Russians dominating the US Open field – Tennis News
With the second round of the US Open Championships concluding, it seems like the Russian contenders have been the most successful in the competitive field at Flushing Meadows. Five Russians have made it to the third round of the Grand Slam tournament, the most number of players from one country to make it this far.
Leading the pack, world number three, Maria Sharapova, is bidding strongly for her second US Open title this season. She has been in her usual devastating form in this edition of the coveted mega event and has registered two thumping straight sets victories to reach the third round. Sharapova overwhelmed Melinda Czink of Hungary in twin sets, 6-2, 6-2, in the opening round and then proved even brutal against the unseeded Spaniard, Lourdes Dominguez-Lino, in her recent match, beating her 6-0, 6-1.
The other Russian veteran, Nadia Petrova, has also continued her sublime run of form this season and has booked a berth in the third round. The 19th seed powerhouse delivered a crushing double-breadstick defeat to the Romanian star, Simona Halep, in the second round on Wednesday afternoon. She is up against Lucie Safarova of Czech Republic in her next encounter. Is Petrova and Sharapova win their third round brawls, they will face each other for a place in the quarter-finals.
World number 12, Maria Kirilenko, has also followed the footsteps of her fellow compatriots and hasn’t dropped a single set en route to the third round. She first outplayed Chanelle Scheepers of South Africa, 6-2, 6-1, and then went on to dispose of the Hungarian veteran, Greta Arn, 6-3, 6-2, in the second round of the tournament. In the similar half, Ekaterina Makarova, has also been the dominating Russian candidate and has dumped her other country fellow, Elena Vesnina, in the second round, 6-3, 6-4. She is now up against the fourth seed Serena Williams in the round number three at Flushing Meadows.
While the big Russian guns have been firing successfully in the tournament, Olga Puchkova has been the real surprise package from the qualifying draw. She outfoxed the Dutch contender, Kiki Bertens, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5, in a taxing three-setter on Thursday.
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