Professional tennis player and honorary member of the Los Angeles Tennis Club Vania King and her partner Caroline Dolehide won their quarterfinal doubles match yesterday, earning them a coveted spot in the semifinals of the US Open Tennis Championships.
King, a former World No. 3 in Doubles and US Open and Wimbledon Doubles Champion, is playing for the first-time with 20 year-old newcomer Caroline Dolehide. The pair ousted the No. 14 seeds Lyudmyla Kichenok and Jelena Ostapenko, 7-6, 6-4 in a tough back and forth match. Dolehide’s big serve and King’s superior doubles acumen proved too much for the hard-hitting Ukrainian/Latvian team. They are the last American pair still in the tournament.
This is the first grand slam semifinal for Dolehide and the third time for King, who won the tournament in 2010.
In the post match interview with ESPN, Dolehide credited King’s positive attitude for carrying the team through their remarkable run, losing only lost one set in their preceding four matches.
“It means so much,” King told WTA.com. “The last few years have been tough because I’ve been dealing with a lot of injuries, and kind of the same injury for the past few years. Caroline is such a great girl, and a great player, so I’m really excited to be doing this with her.
“Maybe it’s my age showing,” the 30-year-old added, “but I’m definitely calmer, honestly, than I was in early years. I’m much more appreciative of the time I have on court. Whether I win or lose, I take things day by day, and I really appreciate everything I have. I’m really happy to just be here.”
King, who resides in Florida, grew up in Monterey Park and can often be seen practicing and teaching doubles strategy at the Los Angeles Tennis Club when she’s in Southern California training and visiting family.
King and Dolehide are scheduled to play Elise Mertens from Belgium and Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus on Friday.
