Rain break in Cincinnati

I’m no expert but I’m pretty sure it’s not helpful that the courts are literally flooded right now... pic.twitter.com/nHZEKzCS6R

— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) August 17, 2017

It's raining in Cincinnati and Center Court is soaked. Waiting for the sky to clear are Garbine Muguruza and Madison Keys, who are at 2-all in the third set. Keys has had a number of coaching visits, and Muguruza had to have her thigh wrapped in the first set, which she won.

Caroline Wozniacki has advanced, with a straight-set win over Ash Barty, and Chan and Hingis got a straight-set win over Babos and Hvalackova.

During the Center Court match, there was an announcement that construction will soon be underway of a new building, to be located between the main stadium and the Grandstand, and that building will house--among other things--air-conditioned boxes. The 40,000 square-foot South Building will be 104 feet high. You can see what it will look like here.

If one has to be stranded, there are worse places to be stranded than in the media building, where we have enough coffee, tea, water, fruit, cookies, and wit to wait out any storm.

So maybe now is a good time to talk about who is going to win the U.S. Open. I have no idea, but I'm looking at (in no particular order): Karolina Pliskova, Madison Keys, Elina Svitolina, Simona Halep, Jo Konta, and Garbine Muguruza. I do think that any of them could lift the trophy. Can anyone pull an Ostapenko in Flushing Meadows? Of course, but I don't think it's likely.

Speaking of Ostapenko (and I love to)--the hard court season has brought about her uncoiling, at least so far. Getting to the quarterfinals of Wimbledon was nevertheless a sign of more good things to come. If her coach can get her to apply more discipline to her game, she has the potential to be dangerous, just as she was at Roland Garros. Of course, I said this about Petra Kvitova, too, and she did apply some discipline, but Kvitova has health issues that haunt her throughout the season.

I do have the feeling, however, that for both Ostapenko and Muguruza, the hard courts will never be favorite venues. I hope they prove me wrong.