As Novak Djokovic overcame a first-round scare to advance to the third round of the US Open, Carlos Alcaraz won the match on Wednesday with a blistering straight-sets victory.
In one hour and 36 minutes, Alcaraz defeated Italian Mattia Bellucci 6-1, 6 0, 6-3, 6-3 on the Arthur Ashe Stadium main court. Alcaraz faces Djokovic in the semi-finals at Flushing Meadows.
The 22-year-old Spanish second seed defeated the 65th-ranked Bellucci, whose best Grand Slam performance came with a bid to Wimbledon’s third round earlier this year. The 22-year-old unfurled a string of 32 winners in a dominant display.
Alcaraz, who will face 32nd seed Luciano Darderi, another Italian, in the next round, said, “I played great, to be honest, from the beginning until the last ball.
He continued, “The sooner I go to bed early the more time I spend in court.”
After falling four sets to American qualifier Zachary Svajda, Serbian legend Djokovic kept his goal of a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam singles title alive.
However, Djokovic was forced to redouble after losing the first set before coming away with a 7-6 (5/7), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 win.
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Djokovic, 38, stated that he is hoping to improve as the tournament progresses even though he isn’t at his best.
He said, “The more I get into the tournament, the better I feel about my game.”
With his victory, Djokovic will advance to the third round of the US Open, where he will face Britain’s Cameron Norrie, who defeated argentine Francisco Comesana 7-6 (7 / 5), 6-3, 6-7 (0 / 7), 7-6 (7 / 4), in a record-equal 19th time.
Casper Ruud, the 2022 US Open finalist, lost to Belgium’s Raphael Collignon on Wednesday in other men’s tennis matches, falling 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.
Fourth seed Taylor Fritz defeated South African qualifier Lloyd Harris 4-6, 7-6 (7 / 3), 6-2, 6-4, while compatriot Frances Tiafoe, a seeded 17, also advanced with a four-set victory over qualifier Martin Damm. Tiafoe won 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (8/10), 7-5.
Rant ’s “No Class,”
Aryna Sabalenka, the defending champion and world number one, defeated unseeded Russian Polina Kudermetova 7-6 (7/4) 6-2 in the women’s draw.
Sabalenka asserted her control in the second set after taking the first set of a tie-break. In the third round, the Belarusian will face Leylah Fernandez from Canada.
“The first set was extremely aggressive and tight.” I was relieved to be under that pressure and to relieve her. I felt much better in the return game in the second set.
In another instance, Taylor Townsend’s 25th-ranked Latvian Jelena Ostapenko drew a vicious on-court tirade at the American before falling 7-5, 6-1.
Ostapenko accused her of lacking “class” during her rant, according to Townsend.
She told me that I had no education, no class, and that I could watch what happens if we played outside of the US, according to Townsend. Although it was unfortunate, I can put it on my TikTok, you know?
Ostapenko expressed anger over Townsend’s inability to acknowledge a net cord during the game on Instagram.
Emma Raducanu of Great Britain continued her strong start to the tournament by defeating Indonesian qualifier Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-1, in straight sets.
In 21 years, Tjen had become the first Indonesian player to reach the main draw of a Grand Slam, and he followed up with a first-round upset win over Veronika Kudermetova, the 24th seed.
But Raducanu, who is aiming to reclaim the US Open title she won as a qualifier aged 18, comfortably outperforms her. Elena Rybakina, the ninth seed, will face Raducanu in the following round.
Tjen’s tournament came to an end as her exit was followed by another Southeast Asian player, Alexandra Eala, who is also from the Philippines.
Cristina Bucsa of Spain defeated Eala 6-4, 6-3 to make history as the first Filipino player to win a Grand Slam singles match since her defeat of 14th seed Clara Tauson on Sunday.
Source: Channels TV
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