NEW YORK (Reuters) – Second seed Aryna Sabalenka blasted past Daria Kasatkina 6-1 6-3 to reach the U.S. Open quarter-finals for the third year in a row on Monday, subduing her opponent with her powerful forehand inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The Australian Open champion Sabalenka will take the top of the rankings when they are updated after the tournament and was playing with the confidence of a world number one as she pounded Kasatkina with 31 winners.
Kasatkina lost in straight sets to the Belarusian last month in Cincinnati and had clearly not cracked the code this time around, as Sabalenka overwhelmed her at every turn and she struggled with her serve.
She next plays China’s Zheng Qinwen, who knocked out 2022 finalist Ons Jabeur in straight sets.
“I’m super happy with the performance today,” said Sabalenka. “It was a great match and I’m super happy with the win.”
The players traded breaks early in the first set before Sabalenka wrested the lead, breaking Kasatkina to love thanks to a series of aggressive forehand shots in the fourth game.
Kasatkina had struggled with double faults through the first three rounds and they were a problem yet again on Monday, as she handed Sabalenka a break with a double fault in the sixth game and again in the opening game of the second set.
The Russian broke back in the second game, as Sabalenka put up a pair of unforced errors and a double fault herself, but Kasatkina’s momentum was short-lived as the Belarusian converted on a break point to retake the lead in the third game.
The players traded breaks yet again late in the second set before Sabalenka forced Kasatkina into a backhand error to break her serve on match point and pumped her fist with satisfaction.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
