Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and her teammate continued to power through the US Open women’s doubles, defeating a 14th-seeded Spanish team in straight sets to advance to the round of 16.
Hsieh and her teammate, Galina Voskoboeva of Kazakhstan, edged Nuria Llagostera Vives and Arantxa Parra Santonja 6-2, 6-2 on Friday. They could next face the top-seeded duo of Kveta Peschke of Czech Republic and Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia.
In their 1 hour, 9 minute match, Hsieh and Voskoboeva broke the Spanish pair’s serve four times, while their opponents failed to convert the only break point they earned throughout the match.
Photo: EPA
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Chan Yung-jan left the tournament after losing a super tiebreak in the second round of mixed doubles action.
The unseeded Chan and Mariusz Fyrstenberg of Poland started out shakily, as they were broken two times in the first set against the seventh-seeded Russian Elena Vesnina and Indian Leander Paes.
Even though Chan and Fyrstenberg came back in the second set tiebreaker, they did not manage to continue their momentum through the super tiebreak and were beaten 6-2, 6-7 (7/9), 10/4.
Photo: EPA
? SINGLES
Reuters, NEW YORK
Maria Sharapova was knocked out of the US Open on Friday in a shock third-round loss to Flavia Pennetta, while Andy Murray was lucky to survive after being pushed to five sets by Robin Haase.
Sharapova was beaten 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 in the biggest upset of the tournament so far, before Murray clawed his way back to defeat Haase 6-7 (5/7), 2-6, 6-2, 6-0, 6-4 in the second round and avoid another early exit at the last Grand Slam of the year.
Defending champion Rafael Nadal strolled through to the third round when his opponent, Frenchman Nicolas Mahut, retired in the first game of the third set complaining of a stomach muscle strain with the Spaniard well in control, leading 6-2, 6-2.
Sharapova, who won the US Open in 2006, but has not won a Grand Slam title since the 2008 Australian Open, became the biggest casualty of a tournament that has mostly gone according to the script.
The Russian third seed was one of the favorites to win the crown after winning a lead-up event in Cincinnati, but made a whopping 60 unforced errors and served 12 double faults, including two in the final game.
For Pennetta, a quarter-finalist at Flushing Meadows in 2008 and 2009 who is seeded 26th, it was a moment to savor as she celebrated her victory on a baking hot day at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Pennetta’s next opponent is China’s Peng Shuai, the 13th seed, who advanced with a 6-4, 7-6 (7/1) win over Julia Goerges of Germany in an increasingly wide open women’s draw.
None of the remaining players in the bottom half of the draw have won a Grand Slam title and the only two to have played in a final are last year’s runner-up, Vera Zvonareva of Russia, and Australia’s Sam Stosur.
Zvonareva, seeded second, beat Anabel Medina Garrigues 6-4, 7-5, while ninth-seed Stosur, a finalist at the French Open last year, outfought Russian Nadia Petrova 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (5/7), 7-5.
Stosur came back from a break down in the third set after squandering two match points in the second set.
Murray, who also won in Cincinnati, was in danger of bowing out after his Dutch opponent won a first set tiebreaker and took the next set to establish control.
However, the Scotsman, who has played in three Grand Slam finals, but is yet to win a major, assumed control, winning the next two sets and opening up a 4-0 lead in the fifth.
Haase, who needed treatment to his back, fought back to level the final set at 4-4, before Murray broke his serve then held to seal victory.
Former champion Juan Martin Del Potro sailed through with a 6-2, 6-1, 7-5 win over his fellow Argentine Diego Junqueira.
American Andy Roddick, the 2003 winner, silenced talk about a passing of the torch by dismissing 18-year-old compatriot Jack Sock 6-3, 6-3, 6-4, while big-serving John Isner won his all-American match against Robby Ginepri 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.
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