Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova eliminated in second round of US Open
NEW YORK — Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova was eliminated in the second round of the US Open on Wednesday, beaten by Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-4, 7-5.
Seeded eighth, Krejcikova won her second Grand Slam singles title this summer but did not play a match after the Paris Olympics. She admitted last week that she was unsure of where her game was at.
It turns out that wasn’t enough.
Ruse had much more work to do on the hard courts at the US Open as she played her way into the main draw through qualifying and was better than Krejcikova on the points that mattered most, coming back from 5-3 down in the second set to win the final four games.
“Barbora is a very good player, she has won so many matches in the last two years and it’s just a dream for me,” said Ruse, a 26-year-old Romanian.
She reaches the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time and will face No. 26 seed Paula Badosa, who eliminated American Taylor Townsend 6-3, 7-5.
Badosa continued his strong comeback during a strong summer by reaching the third round of the US Open for the first time.
“I know it’s only a third round, but I was really looking forward to doing this in New York,” said Badosa, a New York-born Spaniard.
The women’s third round will see No. 14 seed Madison Keys take on No. 33 seed Elise Mertens. Keys beat Maya Joint 6-4, 6-0, while Mertens eliminated Ajla Tomljanovic 6-3, 6-2.
Defending champions Coco Gauff and Novak Djokovic were on the programme on Wednesday evening.
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