The action continued on the second day of the women’s singles at the US Open. World #2 Aryna Sabalenka was one of the players to take to the courts in New York. There were many close matches, and one particularly notable upset observed by the fans. We at LWOT also have a recap of the men’s singles action in a separate article. Read on to discover who looked good, bad, and which match was the best of them all.
US Open Day 2 Women’s Recap
Who looked good
Jessica Pegula impressed on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The American #1 swept aside Camila Giorgi 6-2 6-2. The former US Open quarterfinalist’s serving stood out in particular. She only faced one break point during the whole match. Pegula also won 90% of her points behind her first serve.
Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova also had a positive day. The Czech defeated Han Na-lae 6-3 6-0. Vondrousova showed her trademark variety during both sets. She hit 27 winners, but they were a mix of different shots using topspin, flat and dropshots. It is interesting that very few in the media have included her among the players to have a chance of a title run. Maybe she will surprise some again as she did at Wimbledon.
There were some concerns about Elina Svitolina’s fitness before the tournament began. But she has quickly ended those concerns with her first round performance. Anna-Lena Friedsam was easily beaten by the Ukrainian 6-3 6-1. The former US Open semifinalist was clinical when she had chances on Friedsam’s serve, taking four of the five break point opportunities she had.
Second seed Aryna Sabalenka was the last to play on Day 2. She played well on a very humid night in New York to prevail 6-3 6-2 against Maryna Zanevska. The meeting between the two was also notable as it was Zanevska’s final ever professional match, after she announced a few weeks ago the US Open would be her final tournament. Zanevska was a WTA title winner in 2021, and everyone at LWOT wishes her the best in her next chapter.
Who looked bad
Unfortunately, Caroline Garcia’s recent woes have continued. Last year’s semifinalist at Flushing Meadows fell in the first round to Yafan Wang 6-4 6-1. Wang has been on an incredible run of form to catapult herself up the rankings, hence it was never going to be easy. But the Frenchwoman was so far below the excellent level we saw from her last season. A long break to recover mentally may be exactly what Garcia needs right now.
It may seem harsh to include a winner in this section, but Ons Jabeur did not play anywhere near her best. The Tunisian deserves a measure of credit for getting over the line 7-5 7-6 against Camila Osorio. However, it was a very scrappy match to watch, with Jabeur leaking 43 unforced errors. In truth, Osorio missed a big chance to cause an upset, but could not manage it, hitting 39 unforced errors herself.
Finally, it was a night to forget on Arthur Ashe Stadium for tennis legend Venus Williams. She was hammered 6-1 6-1 by Greet Minnen. It should be said that the two-time US Open champion was struggling with an injury, which undoubtedly contributed to the lopsided nature of the final score. The match soon became somewhat uncomfortable to watch, with even Minnen not appearing to enjoy how easy her victory was.
Match of the day
An extraordinary turnaround in the contest between Martina Trevisan and Yulia Putinsteva wins match of the day. Putinsteva raced through the opening set, winning it 6-0. But Trevisan managed to hang in there, and draw more errors from her opponent in the second set, taking it 7-0 in a tiebreak. The final set also went to a tiebreak. Putinsteva had the lead, but then started to make unforced errors when it mattered most. Trevisan won the championship tiebreak 10-8, and the match as a whole 0-6 7-6 7-6.
Main Photo Credit: Cara Owsley-USA TODAY Sports
