Carlos Alcaraz on Monday cruised into the second round of the US Open with a straight-sets mauling of big-serving Reilly Opelka of the US, while veteran Venus Williams made an emotional exit at the hands of 11th seed Karolina Muchova.
Alcaraz, sporting a new buzz cut that has sparked plenty of chatter on social media, dismantled Opelka 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 under the bright lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium to set up a second-round encounter with Italian Mattia Bellucci.
Williams, back at Flushing Meadows at the age of 45 after a year’s hiatus, fought bravely against Muchova, forcing a deciding set before bowing out 6-3, 2-6, 6-1.
Photo: AP
“I’m very proud of how I played,” said Williams, who was beaten 6-1, 6-1 on her last US Open appearance in 2023.
“I think for me getting back on the court was about giving myself a chance to play more healthy,” added Williams, who disclosed in 2011 that she had been diagnosed Sjogren’s, an autoimmune disease that causes fatigue and joint pain.
“When you play unhealthy, it’s in your mind. It’s not just how you feel. You get stuck in your mind, too. So, it was nice to be freer,” she said.
Talented teen Mirra Andreeva crushed Alycia Parks 6-0, 6-1 with a near-flawless performance on Louis Armstrong Stadium, but an error-strewn showing from Madison Keys saw the Australian Open champion upset 6-7 (10/12), 7-6 (7/3), 7-5 by Renata Zarazua in the first match on Arthur Ashe.
At No. 6, Keys is the highest seed to fall so far.
Zarazua, the only Mexican player in the main draw, saved seven break points across the match for her first win over a top-10 player in a grueling, three-hour and 10-minute affair.
“Coming into the match, I was like almost crying, because I was really nervous, but I think the crowd made it so chill for me,” she said. “I could hear some Mexican [fans] cheering, so that was very nice.”
She would hope to recreate the magic in the second round against Frenchwoman Diane Parry, who had no problems eliminating twice Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova 6-1, 6-0 in her final professional match.
Two-times major winner Barbora Krejcikova has struggled with injuries this year, but looked strong in knocking out Victoria Mboko 6-3, 6-2, just weeks after the promising Canadian teenager’s career breakthrough in Montreal.
Krejcikova next plays Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima.
Men’s 17th seed Frances Tiafoe lifted the home fans after Keys was sent packing, beating Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka 6-3, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 and closing out the afternoon program on Ashe with his 19th ace.
The twice semi-finalist, who plays US qualifier Martin Damm next, joins fourth seed Taylor Fritz and sixth seed Ben Shelton in the second round as they aim to become the first US man to lift the US Open trophy in 22 years.
Jack Draper, a semi-finalist last year, dismissed Argentine qualifier Federico Agustin Gomez 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (7/9), 6-2 and plays Belgian Zizou Bergs next.
NO HARD FEELINGS: Taiwan’s Lin Hsiang-ti and Indonesia’s Dhinda Amartya Pratiwi embraced after fighting to a tense and rare 30-29 final game in their Uber Cup match The Taiwanese men’s team on Wednesday fought back from the brink of elimination to defeat Denmark in Group C and advance to the quarter-finals of the Thomas Cup, while the women’s team were to face South Korea after press time last night in the Uber Cup quarter-finals in Horsens, Denmark. In the first match, Taiwan’s top shuttler Chou Tien-chen faced a familiar opponent in world No. 3 Anders Antonsen. It was their 16th head-to-head matchup, with the Dane taking his fourth victory in a row against former world No. 2 Chou, winning 21-14, 13-21, 21-15 in 1 hour, 22 minutes. The
Marta Kostyuk’s maiden WTA 1000 title in Madrid came on Saturday thanks to her power, poise and a pair of unexpected lucky shorts. The world No. 23 beat eighth-ranked Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 in under 90 minutes to secure the most prestigious trophy of her career, her third professional singles title and second in less than a month after Rouen. Yet as the 23-year-old Ukrainian posed for photographs at the Caja Magica, it was not just the silverware that caught the eye. Held alongside her team and her two dogs, Kostyuk showed off a piece of black men’s underwear, prompting
Throwing more than US$5 billion at a divisive new tour and walking away after five seasons does not look like good business, but LIV Golf was not all bad news for Saudi Arabia. Oil-funded LIV, which poached top stars and sent golf’s establishment into a tailspin, helped push the conservative kingdom into global view — one of its key aims, experts said. The exit, confirmed on Thursday after weeks of speculation, does not signal a flight of Saudi money from sport, even after the Middle East war that sparked Iranian attacks around the Gulf, they said. “Saudi Arabia is not
Anastasia Potapova on Wednesday turned tennis heartbreak into history by becoming the first lucky loser to reach a WTA 1000 semi-final with her thrilling 6-1, 6-7 (4/7), 6-3 victory over Karolina Pliskova at the Madrid Open, as Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei exited in the women’s doubles quarter-finals. The Russian-born Austrian, who lost in qualifying last week, has capitalized on her unexpected main draw entry and stunned former world No. 1 Pliskova in a roller-coaster clash despite squandering three match points. Potapova’s run has included impressive victories over former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko and world No. 2 Elena Rybakina. Asked if she had thought
RSS