World No.1 Iga Swiatek eased into the third round of the US Open, signalling a return to form which helped her set a record win streak this year.
The Pole overcame the 2017 US Open champion, Salone Stephens 6-3 6-2 on her Arthur Ashe Stadium debut courtesy of 14 winners.
Swiatek has looked vulnerable since her winning streak came to an end but seems to be finding her feet once again. The pair traded early breaks to open the match before Swiatek got the upper hand by breaking Stephens once again in the first set.
She carried the momentum into the second, winning the first four games before closing out the contest.
Swiatek reaches the third round of the US Open as the only one from the top four seeds after world number two Anett Kontaveit lost to Williams and hard-hitting Greek Maria Sakkari and Spain’s Paula Badosa also fell in the second round.
In other matches, Alizé Cornet, who famously ended the defending Champion Emma Radacanu’s journey in the first round, also reached the third round with a 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 win over Kateřina Siniaková of the Czech Republic.
Meanwhile, the most memorable moment of the day came when Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk refused a traditional handshake after losing 6-2, 6-3 to Belarus’ Victoria Azarenka and settling for a racquet tap instead.
Players from the warring nations have largely been kept away but an encounter between the players from these countries was inevitable. Azarenka, a three-time US Open finalist, was recently dropped from a charity tennis match to raise funds for Ukraine as well.
Away from the drama, Belinda Bencic, Jessica Pegula, Petra Kvitová, Danielle Collins, Aryna Sabalenka, Karolína Plíšková, Garbiñe Muguruza all reached next round as well.
