Pe’er continues tailspin with loss at US Open

Just when you think Shahar Pe’er has hit rock bottom, she finds a way to plummet to a new low.

By ALLON SINAI
Shahar Pe’er 370 (photo credit: Mike Blake/Reuters)
Shahar Pe’er 370
(photo credit: Mike Blake/Reuters)
Just when you think Shahar Pe’er has hit rock bottom, she finds a way to plummet to a new low which is as dejecting as it is humbling.
That has been the story for the Israel No. 1 for over a year now and Tuesday was no different.
Pe’er, ranked No. 62 in the world, dropped to a 6-4, 7-6 (5) defeat to Spanish qualifier Lara Arruabarrena- Vecino (115) in the first round of the US Open on Tuesday night, her fifth consecutive loss in an opening round of a tournament.
The 20-year-old Arruabarrena-Vecino was making just her second ever appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam event, but there is no such thing as a comfortable draw for Pe’er anymore.
Arruabarrena-Vecino raced to a 5-0 lead to begin the match before eventually closing out the first set, and after the second set went back and forth, the Spaniard won her first ever Grand Slam match by taking the final four points of the encounter.
Later Tuesday, Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich faced Mikhail Elgin and Denis Istomin in the first round of the doubles tournament.
On Monday, Julia Glushko was knocked out in the first round in New York, losing 7-5, 6-2 to Yanina Wickmayer (29) in her first ever main draw appearance in a Grand Slam event.
The 22-year-old Israeli, who climbed to a career high No. 160 in the world earlier in the day, played some of the best tennis of her career this summer, reaching at least the semifinals in her last four ITF tournaments, winning the title in Lexington, Kentucky.
However, she was always going to struggle against the Belgian on Monday.
Wickmayer raced to a 3-0 lead, and although the Israeli managed to tie the score at 5-5, the Belgian clinched the first set with a break in the 12th game.
Glushko struggled on her serve once more in the second set, but was pleased with her overall performance in New York despite the straight sets defeat.
“I didn’t feel great about my tennis today, but overall I put up a respectable performance against a top-30 player,” Glushko said.
“I had a good summer and this will give me confidence for the future.”