Bartunkova rallies past Maria in three sets at US Open

Nikola Bartunkova dropped the opening set in a tie-break but recovered to beat Tatjana Maria 6-7 6-2 6-3 in the US Open second round. The Czech's serve carried her through the turnaround: nine aces, 72.9% of points won behind the first delivery and a robust 58.1% on the second, enough to offset a modest 52.7% first-serve rate and five double faults. Maria landed more first serves at 61.9%, but won just 40.6% of her second-serve points and coughed up six double faults, a vulnerability Bartunkova exploited across the last two sets. It was a statement win on the game's biggest hard-court stage.