Elena Dementieva, the No. 4 world-ranked player, is my pick to win the 2009 US Open. She had a very strong showing in the 2009 WTA Rogers Cup last week, defeating two top 15 players, including No. 2, Serena Williams.
Dementieva previously reached the Final of the US Open once, the Semifinals three times, and the Quarterfinals once. But the strongest predictor is her victory in the Rogers Cup. The last three years, the female winner of the Rogers Cup has gone on to win the US Open.
I look for the Semifinalists to be: Elena Dementieva, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, and Svetlana Kuznetsova. It should be a great US Open. There are many in the top 20 who are close in playing ability. Anyone could break through.
