New York
US Open 2020: Second seed Kenin crashes out after losing to Mertens; Thiem sails through to quarter-finals Serena Williams battled into the quarter-finals of the US Open as top men’s seeds Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev sailed through to the last eight at Flushing Meadows.
After Williams kept her bid for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title alive, second seed Sofia Kenin was sent crashing out in the last 16 by Belgium’s Elise Mertens.
Williams had to summon up every last ounce of strength to depose 15th seed Maria Sakkari in three hard-fought sets. The 38-year-old American needed almost two and a half hours to dislodge her 25-year-old Greek opponent 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 6-3 inside an empty Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.
“She’s such a good competitor. It was a really intense match,” said Williams, who had been dumped out of a US Open tuneup tournament by the same opponent last month.
“I felt like she almost played better today. I was a little fatigued last time and had some cramps. Just felt like I was able to compete longer,” Williams added.
There was little separating the players throughout the energy-sapping contest, with Williams notching 107 total points to Sakkari’s 99.
Williams won 72 percent of points off her first serve while Sakkari won 73 percent. Sakkari also outdid Williams on aces, by 13 to 12.
Williams rallied from two games down in the deciding set, pumping herself up with loud screams that echoed around the spectator-free arena as she broke Sakkari twice to clinch the last-eight spot.
“I’m super passionate. This is my job. This is what I wake up to do. This is what I train to do 365 days of the year,” Williams said afterwards. The American will play Tsvetana Pironkova for a place in the semi-finals after the Bulgarian ousted France’s Alize Cornet in another draining three-setter.
Pironkova, playing her first tournament in three years after a lengthy break in which she gave birth to her son, prevailed 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-3 at the Louis Armstrong Stadium.
“It’s absolutely unreal, I really can’t believe it,” said Pironkova, whose last tournament appearance before this year’s US Open was the 2017 Wimbledon championships when she exited in the second round.—Reuters
