US Open: Former champions and rising stars advance as draws narrow

After two days of play, the US Open men’s and women’s singles draws have been halved. Initially, 128 players were in each category. After two days of matches at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, both categories are now reduced to 64 players.

Champions move ahead

Former men’s champions Daniil Medvedev, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka, and women’s contenders Jessica Pegula, Ons Jabeur and Madison Keys advance to the next round. Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz won against his opponent, Dominic Koepfer, at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Dominic Koepfer retired due to an unexpected ankle injury while stepping backward. The match ended when Alcaraz was leading against Koepfer with a score of 6-2, 3-2.

Carlos Alcaraz is into Round 2 after a retirement by Dominik Koepfer. pic.twitter.com/0qPdd5Hr59

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 30, 2023

Dominant Start

Former champions Medvedev and Pegula won their matches dominantly to start their US Open championship in style. Madvedev raced past Attila Balazs in just one hour and 14 minutes with a score of 6-1, 6-1, 6-0, while Pegula wrapped up against Camila Giorgi with a score of 6-2, 6-2.

Surprises and setbacks

Greet Minnen handed seven-time major singles winner Venus Williams her most lopsided US Open defeat with a score of 6-1, 6-1 in just 73 minutes. Williams said after her defeat, “I think there are just shots where my footwork wasn’t really there. I missed a lot of backhands where my feet just weren’t there. That’s normal when you don’t spend a lot of time on the court. The former World No. 1 is currently ranked No. 410. Another upset victim of the day was Caroline Garcia, who was eliminated by Wang Yafan.

Greet Minnen books her way into Round 2! pic.twitter.com/6tL4qGCIr0

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 30, 2023

Continues triumph

Former grand slam champion Andy Murray beat Corentin Moutet 6-2, 7-5, 6-3, before Stan Wawrinka knocked out Yoshihito Nishioka 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-4. Marketa Vondrousova, the current Wimbledon champ, continued her winning streak at the majors with a 6-3, 6-0 result against Han Na Lae.

Notable Winners : Matteo Berrettini, Andrey Rublev, Daria Kasatkina, Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz, Cameron Norrie, Liudmila Samsonova, Alex de Minaur and Karolina Pliskova.