Djokovic battles past Svajda as Kostyuk, Raducanu move ahead

Novak Djokovic battled past American qualifier Zachary Svajda in four sets on Wednesday to reach the US Open third round for a record-equalling 19th time.

The 38-year-old Djokovic dropped the first set but recovered to win 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 and stay in the hunt for an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam singles title.

“I wasn’t really happy about my tennis for the first part of the match but also credit to Zach for playing some high quality tennis,” said Djokovic.

The Serbian star admitted to feeling “not that great” after a laboured performance but is optimistic he will gradually find his rhythm.

“That’s what I’m hoping, the deeper I go into the tournament the better I feel about my game,” he said.

“Obviously a bit different for me the last couple of years body-wise. I get the wear and tear quicker than I used to do.”

Indonesian qualifier Janice Tjen’s US Open campaign ground to a halt on Wednesday with a comprehensive second-round defeat to Britain’s Emma Raducanu.

Marta Kostyuk returns to Katie Boulter during their US Open match on Tuesday. Associated Press

Tjen upset Russian 24th seed Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday after becoming the first Indonesian to play in the main singles draw of a Grand Slam since 2004.

But any hopes of a sustained giant-killing run at Flushing Meadows evaporated in a 6-2, 6-1 defeat to 2021 US Open champion Raducanu at the Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Raducanu booked her place in the third round with a clinical performance, pulling Tjen all over the court with a succession of powerful deep groundstrokes into the corners. Earlier, World number one Jannik Sinner began his bid for back-to-back US Open titles with an emphatic victory.

Italian star Sinner waltzed to a 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 win over Czech world number 89 Vit Kopriva, needing just 1hr 38min to advance to the next round.

“It feels great to be back here. Obviously it’s a very special tournament,” said Sinner, who is attempting to become the first man to repeat as US Open champion since Roger Federer won five in a row from 2004-2008.

Sinner, 24, faces Alexei Popyrin in the third round. “I’m very happy that I’m healthy again,” said Sinner, who was forced to retire from last week’s Cincinnati Open final against Carlos Alcaraz.

Sinner’s blistering start on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court was matched by Poland’s Iga Swiatek, who was similarly emphatic in a 6-1, 6-2 rout of Colombia’s Emiliana Arango.

Yet Swiatek’s performance was relegated to a footnote in her post-match press conference, where news of pop star Taylor Swift’s engagement to NFL player Travis Kelce dominated the questions.

Swiatek is a fully paid-up “Swiftie” — the nickname given to Swift’s millions of fanatical followers — and could not hide her delight at learning of the singer’s looming nuptials.

“I’m just happy for her, because she deserves the best,” Swiatek said.

2023 women’s singles champion Coco Gauff was forced to claw her way past Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic in a gruelling late night battle that lasted just under three hours.

Gauff racked up 59 unforced errors, 10 double faults and suffered six breaks of serve before finally prevailing 6-4, 6-7 (2/7), 7-5 against Tomljanovic, ranked 79th in the world.

While Gauff laboured to victory, two-time former champion Naomi Osaka had no such difficulty in dispatching Belgium’s Green Minnen 6-3, 6-4.

The Japanese former world number one revelled in returning to a venue that she regards as a home from home.

“Whenever I play here the atmosphere feels like home, and it is home for me,” said Osaka, who is seeded 23rd and will next face American Hailey Baptiste.

In other women’s draw results on Tuesday, Ukrainian 27th seed Marta Kostyuk took down Britain’s Katie Boulter 6-4, 6-4. Eighth seed Amanda Anisimova of the United States ousted Australia’s Kimberly Birrell 6-3, 6-2.

Brazil’s 18th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia advanced with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-1 win over Britain’s Sonay Kartal.

But there was disappointment for rising French star Lois Boisson. Boisson, who captivated her homeland with a run to the semi-finals of the French Open in June, exited in three sets to Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic, losing 3-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2.

Russian 13th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova brushed aside Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova 6-4, 6-1, but Diana Shnaider and Sofia Kenin were the rare seeds to fall.

Agencies