Fifth seed Ons Jabeur displayed her trademark resilience to advance to the US Open last 16 with a hard-fought three-set victory over Marie Bouzkova that stretched over nearly three hours.
Jabeur, last year’s runner-up, triumphed 5-7, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 on Arthur Ashe Stadium against Czech 31st seed Bouzkova, who struggled with a thigh injury.
The 29-year-old Tunisian has been grappling with illness during her time in New York.
“Hopefully, I’ll continue with this warrior symbol,” she stated after her win, which lasted two hours and 56 minutes. “I love fighting. I trust my body. I know I can go all the way playing three sets, no problem. It’s not fun starting to be sick. I feel like this tournament is testing me and showing me that I have a lot of strength, that I can go really far.”
Jabeur’s next opponent at Flushing Meadows, as she pursues her first major title, will be Chinese 23rd seed Zheng Qinwen.
In the night session at Louis Armstrong Stadium, Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova needed just 56 minutes to dispatch Ekaterina Alexandrova. The Czech ninth seed swiftly secured a 6-2, 6-1 win against the Russian 22nd seed in a match that began at around 23:30 local time.
Vondrousova will face American world number 59 Peyton Stearns, who ended the run of British number one Katie Boulter.
Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka also progressed with ease, notching a 6-1, 6-1 victory over France’s Clara Burel.
Since her Australian Open victory earlier this year, Sabalenka has posted strong performances, including semi-final runs at the French Open and Wimbledon. If she outperforms defending champion Iga Swiatek in New York, she will take over as world number one.
Sabalenka has navigated her opening-round matches without dropping a set and will face 13th seed Daria Kasatkina next after the Russian defeated Belgium’s Greet Minnen 6-3, 6-4.
Third seed Jessica Pegula fended off a comeback from Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina, maintaining her quest to become the first American singles champion since Sloane Stephens in 2017.
The 29-year-old American has reached the quarter-finals of six Grand Slam tournaments without advancing beyond the last eight.
Pegula will square off against compatriot Madison Keys in the fourth round following a 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 victory against 26th seed Svitolina. Keys, who lost to Stephens in the 2017 final, rallied from behind to secure a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 win against Russia’s Liudmila Samsonova.
Source: BBC Sports
