of the better service games on the tour (which should translate into a higher ranking, but it doesn't).

Lucie Hradecka vs. Elena Vesnina--This match has potential, but only if Hradecka brings her best game.

Sam Stosur vs. Ai Sugiyama--Stosur is one of the hottest players on the tour, but the veteran can still bring it on.

Sybille Bammer vs. Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez--Bammer is hot again, but she'll have to work against Martinez Sanchez.