New York, September 08 (H.S.): Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina advanced to the US Open quarterfinals on Monday after defeating former champion Naomi Osaka in straight sets. The second-seeded Rybakina beat Osaka 6-1, 6-4 and will now face China’s Zheng Qinwen. Rybakina will become the world No. 1 if she reaches the semifinals.

Speaking in her on-court interview, Rybakina said, “Of course, I want to be No. 1. I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t want that. Definitely, it is one of my goals. I try to take every match the same way, give my best and fight until the end. Now we’ll see what happens in the next match.”

Zheng Qinwen secured her place in the last eight with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over eighth seed Iga Swiatek. The Chinese player, the 2024 Olympic champion, once again staged a comeback after losing the opening five games, doing so for the second consecutive match. She became the first qualifier to reach the US Open quarterfinals since Emma Raducanu won the title in 2021.

Earlier, Zheng had fought back from 0-5 down in the deciding set against Madison Keys to win seven consecutive games and claim a 1-6, 7-6, 7-5 victory. She also lost the opening five games against Swiatek.

“I believe coming back from 0-5 yesterday was not luck. That’s all I can say,” Zheng said.

Rybakina won the Australian Open this year to claim the second Grand Slam title of her career, while world No. 2 is the highest ranking she has achieved. Despite losing on Wednesday, she will still have a chance to become world No. 1, provided none of Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff or Jessica Pegula wins the title.

The match against Osaka lasted just one hour and six minutes. Rybakina sealed the victory with an ace. She currently leads the entire Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour in aces. Osaka, who has won two of her four Grand Slam titles at the US Open, appeared to struggle with a leg or ankle issue during the match.

Gauff Also Reaches Quarterfinals After Three Years

Fourth seed Coco Gauff defeated 14th seed Eva Jovic 6-1, 6-4 to reach the US Open quarterfinals for the first time in three years. Gauff won her maiden Grand Slam title at the same tournament in 2023. However, she failed to progress beyond the fourth round in the following two years.

Gauff will now face French Open champion and fifth seed Mirra Andreeva. Andreeva defeated 24th seed Anastasia Potapova 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Andreeva also stopped to help Potapova after the latter sustained a knee injury during the final game of the match.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar