Wimbledon champions Jannik Sinner
and Iga Swiatek get off to good starts at the US Open
[August 27, 2025]
By HOWARD FENDRICH
NEW YORK (AP) — Iga Swiatek is trying to do something no woman has
done since Serena Williams in 2012: win the U.S. Open and Wimbledon
in the same season.
Jannik Sinner is trying to do something no man has done since Roger
Federer in 2008: repeat as U.S. Open champion.
By the looks of things on Tuesday in Arthur Ashe Stadium as the
now-three-day first round wrapped up, the two players who triumphed
at the All England Club last month — and who both served short
doping-related bans last year — look ready to contend again in New
York. And how.
The second-seeded Swiatek was up first in the U.S. Open's main arena
and needed merely an hour to dismiss Emiliana Arango of Colombia
6-1, 6-2. No. 1 Sinner then took only 39 minutes more to finish off
his 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Vit Kopriva of the Czech Republic.
“Obviously, every year is different," said Sinner, sporting the
white arm sleeve he began wearing after hurting his elbow in a fall
during Wimbledon. "You come here starting this tournament,
hopefully, the best possible way — which I did.”
He certainly showed no signs of the virus that forced him to quit in
the first set of the Cincinnati Open final against his biggest
rival, No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz, last week.
Either Sinner or Alcaraz, who have combined to win the past seven
major titles, can own the top ATP ranking after these 15 days.
Similarly, Swiatek, Coco Gauff or No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, the
defending champion, can leave New York atop the WTA.
On Tuesday, Sinner saved both break points he faced and won 33 of 40
first-serve points.
Swiatek was even more dominant, not only never facing a break point
but never even being taken to deuce in any of her eight service
games, while accumulating a 26-5 edge in winners.
There was a time when some folks, perhaps swayed by Swiatek's
dominance on the French Open's red clay, thought she couldn't
succeed on the speedier surfaces of hard and grass courts. That
certainly was not the case, as her championships at Wimbledon in
July and at the U.S. Open in 2022 make obvious.
Ten women have split the past 11 trophies in New York; only Naomi
Osaka, in 2018 and 2020, won more than one in that span. And
Williams, with three in a row from 2012 to 2014, was the last woman
to leave as the champion in consecutive years.
[to top of second column] |
Iga Swiatek, of Poland, returns a shot to Emiliana Arango, of
Colombia, during the first round of the US Open tennis
championships, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki
Iwamura)
As for the men, no one has collected two in a row
at the U.S. Open since Federer's five straight titles from 2004 to
2008, before he lost in the 2009 final to Juan Martin del Potro.
Sinner was asked why that might be.
“We are heading towards end of the season, so some players, they are
tired. Some players, they are feeling different. Many things can
change. It’s also the last big trophy of the year. ... I always say
that the future is unpredictable," he said. "So I don’t know what’s
going to happen this time.”
What else happened at the US Open on Tuesday?
Seeded winners included 2023 U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff, No. 8
Amanda Anisimova, No. 18 Beatriz Haddad Maia, No. 23 Naomi Osaka and
No. 27 Marta Kostyuk among the women, and No. 3 Alexander Zverev,
No. 10 Lorenzo Musetti, No. 19 Francisco Cerundolo, No. 23 Alexander
Bublik — who eliminated 2014 champion Marin Cilic — and No. 27 Denis
Shapovalov among the men. Gauff defeated Ajla Tomljanovic 6-4, 6-7
(2), 7-5, and Zverev was a 6-2, 7-6 (4), 6-4 winner against
Alejandro Tabilo in a match that ended a little before 1 a.m.
Who is scheduled to play Wednesday at Flushing Meadows?
Sabalenka, Alcaraz, 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic and 2024
U.S. Open runner-up Jessica Pegula are on the Day 4 schedule as the
second round begins.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved
 |
