The Chan sisters on Sunday set up a quarter-final showdown in the women’s doubles at the US Open, while fellow Taiwanese Hsieh Su-wei also kept her campaign alive at the final Grand Slam of the year in New York.
Second seeds Chan Yung-jan and Martina Hingis edged 13th seeds Kristina Mladenovic of France and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia 6-4, 7-5 in 1 hour, 26 minutes on Court 5, their longest match so far at Flushing Meadows.
The Taiwanese-Swiss duo hit 34 winners while saving two of four break points and converting four of six to advance to a quarter-final against Chan Hao-ching and Zhang Shuai, who took 1 hour, 54 minutes to see off Daria Gavrilova of Australia and Daria Kasatkina of Russia 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 on Court 7.
Photo: Robert Deutsch-USA Today
The Taiwanese-Chinese pairing saved seven of 11 break points and won five of 21 as their opponents fired down six double faults to set up a showdown of the Taiwanese siblings at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
Earlier on Court 7 in the second round, 12th seeds Hsieh and Monica Niculescu took 1 hour, 15 minutes to see off the challenge of Japanese duo Eri Hozumi and Miyu Kato 6-4, 6-2 and set up a third-round clash with fifth seeds Timea Babos of Hungary and Andrea Hlavackova of the Czech Republic.
In the second round of the mixed doubles, third seeds Chan Hao-ching and Michael Venus of New Zealand edged Alicja Rosolska of Poland and Santiago Gonzalez of Mexico 6-3, 6-7 (8/10), 10-6 to set up a quarter-final against seventh seeds Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and Rohan Bopanna of India, while elder sister Chan Yung-jan and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia fell to a 6-4, 6-3 defeat to Coco Vandeweghe of the US and Horia Tecau of Romania in exactly an hour.
In the singles, Maria Sharapova described her return to center stage after a 15-month doping ban as “a great ride,” despite her campaign ending in the fourth round.
The former world No. 1 and five-time Grand Slam winner fell 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 to Latvian 16th seed Anastasija Sevastova.
It was her first appearance at a Slam since last year’s Australian Open, where she failed a drugs test and was kicked out of the sport until April this year.
“It’s been a really great ride in the last week,” the 30-year-old Russian said. “Ultimately, I can take a lot from this week. It’s great to get that major out of the way. It was an incredible opportunity. I’m very thankful for it. I did my best. I can be proud of that.”
Sharapova, the world No. 146, had needed a wild card into the final Grand Slam of the year, where she was champion in 2006.
The US Tennis Association’s decision was not met with universal approval.
Former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki claimed it was “unacceptable” for a player with a doping suspension to be given prime-time spots on the prestigious Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Sharapova played all of her four matches in the 24,000-capacity arena.
The Russian insisted that she had nothing to prove to her critics.
“I feel like I’m really beyond that,” she said. “I think there’s only a way to show it on the court, because that’s what really matters to me. I have so many things in my life, but there’s a desire to keep going for more and to keep living through these moments out on these courts.”
Sevastova, who was also a quarter-finalist in New York last year, said she was happy to see Sharapova playing again and that she felt no desire to prove a point on behalf of her peers.
“I think some players have that. I don’t have that. I have great respect for her,” the 26-year-old said.
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