By Simon Jennings
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Aryna Sabalenka evened the score with Leylah Fernandez at the U.S. Open with a 6-3 7-6(2) win on Friday to keep alive her hopes of becoming the first player since Serena Williams to win consecutive titles at Flushing Meadows.
The world number one had unfinished business with the Canadian, who stunned Sabalenka in straight sets in the 2021 semi-finals en route to her runners-up finish in their only previous meeting.
There would be no repeat of that shock on Friday, with Sabalenka overcoming early jitters on Louis Armstrong Stadium, surviving a marathon opening game that featured three break points before finding her rhythm.
Fernandez refused to go quietly and forced a second-set tiebreak before the Belarusian’s power prevailed.
Sabalenka’s victory extends her perfect U.S. Open third-round record to 6-0. The win also brings her within four victories of matching Serena Williams’ feat of winning consecutive U.S. Open titles achieved more than a decade ago.
The match began with Fernandez earning multiple break points in the opening game, but Sabalenka’s resilience shone through as she saved them all before eventually holding serve.
That early test seemed to settle the world number one, who broke Fernandez’s serve in the fourth game and never looked back in the first set.
“I really wanted this revenge,” Sabalenka said in her on-court interview. “I’m very happy with the win.”
The second set proved far more competitive with both players trading holds until a tiebreak, where Sabalenka’s experience told as she raced to a 6-1 lead before sealing victory with a forehand winner.
(Reporting by Simon Jennings in New York; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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