"She impressed me enormously yesterday (on Monday in her first round) by managing to win. Not even by her tennis, but by the way she managed to manage the emotions she had to go through", commented on Tuesday , about Williams, Germany's Andrea Petkovic after her first-round defeat.

A defeat that put an end to his own career.

A scenario that could be identical for Queen Serena, victorious in the first round over Montenegrin Danka Kovinic (80th in the world) 6-4, 6-4.

Because if the tribute ceremonies, scheduled before and after his first match, seemed absurd because of his victory, Williams confirmed his very next "evolution" away from the competition.

"I love being on the courts. The more tournaments I play, the more I feel like I belong. So it's not easy to walk away knowing that the more you play, the more you can shine. But it's time for me to move on to something else," she said Monday night.

Estonian Kontaveit would be happy to ship Queen Serena to this new world beyond tennis.

"Better Late"

"I can't wait (to face Serena). I really wanted her to win because I've never faced her. And this is my last chance. Better late than never," the player said. 26 years.

For her entry into the running during a match much more sober than that of Williams, she made short work of the Romanian Jaqueline Cristian (77th in the world), 6-3, 6-0 in 1h06, and savored his victory with a big appetite.

So the prospect of playing against the one she considers "the greatest player of all time", at night on the huge Arthur-Ashe court and its 23,800 spectators all committed to the cause of their idol, makes her salivate.

"I think it will be a game like I haven't played much this year, without any pressure. I can just enjoy the moment and play the best I can," commented Kontaveit.

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His level of play allowed him to reach 2nd in the world when his next opponent only points to 605th place, after a blank year between his eliminations in the first round at Wimbledon in 2021 and 2022.

But his record in singles, six titles, does not weigh very heavily against that of Williams who has 73 including 23 in Grand Slam, a length of the record of Margaret Court.

"Bonus"

"I will fight as much as possible, on every point," promised the Estonian whose best result in a Major is the quarter-final played at the Australian Open in 2020 and who has never passed the 8th of final at the US Open.

Where the youngest of the Williams sisters won six titles there.

But this time, Serena is at the twilight of her fabulous career.

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"At the point where I am, honestly, everything is a bonus. Each opponent will be very difficult to play, I realized this summer," said the American, whose surprise return to the circuit at Wimbledon s ended in elimination in the first round against the 115th player in the world, the Frenchwoman Harmony Tan.

Then Williams was knocked out in the second round in Toronto and the first in Cincinnati.

Still, Kontaveit expects to take a beating.

"She hits the ball very hard and she has an excellent hand that allows her to put it where she wants. I will have to be ready to receive these very strong balls, especially on serve," she analyzed.

The one of the two who will remain standing on Wednesday evening will face for a place in the round of 16 the Australian Ajla Tomljanovic (46th) or the Russian Evgeniya Rodina (ex-67th in the world but today not ranked since she no longer played on the circuit since January 2019).

© 2022 AFP