Defending champion Daniil Medvedev reached the third round of the US Open without dropping a set. The Russian tennis player, ranked No. 1 in the world, defeated French Arthur Rinderknicch at Arthur Ashe Court 6-2, 7-5, 6-3. Medvedev did not lose a set in the first round against American Stefan Kozlov (6-2, 6-4, 6-0).
The Russian will now meet qualifier Yiping Wu, the first Chinese in the third round in New York. The 22-year-old Wu, winner of the US Junior Open five years ago, is ranked 174th in the world rankings. The Chinese reached the third round by defeating Portugal’s Nuno Borges in five sets: 6-7 (3) 7-6 (4) 4-6 6-4 6-4.
Medvedev and Renderknic walked onto the track at Arthur Ashe Stadium after Serena Williams beat second-placed Anett Kontaveit. The 40-year-old American, who may have been working on her last tournament, needed nearly two and a half hours.
“It is not easy to start the match at 10 pm,” Medvedev said. “Fortunately, I’ve already had some experience with it. I watched Serena’s match on TV and tried to keep her calm and save energy. Everyone would like to see Serena win this week. Or actually during these two weeks. Anything is possible for her.”
Sixth seed Félix Auger-Aliassime was eliminated. The 22-year-old Canadian, number 8 in the world, lost to Britain’s two-year-old Jack Draper: 4-6 4-6 4-6. Compatriot Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 US Open winner, reached the third round of the Women’s Championship by defeating Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maya 6-2 6-4.
