New York • Simona Halep made a quick-as-can-be exit from the U.S. Open on Monday, becoming the first No. 1-seeded woman to lose her opening match at the Grand Slam tournament in the half-century of the professional era.
Halep simply was overwhelmed by the power-based game of 44th-ranked Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-2, 6-4 in a match that was stunningly lopsided and lasted all of 76 minutes.
It was the first match at the rebuilt Louis Armstrong Stadium, which now has a retractable roof, and what a way to get things started. That cover was not needed to protect from rain on Day 1 at the year's last major tournament — although some protection from the bright sun and its 90-degree (33-degree Celsius) heat might have been appreciated.