The 22-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal and world No.1 Iga Swiatek advanced to the last 32 stage at the US Open on Thursday.
Four-time champion Nadal came from behind and defeated Fabio Fognini of Italy 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-1 in the second round.
Nadal, 36, has shown great form this season, winning the Australian Open in January and the French Open in June, before making it to the Wimbledon semifinals in July.
“With Nadal, you can’t mess around. I let him back in the match and he kept getting better from there,” Fognini said.
Iga Swiatek, the two-time French Open champion, cruised past 2017 US Open title holder Sloane Stephens 6-3, 6-2 for her 50th win this season.
“I just tried to have the same kind of motivation or attitude as any other court, because it’s the best way for me to perform good,” Swiatek said.
Victories from Zheng Qinwen and Yuan Yue wrapped up a wonderful second round for Chinese women’s singles players, as four made it to the third round of the tournament.
Zheng, 19, beat Anastasia Potapova of Russia 7-6 (4), 7-6 (3) to qualify for the last 32, while Yuan defeated Romanian veteran Irina-Camelia Begu 6-3, 7-6 (6) after Wang Xiyu and Zhang Shuai had already progressed into the third round on Wednesday. It marks the first time for China to have four players enter the women’s singles third round at a Grand Slam tournament.
“I think this is so positive. It means Chinese tennis can start to go up. With this energy, I hope all of us can go as far as we can. I’m happy for all of them,” Zheng said.
World No. 39 Zheng seesawed with her 21-year-old opponent until 6-6 in the opening set and once trailed at 4-1 in the tiebreaker, but took six points in a row to wrap it up 7-4.
The two exchanged breaks several times in the second set before Zheng sealed her victory by winning the tiebreaker 7-3.
“Today was a really tough match, especially in the second set. It was a tough battle, but I’m so happy that I was able to hold the pressure in the second set when she come back at 5-5 and to win this tiebreak,” Zheng said.
Zheng, who reached the last 16 at this year’s French Open, edged out former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in three sets in her US Open debut on Tuesday.
23-year-old US Open debutant Yuan Yue had already achieved her best result at a Grand Slam tournament by reaching the second round after beating Australia’s wild card Jaimee Fourlis 6-3, 6-2 on Tuesday.
The world No. 142 opened the match by winning three games in a row before taking the first set 6-3.
Yuan had shared the spoils with Begu after 12 games in the second set, but kept resilient to win the tiebreaker 8-6.
In the women’s doubles first round, Chinese pair Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan beat their compatriot Han Xinyun and Russia’s Evgeniya Rodina 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, while Chinese veteran Zhang Shuai paired up with Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine to defeat Nadiia Kichenok of Ukraine and Georgia’s Oksana Kalashnikova 6-4, 6-4 to reach last 32.
In the mixed doubles first round, Yang Zhaoxuan paired with India’s Rohan Bopanna and lost to Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and Australia’s Max Purcell 7-5, 7-5.
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