US OPEN: Wozniacki out as Federer, Murray cruise on

Caroline Wozniacki became the highest seed to fall in the upset-filled women’s draw at the US Open tennis championship when Czech Petra Cetkovska stunned the Dane 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7-1) at Flushing Meadows on Thursday.
The upset left only three of the top 10 seeds still alive in the year’s final Grand Slam — No. 1 Serena Williams, who is seeking the fourth women’s calendar-year Grand Slam, second seed Simona Halep and fifth seed Petra Kvitova.
Marin Cilic kept his US Open title defence on track, but not without a scare, as the ninth seed needed over four hours to put away Mikhail Kukushkin and reach the fourth round with a 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-1), 6-3, 6-7 (3-7), 6-1 win on Friday.
Cilic stepped onto the Grand Stand court having won 16 straight sets at Flushing Meadows but that string quickly came to an end when the 56th-ranked Kukushkin took the opening set in a tie-break in what was the start of a long and harrowing afternoon for the defending champion.

On Thursday, Simona Halep and Stan Wawrinka beat the heat with straight-sets wins to reach the third round while American hope Jack Sock wilted under the punishing conditions, collapsing on court.

Cetkovska had looked to be cruising to victory when she led 4-1 in the second set but the injury-prone 30-year-old lost her way and then saved four match points in the decider before she was ultimately rewarded for being aggressive on vital points.

Cetkovska, who has tumbled to a 149th ranking after missing seven months with a hip injury before returning in March, was playing in the Open thanks to a special injury exemption.

She rode a powerful forehand that produced 29 of her 61 winners to victory over Wozniacki, saving four match points held by the Dane – all on winners off her racquet.

“I said it’s now or never, so I just went for it,” she said in an on-court interview about her string of match point saves. “It’s just amazing.”

“So happy to be able to be back and to compete,” said the 30-year-old Cetkovska, who will play Italy’s Flavia Pennetta, a straight sets winner over Romanian Monica Niculescu.

Former world No. 1 Wozniacki, a finalist last year, was naturally dejected. “She played well. I let her play well,” Wozniacki, 25, said. “She had nothing to lose and went for her shot.

Leading off the night session, second seed Roger Federer was neither troubled by the weather nor his opponent as the Swiss maestro easily dispatched Steve Darcis of Belgium 6-1, 6-2, 6-1 in just 80 minutes to stay on course for a sixth US Open crown.

While Federer barely broke a sweat, most players spent a sizzling day session with ice packs draped over their shoulders, chugging on water bottles and searching for shade.

British hopes Andy Murray and Johanna Konta, however, enjoyed a productive day in the sun as both went the distance to score second round victories.
Third seed Murray appeared frozen to the spot on a broiling afternoon but caught fire when he needed to and rallied for a 5-7, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 win over Frenchman Adrian Mannarino.

Konta, meanwhile, provided the early upset, toiling for three hours and 27 minutes to see off ninth-seeded Spaniard and Wimbledon finalist Garbine Muguruza 7-6(4) 6-7(4) 6-2 in what was the longest women’s match ever at the US Open.

Read also: Nadal confident of US Open

As courtside temperatures pushed past 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Romanian second seed Halep wasted little time finishing off Ukraine qualifier Kateryna Bondarenko 6-3, 6-4 in 76 minutes before escaping to the air-conditioned comfort of the players’ lounge.

Fifth-seeded Swiss Wawrinka outslugged promising South Korean teenager Chung Hyeon, but still needed three tie-breaks to sweat out a 7-6 (2), 7-6(4), 7-6(6) second round decision.
Next up for the French Open champion is Ruben Bemelmans of Belgium, who advanced when Sock retired due to cramping while leading 6-4 6-4 3-6 1-2.
Australian Sam Stosur, the 2011 US Open champion and last player to beat world No.1 Serena Williams at Flushing Meadows four years ago, looked ready to make another run at the title as she crushed Russian qualifier Evgeniya Rodina 6-1 6-1.
Among Indians, on Friday, Leander Paes bowed out of the men’s doubles.
Playing with Spanish Fernando Verdasco, he lost in the second round of the men’s doubles to the American pair of Steve Johnson and Sam Querrey 5-7, 6-4, 3-6.
Earlier on Thursday, Sania Mirza made it to the second round of women’s doubles.
The top-seeded Indo-Swiss pair of Sania and Martina Hingis dispatched the Americans Kaitlyn Christian and Sabrina Santamaria 6-1, 6-2 in the first round.

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