She is the only remaining German - and she represents her country excellently: Jule Niemeier plays great at the US Open. The game plan rewards them with a highlight in the round of 16: It's against the number one in the world. Iga Swiatek will then be able to fill many knowledge gaps about the Dortmund native.
Jule Niemeier's eyes sparkled. "If that's not fun, you're somehow wrong in the job," said the 23-year-old high-flyer from Dortmund, expecting a real highlight match at the US Open. She takes on Iga Swiatek, number one in the world, in a duel for the quarterfinals. And Niemeier definitely doesn't want to hide from the limelight.
"Of course it will be a very difficult match," said the Wimbledon quarter-finalist with a view to the game this Monday (approx. 8 p.m. CEST/Eurosport and in the ntv.de live ticker) after beating the Chinese Zheng Qinwen 6: 4 , 7: 6 (7: 5) and managed the next stage of their amazing run in New York: "I have a team that will adapt very well to it. They know the Iga very well."
The Iga, just 21 years old, has been the dominant figure in women's tennis since Ashleigh Barty's retirement and is aiming for her second Grand Slam triumph this year after the French Open in the "Big Apple". It doesn't get much harder than that, but Swiatek isn't unbeatable on hard court, as the preparatory tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati showed. There she did not survive the round of 16. Now, in the last major of the year, she will meet the up-and-coming German hopeful, who is still a fairly unknown slate for Swiatek.
"I know she has a pretty good serve," said the Warsaw native. "We've never trained together so I can't say how it feels on the racket to play against her." She only knows that Niemeier is "very talented and still young": "It will be a great fight."
This year, Niemeier succeeds in emphatically presenting her calling card to the majors. First with her unexpected high in Wimbledon, now with convincing performances in her Grand Slam debut on hard court. "She's really one for big places, for the big stage, one that's not afraid at all," said national coach Barbara Rittner about Niemeier.
The powerful Westphalian is Germany's greatest hope at the beginning of a new phase in German women's tennis, in which Angelique Kerber (baby break) and Andrea Petkovic (end of career) will be missing. Niemeier is an interesting guy. She doesn't show off, is reserved, but fearless and offensive when things get down to business on the pitch.
"I just try to do my thing and not pretend. It's part of having to get my ass kicked," she said with a smile. Her success proves her right. She has already achieved a lot with victories against the former Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin, the dangerous Kazakh Julia Putinzewa and now Zheng.
It's worth it for Niemeier. In addition to prize money of 278,000 US dollars, she has already made a big jump in the world rankings.
