Court 17 at the tennis facility in Flushing Meadows is an idiosyncratic structure. In the far east, almost hidden; only people who really want to be there come here. You can’t get lost there like Court 7 on the way to Court 10, Court 12 on the way to the food court or Court 15 on the way to, well, Court 17. A lot of people went there on Friday night because they saw the game between Jule Niemeier and the Chinese Qinwin Zheng – two players who are believed to be able to play in the big stadiums of this sport.
Court 17 is, contrary to what the name might suggest, the fourth largest arena, a real gem – the place for those who are too good for the smaller courts (Court 5 is one where no one who has been there wants to be) , but not ready for it yet Arthur Ashe Stadium. Off-Broadway, so to speak, or Financial District away from Wall Street. Jule Niemeier had played her way there with successes on the Grandstand (where she was allowed to go because of opponent Sofia Kenin, Australian Open winner 2020) and Court 10.
“I like the bigger places, I noticed that in Wimbledon,” said the Westphalian before the third round game against Zheng. At the grass Grand Slam, she had reached the quarterfinals, played on Center Court – and narrowly lost. That is the next goal in the still young career of the 23-year-old Niemeier: success on the largest square of a Grand Slam facility. Of course, that’s what everyone in New York City dreams of, because the Frank Sinatra rule still applies: If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. Artists want Broadway, bankers want Wall Street. Tennis players want to play in the sport’s biggest arena – but you have to qualify for that.
Niemeier has the ability to constantly adjust her tactics during the game
So then: Saturday evening, court 17. Niemeier won this game 6:4, 7:6 (5); much more exciting than the result was, however, how she did. It is often said that you need a unique selling proposition to be recommended for Broadway or Wall Street, and Niemeier presented two. The first could be described as Balance Pendulum: She’s able to apply a lot of pressure from the baseline, but she often has the accuracy of a shotgun, especially early in a game.
Iga Swiatek is Niemeier’s next opponent at the US Open.
(Photo: Angela Weiss/AFP)
She has the ability to constantly adjust her tactics throughout the game; she is in constant contact with coach Christopher Kas, who is allowed to call out brief instructions between rallies due to a rule change. She started very powerfully against Zheng, but made numerous minor mistakes. So she let the pendulum swing the other way, too cautious, hoping for mistakes from the opponent. But when the balls banged around her ears, Niemeier swung back to greater pressure, then back to risk aversion – and so on and so forth until she found the perfect balance for her in the middle of the first set and Zheng with some nicely played points said: I have you!
The second major strength, even if it’s an exaggerated comparison for someone who says about herself that she “doesn’t really think about a Grand Slam victory yet”: Boris Becker nerves when serving. He was known for serving particularly well in important moments of a game – and Niemeier did that too, the service game at 3: 3 in the first round should be mentioned as a representative. Breakball Zheng: Ace. Debut: Service winner. Playing ball Niemeier: Ace. But it’s not just the powerful openings, Niemeier served variably; with kick and slice, sometimes on the body, then back in the corner. In short: unpredictable.
There’s no need to worry that Niemeier will be nervous against Swiatek
She kept getting out of awkward situations like the 4-1 loss in the second round – and it helped that her opponent’s openings were the opposite of Niemeier’s; symbolically the game at 3:4: double fault Zheng; then a second serve that couldn’t have been slower thrown and which Niemeier answered with a winning shot. After a long rally, Niemeier had breakball. Zheng gifted her opponent with another double fault.
It all mingled into how Niemeier finished the match in a tiebreaker: three service winners, two forehand wins and two more carefully played points. That’s it.
Victory, of course, qualifies for Broadway in this tournament: Monday, Arthur Ashe Stadium, against industry leader Iga Swiatek, who has so far shown no sign of weakness. Still, there’s no need to worry about Niemeier being nervous, she loves the big arenas, and she doesn’t need to worry about serving either. It wobbles for many players when they compete in this arena for the first time: the ball throw confuses many because of the seemingly endless grandstands, scoreboards and the stadium roof, the perspective is completely different than on the outdoor courts. “We trained there twice after arriving in New York, I got used to it a bit by then,” she says. Jule Niemeier is ready for Broadway.