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For Swiatek, the 49-minute match was her 10th
straight win at the tournament. The defending champion, she is
seeking her fifth Grand Slam title after winning the French Open
earlier this year.
The 22-year-old from Poland was dominant on Friday, tallying 21
winners against five unforced errors. Juvan, on the other hand,
hit just two winners and compiled 12 unforced errors.
"I didn't like the fact I was kind of winning against my best
friend," Swiatek said in an on-court interview after the match.
"Playing her is like playing a sister. ... I don't have many
friends but she's my best friend."
Swiatek became the youngest woman to reach the Round of 16 for
the third consecutive time since Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki
reached four straight from 2008 to 2011.
Next on the docket for Swiatek, with a berth in the
quarterfinals on the line, is No. 20 seed Jelena Ostapenko of
Latvia, a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 winner over American Bernarda Pera.
Wozniacki continued her comeback from a three-year absence by
defeating the United States' Jennifer Brady 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. A
U.S. Open finalist in 2009 and 2014 and the Australian Open
champion in 2018, Wozniacki gave birth to children in 2021 and
2022.
"To actually be here at Arthur Ashe Stadium with all of you
supporting me is a dream come true," Wozniacki said.
She earned a fourth-round matchup with Coco Gauff, the
sixth-seeded U.S. player who rallied past 32nd-seeded Elise
Mertens of Belgium 3-6, 6-3, 6-0. Mertens led 3-2 in the second
set before losing the next 10 games.
Two points from the win, Gauff tumbled to the court while
chasing a shot. She quickly jumped back up, then won the next
point in spectacular style with a drop shot at the net after a
great save in the backcourt.
"After I lost the first set, I told myself there is still a lot
of game left and a lot of the match to play," Gauff said
postmatch. She added, "If anything, (winning) the three-setters
shows everyone I'm not going down without a fight.
Gauff, 19, won two U.S. Open warmup tournaments last month,
prevailing in Washington and Cincinnati. She will be opposing
Wozniacki, 33, for the first time.
"(It's) a matchup I never thought I would have to play," Gauff
said. "If really excited. ... Is it really a battle of
generations. She's still fit and going strong. I think it's
going to be an exciting match."
In other action, No. 10 Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic
eliminated another American, Taylor Townsend, 7-6 (0), 6-3.
"The match was kind of what I expected. Tricky one," Muchova
said. "Taylor, I think, played really, really great from the
start. The first set was very tough, very close. I'm glad I
refocused very well for the tiebreak, and I think I played well
there. As well, I felt start of the second set it was a little
bit more in my hands."
Waiting for Muchova in the fourth is unseeded Xinyu Wang of
China, who defeated Slovakian Anna Karolina Schmiedlova 4-6,
6-3, 6-2. Wang converted five of 10 break opportunities and
staved off nine of 11 on her serve.
In night-time action, No. 15 Belinda Bencic of Switzerland beat
China's Lin Zhu 7-6 (1), 2-6, 6-3, and No. 30 Sorana Cirstea of
Romania ousted No. 4
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-4.
--Field Level Media
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