NEW YORK — Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz fended off hard-hitting Wu Yibing in straight sets on Friday (Saturday in Manila) and says his game is “getting there” as he hits the US Open fourth round.
Alcaraz, coming off a four-month injury absence, beat Wu 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 and joined women’s two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in reaching the round of 16.
China’s Wu, a former US Open boys’ champion whose pro trajectory has been disrupted by multiple injuries, pressured Alcaraz with his aggressive baseline game.
But despite moments of frustration Alcaraz rose to the challenge and will face 20th-seeded American Tommy Paul for a place in the quarter-finals after Paul beat 15th-seeded Alexander Bublik 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (4/7), 6-1, 6-3.
“The way he plays is unbelievable, the rhythm he has on every shot -- forehand, backhand,” Alcaraz said of Wu. “His balls skid a lot on the court and, for me, it’s really difficult to control sometimes.
“But I think I stayed there. I played aggressive. I played smart in the toughest moments.”
Wu recovered an early break in each of the first two sets, but Alcaraz pocketed both with breaks in the final games and after saving a pair of break points in the first game of the third the Spaniard rolled home.
“I think my level is really good,” he said. “I’ve got into the rhythm of the competition. I’m getting there.”
World number one Sabalenka didn’t face a break point in her 6-3, 6-4 victory over Kamilla Rakhimova, firing 29 winners with 10 aces.
The numbers didn’t tell the whole tale of a match that saw 92nd-ranked Rakhimova challenge Sabalenka in a second-set slugfest.
Sabalenka, whose world number one ranking is under threat in New York, got off to a strong start, breaking Rakhimova in her first service game and holding her own serve with ease.
Sabalenka didn’t miss a first serve until the seventh game of the contest, taking the first set in 35 minutes.
But Uzbekistan’s Rakhimova dialed up the power in the second set, which featured mammoth service holds from each player before Sabalenka gained the crucial break for a 5-4 lead.
Sabalenka, who must repeat as champion to have a chance of remaining number one, next faces Taylor Townsend, the 96th-ranked American who beat 15th-seeded Russian Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-7 (3/7), 6-3.
Third-seeded American Jessica Pegula, one of the players with a chance to knock Sabalenka off her No. 1 perch, mounted a desperate fightback to beat Canadian Leylah Fernandez 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 in a battle of former finalists.
Pegula struggled early with the varied spin and speeds of the Canadian lefty’s serve.
In other early matches, Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk beat Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-3, 6-2 and American Emma Navarro upset seventh-seeded Czech Karolina Muchova 6-3, 7-5. AFP
LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani got a second straight day off Friday (Saturday in Manila) while the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar deals with assorted injuries.
Ohtani smiled and laughed in the dugout while watching Thursday’s game, going on the field with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates to celebrate a walk-off 3-2 win over St. Louis that avoided a series sweep.
“He was pretty jovial yesterday, which was a good sign, more kind of upbeat than I’ve seen him in months,” manager Dave Roberts said before the Dodgers opened a three-game set against Washington.
Ohtani’s symptoms involving his right biceps, neck and left knee haven’t improved in recent weeks, although Roberts remains noncommital about the possibility of a stint on the injured list.
“Hopeful,” the manager said, “but I wouldn’t say confident.”
The injuries were initially delaying Ohtani’s return to pitching, but they’re now affecting his hitting. He’s batting .279 with 30 home runs and 80 RBIs.
Roberts said Ohtani’s hasn’t admitted that his performance has been impacted by his injuries.
“What we saw a couple nights ago wasn’t him, so clearly he was not feeling well,” Roberts said.
Ohtani has been “very agreeable” about the team’s cautious approach with him.
“He wants to be out there, wants to play,” Roberts said, “but he’s understanding that whatever decision we make is the best interest for him and the team.”
Ohtani hasn’t spoken to the media in nearly three weeks.
Center fielder Tommy Edman was in Ohtani’s leadoff spot again against Washington, while Alex Call remained the designated hitter, batting seventh. Edman went 4 for 5 with two runs scored on Thursday. AP
NEW YORK — Serena and Venus Williams electrified Arthur Ashe Stadium but fell to Chan Hao-ching and Maya Joint in three thrilling sets in their return to the US Open women’s doubles on Friday (Saturday in Manila).
The superstar sisters, whose 14 Grand Slam doubles titles include two US Opens, rallied from a break down in the third set and led the deciding 10-point tiebreaker 5-0 but fell 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (7).
Venus and Serena hadn’t played Grand Slam doubles since the 2022 US Open.
For Serena Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion considered by many to be tennis’s greatest women’s player, it was her first return to the courts of Flushing Meadows since then.
The 44-year-old had made a sensational return to major singles play as a Wimbledon wild card four years after “evolving away” from the game.
At the All-England club she lost to Joint in a Centre Court clash that captured the imagination of both diehard and casual tennis fans.
Even that experience didn’t prepare Joint for the atmosphere on the cavernous Ashe Stadium.
The sisters received a thunderous ovation when they took court, all business in understated white outfits.
Every blistering volley and overhead smash from the Americans received raucous cheers, and when they sprinted to the lead in the decisive 10-point tiebreaker the noise was deafening
“The atmosphere was surreal,” Joint said. “Being able to play against such legends of the game is super special.”
