The first eight US Open women’s third-round matches produced much entertaining tennis. On Day 5, defending champion Coco Gauff and tournament favourite Aryna Sabalenka had exhilarating matches, and two big names in the draw were knocked out. This article recaps all the action.
US Open Day 5 Women’s Recap
Who Looked Good
Coco Gauff came through a high-quality match against Elina Svitolina. The 20-year-old lost the opening set to the Ukrainian, who played a trademark clean set with very few errors. But Gauff proved why she is the defending champion with some terrific shotmaking to overcome this very stiff challenge.
Aryna Sabalenka also had to fight back from a set down in her US Open battle. She faced Ekaterina Alexandrova, who knocked out the 16-year-old Iva Jovic in the previous round. Alexandrova dominated the opening set, and Sabalenka looked in real trouble on the Arthur Ashe Stadium. However, she was superb in the final two sets, winning ten games in a row at one stage to triumph 2-6 6-1 6-2.
Wimbledon semifinalist Donna Vekic performed impressively again on Day 5. She had a great win against the dangerous Peyton Stearns, who defeated Daria Kasatkina in the previous round. Both sets were close, but Vekic was more clinical in the crucial moments.
Emma Navarro had to work hard to advance to the next round against Marta Kostyuk. The American trailed by a break in the final set of a long and physical match against her battling opponent. Ultimately, Navarro’s calm demeanor might have been the decisive factor, with Kostyuk’s frustrations reaching boiling point in the final games.
Who Looked Bad
Three-time US Open runner-up Victoria Azarenka will be disappointed with the manner of her exit to Wang Yafan, who progressed to her maiden Grand Slam fourth round. Although Wang is a solid competitor, Azarenka’s game is better than the Chinese player’s when it is flowing. Unfortunately for her, she made far too many unforced errors to hand Wang victory.
Jule Niemeier was a significant underdog against the Olympic gold medalist Qinwen Zheng, but the German did not do herself justice during a 2-6 1-6 loss. Her aggressive game was wayward throughout, and the match was never close to being a real contest.
Match of the Day
Paula Badosa’s deciding set tiebreak victory against Elena-Gabriela Ruse was a close contender for match of the day. However, the best battle overall on Day 5 was between the 2017 US Open runner-up Madison Keys and Elise Mertens. There were six breaks in the opening set, which was surprising because of how well Keys usually serves. Despite those difficulties, the American managed to secure the set 7-6 on a tiebreak, met with a loud roar by the home fans on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Mertens is a fighter, though, and she showed that throughout the rest of the match. Unlike the previous set, there was only one break in the second, which went Mertens’ way in the 11th game. The Belgian served it out comfortably to win 7-5 and force a decider. Unfortunately for the American crowd, the final set was similar to the second. Mertens served superbly, meaning she only needed one break of serve again. She got that in the seventh game to seal a fantastic 6-7 6-5 6-4 triumph.
Main photo credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
