(New York) Iga Swiatek was defending champion and the player to beat at the United States Open: it was Latvian Jelena Ostapenko who ended her run on Sunday by eliminating her in the round of 16.
This premature defeat will also cost the 22-year-old Pole her place of world No.1 in favor of Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, at the end of the tournament.
“I don’t know what happened, but suddenly I lost all control. I don’t know why I started making so many mistakes. Usually I know what to do in these situations, I feel what I’m doing wrong. This time I don’t understand…my mistakes were so huge,” Swiatek commented.
Very disappointed with her performances in the Majors on hard court this year (eliminations in the round of 16 in Australia and New York), as well as by the loss of her N.1 status, she said she was “happy” to be able to “ spend some time away from the circuit.”
Ostapenko, ranked 21st in the world at 26, not only controlled Swiatek’s power, but even outpaced her.
“I knew it would be difficult, but I also knew that I had to play my game and be aggressive because she doesn’t like that,” commented Ostapenko, who has never lost to Swiatek in four meetings.
The Latvian had won Roland-Garros in 2017, reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 2018, the quarter-finals at the Australian Open this year, but had never passed the third round at Flushing Meadows.
She will therefore try on Tuesday to return to the final four of a Major for the first time in more than five years. To do this, she will compete against the American nugget Coco Gauff (6th).
Because the latter, aged 19, ended the career of the comeback Caroline Wozniacki (33 years old) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, but it was not easy.
“As she hands over all the balls, you have to be mentally strong and know how to take your chances,” said the American, who lost in the quarterfinals in New York last year.
Former world No.1, Wozniacki retired after being eliminated in the third round of the Australian Open in 2020. After three and a half years during which she married and gave birth to two children, she announced in his return to the circuit last June.
The other quarter-final at the top of the table will oppose the Czech Karolina Muchova (10th), finalist of the last Roland-Garros, to the Romanian Sorana Cirstea (30th) who respectively beat the Chinese Xinyu Wang (53rd), 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 and the Swiss Belinda Bencic (13th), 6-3, 6-3.
In the men’s draw, Novak Djokovic continues his road to a 24th Grand Slam title: the Serb quietly eliminated Croatian Borna Gojo (105th and from qualifying) 6-2, 7-5, 6-4.
“We had never faced each other on the main circuit, but I watched his games in qualifying and this week and I could see he was physical and hitting hard. I had to neutralize his serve,” Djokovic said.
For his thirteenth quarter-final at Flushing Meadows, like Andre Agassi and Roger Federer, but still four lengths behind Ivan Lendl, he will face one of the three Americans still competing in the quarter-finals, Taylor Fritz (9th).
The latter stopped the Swiss from qualifying Dominik Stricker (128th) 7-6 (7/2), 6-4, 6-4.
At 25, he will play the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the second time in his career after Wimbledon in 2022. He has never gone beyond the third round in his national Major in seven appearances.
The other two Americans, Frances Tiafoe, semi-finalist last year, and Ben Shelton will face off for a place in the last four.
Shelton (47th) beat compatriot Tommy Paul (14th) 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.
The young American hopeful (20 years old) signs his second quarter in Grand Slam for his first full year on the ATP circuit, after the Australian Open in January, where he had just been eliminated by Paul.
In Australia, “I learned how to be strong mentally,” he explained after his victory. He said he now has “faith” in his ability to win games and go far in big tournaments.
Tiafoe (10th), he logically beat the Australian Rinky Hijikata (110th) 6-4, 6-1, 6-4.