Vera Zvonareva at US Open

The players may have arrived at the court with specific strategic plans but as soon as they felt the severity of the wind, those strategies went by the wayside. The players shared wind as a common opponent and it dominated the play. On Tuesday, play at the U.S. Open was about survival as much as about winning.

The first survivor was Russia’s seventh seed, Vera Zvonareva, a finalist at Wimbledon, and a player who is very much in form and very dangerous. In the past Zvonareva has been a tumultuous player capable of emotional self-destruction at any given moment. This summer, Zvonareva got her head on straight and began playing to her full capabilities.

Zvonareva overcame 31st seed upset specialist Kaia Kanepi 6-3, 7-5 in the most severe weather either player had ever played. Then tale of the tape was not pretty but it was less ugly on Zvonareva’s side.

The Russian had 10 winners and 28 unforced errors, hardly the look of a semifinalist. However, Kanepi, who as been known to have some temperamental outbursts of her own, struck 18 winners but manufactured 60 unforced errors.

Kanepi had her second straight good Grand Slam. As the first Estonian to reach the finals of a Grand Slam in the 2008 French Open, Kanepi knocked off fourth seeded Jelena Jankovic to reach the quarters.

Caroline Wozniacki

The hard hitting Zvonareva advances to play the top seed, Caroline Wozniacki, who has won the hearts of the Flushing Meadows fans. Wozniacki outplayed diminutive Dominika Cibulkova 6-2, 7-5 in the evening windstorm.

Cibulkova was unnerved in the first set, having trouble with all her strokes and especially her serve. She held in the seventh game before Caroline served out in the eighth.

Cibulkova gained strength with that seventh game hold and began to exert more pressure on the Dane. Using her athleticism to track down Cibulkova’s powerful forehands, Wozniacki only struck 18 unforced errors compared to 43 by Dominika.

The Dane raised her record against Cibulkova to 5-1 and has yet to lose a set at the 2010 Open. Wozniacki and Zvonareva have played four times and are 2-2. Caroline won their last meeting on the hard courts of Montreal 6-3, 6-2.

Wozniacki has impressed her detractors with her steady yet more aggressive play. Her convincing win over Maria Sharapova added a missing credential to her resume and she is no longer viewed as the newspaper top seed. Since achieving the final round here last year, the Dane has greatly upgraded her game. Zvonareva is a proven, battle-tested power player. This semifinal pairing shapes up to be a real battle of wills.

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