Aug. 29 (UPI) — Notable tennis stars Coco Gauff and Novak Djokovic made their way to the next round on the first day of the 2023 U.S. Open. However, there were early upsets that saw the exit of No. 4 Holger Rune from Denmark and No. 8 Maria Sakkari from Greece.
Gauff started off with a lost set but rebounded for an emotional 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing, N.Y. The 19-year-old American engaged in a heated exchange with chair umpire Marijana Veljovic but managed to fire seven aces in the match against No. 121 Laura Siegmund of Germany. Gauff converted 5 of 14 break point opportunities.
“I’m just happy I was able to overcome all of that,” Gauff told reporters. “I wasn’t playing my best tennis. Usually, every Grand Slam you have one bad match. I’m glad I was able to get that out of the way in the first round.”
Gauff, currently ranked No. 6 in the world, recorded 34 winners and 34 winners. Siegmund registered 37 winners, 36 unforced errors, and converted 4 of 7 break point chances.
Her frustration reached its peak in the third set when she approached the umpire regarding Siegmund’s slow serving and lack of readiness for Gauff’s services.
“I was really patient the whole match,” Gauff said. “She was going over the time since the first set and I never said anything. I would look at the umpire and she didn’t do anything. Then the crowd started to notice. … I was being nice. My team said I should’ve spoken up earlier.”
Gauff will face No. 63 Mirra Andreeva of Russia in the second round.
No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland breezed through the second round with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over No. 86 Rebecca Peterson of Sweden. Swiatek converted 5 of 6 break point opportunities in the 58-minute match.
No. 4 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, No. 15 Belinda Bencic of Sweden, and No. 11 Petra Kvitova and No. 10 Karolina Muchova, both from the Czech Republic, were among the other top women’s players to advance on Day 1 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
Unseeded Rebeka Masarova of Spain, ranked No. 71, caused an upset by defeating Sakkari 6-4, 6-4 to advance to the second round. Masarova recorded four aces, converted 3 of 3 break points, and registered 22 winners in the 87-minute match.
Djokovic was the top men’s player to advance on the first day of the final Grand Slam of the season. The No. 2-ranked Serbian defeated No. 84 Alexandre Muller 6-0, 6-2, 6-3.
Djokovic, who was unable to participate in the tournament last year due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, recorded six aces, converted 8 of 14 break points, and registered 32 winners in the 95-minute match.
“I knew it was going to be a late night for me,” Djokovic said. “I was excited to go out on the court. I didn’t care if I started after midnight. I was looking forward to this moment for a few years, to be out in the biggest and loudest stadium in our sport for a night session.”
No. 7 Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece, No. 5 Casper Ruud of Norway, and Americans Taylor Fritz (No. 9), Frances Tiafoe (No. 10), and Tommy Paul (No. 14) were the other top men to win their first-round matches on Day 1.
No. 63 Roberto Carballes Baena of Spain upset Rune in a 2-hour, 42-minute match on Court 5. Baena recorded seven aces, converted 7 of 14 break points, and registered 21 unforced errors in the 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory. Rune recorded two aces, converted 3 of 6 break points, and registered 43 unforced errors.
No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, No. 3 Daniil Medvedev of Russia, No. 6 Jannik Sinner of Italy, and Russians Andrey Rublev (No. 8) and Karen Khachanov (No. 11) will be among the top men in action on Tuesday in Flushing.
No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, No. 3 Jessica Pegula of the United States, No. 5 Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, No. 7 Caroline Garcia of France, and No. 9 Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic will be the top women playing on Day 2 of the U.S. Open.
First-round coverage will air from noon to 7 p.m. EDT Tuesday on ESPN, and from 7 to 11 p.m on ESPN and ESPN2.
Upcoming Schedule:
Wednesday
Second round from noon to 7 p.m. on ESPN; 7 to 11 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN2
Thursday
Second round from noon to 6 p.m. on ESPN; 6 to 11 p.m. on ESPN2
Friday
Third round from noon to 6 p.m. on ESPN; 6 to 11 p.m. on ESPN2
Saturday
Third round from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on ESPN2
Sunday
Round of 16 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on ESPN; 3 to 6 p.m. on ABC; 6 to 11 p.m. on ESPN2
Monday
Round of 16 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on ESPN; 7 to 11 p.m. on ESPN2
Sept. 5
Mens and women’s quarterfinals from noon to 11 p.m. on ESPN
Sept. 6
Mens and women’s quarterfinals from noon to 11 p.m. on ESPN
Sept. 7
Women’s semifinals from 7 to 11 p.m. on ESPN
Sept. 8
Men’s semifinals from 3 to 6 p.m. and 7 to 10 p.m. on ESPN
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