Third round singles action concludes on Saturday in New York City.
On Day 6, Toronto champion Jannik Sinner collides with 2016 US Open champion Stan Wawrinka. Plus, in another blockbuster third round matchup, Sascha Zverev plays Grigor Dimitrov. And Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev will also be in action on Saturday.
On the women’s side, American No.1 Jessica Pegula faces a tough third round draw in Elina Svitolina. In addition, American No.3 Madison Keys plays recent Montreal finalist Liudmila Samsonova. And Aryna Sabalenka, Ons Jabeur, and Marketa Vondrousova will all play their third round matches.
Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s four most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule. Saturday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Liudmila Samsonova (14) vs. Madison Keys (17) – Second on Louis Armstrong Stadium
Keys is 30-11 this season, with one WTA title, which came on grass in Eastbourne. She was the runner-up here in 2017, and a semifinalist the year after, yet has failed to advance beyond the fourth round in any other appearance. Madison easily won her first two matches this week, dropping only nine games in total.
Samsonova is 26-19 on the year, and has reached two hard court finals (Abu Dhabi, Montreal). She is 2-0 in her previous third round matches at Majors, which took place two years ago at Wimbledon, and a year ago in New York. Like Madison, Liudmila is yet to drop a set.
They have split two prior encounters, both of which went this distance. Samsonova prevailed in a third-set tiebreak two years ago on grass in Berlin, while Keys won 6-3 in the third a year ago on a hard court in Adelaide. In the rubber match on Saturday afternoon, I pick the American. While both players possess significant weapons, Madison’s are a bit bigger. And she’ll surely benefit from playing on her home country’s second biggest court.
Elina Svitolina (26) vs. Jessica Pegula (3) – Second on Arthur Ashe Stadium
Pegula keeps steadily improving season-by-season. The 29-year-old has already accumulated 45 match wins this year, the most of her career, and recently collected her second WTA 1000 title in Montreal. Jess has lost just eight games through two matches, as she looks to change two disappointing patterns she has established. In 11 of the last 12 Majors, she’s either lost in the third round (five times) or the quarterfinals (six times).
Svitolina is 21-11 at tour level since returning from giving birth to her first child. And she’s now 11-2 at Slams, having reached the quarters at Roland Garros, and the semis at Wimbledon. Elina came back from a set down on Thursday afternoon to take out Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and she has advanced to the fourth round or better in her last four appearances at the US Open.
Pegula leads their head-to-head 3-1, with all four matches occurring on hard courts. They played just a month ago in Washington, where Jess won 6-4 in the third. And with her summer hard court form considerably better than Svitolina’s, I like Pegula’s chances of advancing.
Stan Wawrinka vs. Jannik Sinner (6) – Third on Louis Armstrong Stadium
Wawrinka is looking to reach the second round of a Major for the first time in nearly four years. And he’s been playing some good tennis, as he was the runner-up a month ago on clay in Umag, and then upset Frances Tiafoe in Cincinnati. On Thursday, Stan eliminated the 30th seed, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, in four sets.
Sinner currently sits at a career-high ranking of No.6 in the world, and is No.4 in the year-to-date rankings. That’s thanks to a 43-12 record this season, achieving his first Slam semifinal at Wimbledon, and claiming his first Masters 1000 title in Toronto. Jannik won his first two matches in straight sets, and is vying to reach the round of 16 in New York for the third consecutive year.
They have played five times within the last four years, with their rivalry beginning with a four-set Wawrinka victory during Sinner’s US Open debut in 2019. Stan also took their other 2019 meeting, but Jannik has won their last three, which includes two straight-set wins earlier this season on hard courts. The 22-year-old Italian has elevated himself to be one of the sport’s elite, and he should be favored to beat the three-time Major champ on Saturday.
Sascha Zverev (12) vs. Grigor Dimitrov (19) – 7:00pm on Louis Armstrong Stadium
This is a rematch from just two weeks ago in Cincinnati, where Zverev easily prevailed 6-2, 6-2. Overall he is 5-1 against Dimitrov, with Grigor’s only victory coming in their first meeting back in 2014, when Sascha was only 16-years-old and still ranked outside the world’s top 100. Two Slams ago at the French Open, Zverev also defeated Dimitrov in straight sets.
Both men come into this matchup playing their highest level in some time. Zverev has spent much of the year rebuilding his confidence after the ankle injury he suffered at last year’s Roland Garros ended his 2022 season. Yet he picked up his 40th win of the year on Thursday, and is coming off a semifinal run in Cincinnati. Dimitrov struggled with his fitness as he battled long COVID, but has had a good summer. Grigor upset Frances Tiafoe at Wimbledon, and comfortably defeated Andy Murray on Thursday.
However, based on their history, Zverev is a clear favorite to be victorious, especially on a hard court. Sascha was the runner-up and a semifinalist in his last two US Open appearances, and 13 of his 20 career titles have come on this surface.
Other Notable Matches on Saturday:
Clara Burel vs. Aryna Sabalenka (2) – Sabalenka comfortably claimed both of her first two matches by the same score line of 6-3, 6-2. Burel is a 22-year-old Frenchwoman who eliminated another big hitter, Karolina Pliskova, on Thursday. In this same round of last year’s US Open, Aryna beat Clara 6-2, 6-0.
Carlos Alcaraz (1) vs. Dan Evans (26) – Alcaraz is on a nine-match winning streak in New York, where he is now 13-1 lifetime. Evans came back from a set down in the last round to defeat Botic van de Zandschulp. Carlitos has twice before been victorious over Dan in straight sets.
Ons Jabeur (5) vs. Marie Bouzkova (31) – Jabeur has been battling an illness for the past week, yet overcame impressive teenager Linda Noskova on Thursday evening. On the same day, Bozukova easily dispatched of Petra Martic, dropping only three games. Last year in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon, Marie’s best result at a Major to date, Ons defeated her in three sets.
Daniil Medvedev (3) vs. Sebastian Baez – Medvedev is now 25-5 at the US Open, and is vying to reach the second week for the fifth straight year. Baez is red-hot, as he’s currently on a 12-match win streak, coming off two title runs in August (Kitzbuhel, Winston-Salem).
Ekaterina Alexandrova (22) vs. Marketa Vondrousova (9) – The Wimbledon champ has lost just seven games across her first four sets. Alexandrova already notched two solid wins, over Leylah Fernandez and Lesia Tsurenko. Earlier this season on a hard court in Adelaide, Marketa defeated Ekaterina in three.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
