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US Open: Can Johanna Konta maintain Wimbledon momentum?

By Maxwell Ogden

KEY BISCAYNE, FL - APRIL 01: Johanna Konta of Great Britain celebrates with the trophy after defeating Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in the final at Crandon Park Tennis Center on April 1, 2017 in Key Biscayne, Florida. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
KEY BISCAYNE, FL - APRIL 01: Johanna Konta of Great Britain celebrates with the trophy after defeating Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in the final at Crandon Park Tennis Center on April 1, 2017 in Key Biscayne, Florida. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /
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Johanna Konta made history at Wimbledon, but can she carry her momentum into the US Open? Recent success implies she can.

Johanna Konta has become one of the new faces of British tennis. The 2017 WTA season has become a launching pad for Konta into international renown, as she’s both made history and solidified her place as one of the best players in the world.

As the 2017 US Open nears and the world looks on in admiration, however, Konta is facing a significant question: Can she take the next step?

Konta has been brilliant in 2017, amassing a record of 36-12 and winning a pair of WTA titles. She made history by becoming the first British female to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon since 1984, and the first British female to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon since 1978.

In order to complete her rise to star status, however, she must complete her breakout campaign at the US Open—and recent success implies she can.

Konta reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, where she’s become one of the most feared players on tour. She suffered a first-round exit at the French Open, but bounced back to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon.

By making it to at least the final eight at the US Open, she’d have completed a season during which she made the quarterfinals at three of the four Grand Slam events.

Konta didn’t start the hard court season in the finest of form, as she suffered a Round of 32 loss to Ekaterina Makarova at the 2017 Rogers Cup. Fortunately, she bounced back strong and rounded into form at the Western & Southern Open.

After defeating world No. 25 Kiki Bertens in the Round of 32, Konta earned a straight sets victory over Dominika Cibulkova to reach the quarterfinals.

Konta eventually bowed out to Simona Halep, but it wasn’t without her putting up a strong fight. She pushed the second-ranked player in the world to her limit, albeit with the end result being a 4-6, 6-7 defeat.

It was the fourth time in her past six tournaments that she’s reached the quarterfinals—a run that included victories over the likes of Bertens, Cibulkova, Caroline Garcia, Halep, Angelique Kerber, and Jelena Ostapenko.

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If Johanna Konta can play with the same level of precision and intensity at the US Open as she did at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, a Top 5 ranking could be awaiting her.

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