Aryna Sabalenka admits she was reluctant to ‘start match at midnight’ after Novak Djokovic-Alexei Popyrin clash at US Open
Aryna Sabalenka wanted to avoid playing her third-round match against Ekaterina Alexandrova past midnight at the US Open.
Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic (Images via X)
Aryna Sabalenka did not win her third-round match at the Arthur Ashe Stadium before 2 am local time. She was up against Ekaterina Alexandrova on Friday (August 30) and after a sluggish start in the first set, secured a berth in the fourth round with a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 win. Sabalenka, however, was reluctant to play the match as it started a few minutes past midnight.
This happened due to the previous match played between Novak Djokovic and Alexei Popyrin on the same court. Because of a five-setter between Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe that lasted for over four hours, the Djokovic-Popyrin match, which was scheduled at 7:00 pm, began at 8:30.
Djokovic, who was chasing his fifth US Open and 25th Grand Slam title, faced a major upset as Popyrin registered his first win over him in three fours and 19 minutes. Because of their late-night finish, Sabalenka and Alexandrova played the match past midnight and finished around 2 am.
That was an interesting decision in between matches to have this 1 hour and 20 minute gap. I was like ‘no way.. I’m gonna start at midnight'. And that’s actually what happened. That was tricky. We stayed with the team and tried to relax. Right before the match we did our warm up and we hoped for the best.Aryna Sabalenka said after the match
In this year’s US Open, the referee can shift a late-night match to another court if it doesn’t start before 11:15 pm, but this decision was not taken and Sabalenka and Alexandrova had to continue playing. The 26-year-old Belarusian will next face Elise Mertens on September 1.
Aryna Sabalenka happy to secure victory after a challenge
Aryna Sabalenka played her first three-setter at this US Open. Prior to beating Ekaterina Alexandrova, she registered wins over Priscilla Hon 6-3, 6-3 and Lucia Bronzetti 6-3, 6-1. Against Alexandrova, however, Sabalenka lost five games in a row in the first set, but she quickly turned the tables to emerge as the winner.
I don’t know what I did, I was just trying to stay low, put as many balls as I can back on that side. She played incredible tennis in the first set. It was really tough to change it.Aryna Sabalenka said in her post-match interview
Sabalenka has faced her fourth-round opponent Elise Mertens nine times and won seven of those matches. Their last meeting was at the 2023 Australian Open, which the World No.2 won. The forthcoming meeting will be their second at the US Open, having locked horns previously in the fourth round in 2021.
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Gouri Das
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