(Photo credit score: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images)
Venus Williams, returning to the Grand Slam singles stage for the primary time since 2023, competed nicely however fell brief on Monday within the first spherical of the U.S. Open in New York.
The 45-year-old star misplaced 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 to Eleventh-seeded Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in precisely two hours.
Williams, a seven-time main singles champion, grew to become the oldest singles participant on the U.S. Open since Renee Richards, then 47, misplaced within the first spherical of ladies’s singles in 1981.
After Muchova took the primary set, Williams broke serve to begin the second set, then added one other break for 5-2 earlier than leveling the match. However, Muchova, 29, received the primary three video games of the third set, throughout which she by no means confronted a break level.
‘She’s such a legend of our sport,’ Muchova, a U.S. Open semifinalist every of the previous two years, mentioned of Williams.
The day’s greatest upset noticed Mexico’s Renata Zarazua edge No. 6 seed Madison Keys 6-7 (10), 7-6 (3), 7-5.
It was the primary victory over a top-20 participant in Zarazua’s profession as she grabbed her head in disbelief after securing the win. She is the primary Mexican lady ever to defeat a top-10 opponent on the U.S. Open.
‘Coming into the match I used to be like nearly crying as a result of I used to be actually nervous,’ Zarazua mentioned. ‘The crowd made it so chill for me so I used to be loosening up.’
Zarazua took benefit of 89 unforced errors from Keys and received regardless of her opponent’s 46-8 benefit in winners. Zarazua gave away solely 34 factors.
Hungary’s Anna Bondar, ranked No. 97 on the earth, took benefit of shaky play by No. 12 Elina Svitolina and upset the Ukrainian, 6-2, 6-4.
Two-time main champion Barbora Krejcikova ousted No. 22 seed Victoria Mboko in straight units with a 6-3, 6-2 victory.
Mboko, the 18-year-old Canadian who received her first WTA title of any sort on the National Bank Open in her dwelling nation earlier this month, struggled along with her proper wrist closely taped. While she landed 64 % of her first serves, Mboko additionally suffered from 10 double faults whereas profitable solely 36 of her 70 service factors.
Krejcikova, 29, entered the U.S. Open unranked however is coming off a run to the fourth spherical of the Cincinnati Open. The Wimbledon champion in 2024 and winner of the 2021 French Open, Krejcikova dominated from the outset towards Mboko, profitable 69 whole factors to her opponents’ 49.
Krejcikova will subsequent face unranked Moyuka Uchijima from Japan within the second spherical.
‘I’ve been actually busy, we have been actually practising and in addition we loved town,’ Krejcikova mentioned in her on-court interview after the match. ‘We found a whole lot of good ice lotions across the metropolis and a whole lot of good eating places.
‘I’m having fun with it. So, it has been good, and I hope I may be right here so long as I can.’
No. 9 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan completed off Julieta Pareja 6-3, 6-0 to advance, whereas No. 17 seed Liudmila Samsonova of Russia additionally moved on by rallying for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over China’s Yuan Yue.
No. 30 seed Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine was eradicated 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 6-4 by Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova regardless of having 43 winners to 19 for her opponent. Yastremska was undone by 53 unforced errors.
Fifth-seeded Mirra Andreeva of Russia cruised previous Alycia Parks 6-0, 6-1. Also advancing had been No. 15 Daria Kasatkina of Australia, No. 19 Elise Mertens of Belgium, No. 28 Magdalena Frech of Poland and No. 29 Anna Kalinskaya of Russia.
–Field Level Media