Zheng Survives Keys in Three Sets as Potapova Ends Anisimova's Run in New York

The round of 32 at Flushing Meadows delivered its heavyweight collision early, and Qinwen Zheng came through it the hard way. Blown off the court in a 25-minute opening set by Madison Keys, Zheng steadied herself, forced a second-set tie-break and then held her nerve through a tense decider to win 1-6 7-6 7-5. It was a match decided less by shot quality than by tolerance: Keys set the terms, Zheng refused to accept them, and the American's margins narrowed with every game she failed to convert into a break.

The other significant women's result belonged to Anastasia Potapova, who beat Amanda Anisimova 6-2 7-5. Potapova took control immediately and, having been pegged back to a genuine contest in the second set, closed it out from the baseline rather than retreating. Anisimova's exit removes one of the more dangerous ball-strikers from this section of the draw.

Anna Kalinskaya also advanced, seeing off Elina Svitolina 6-3 2-6 6-3 in a match of alternating momentum, while Linda Noskova beat Ann Li 6-2 6-7 6-2, recovering swiftly from a second-set tie-break that might have unsettled a less phlegmatic player. Both winners followed a similar script: dominant in the sets they controlled, unbothered by the one they lost.

In the men's draw, Ben Shelton needed four sets and two tie-breaks to get past Denis Shapovalov, winning 7-6 6-7 6-3 6-4. Two shotmakers with little interest in extended rallies produced exactly the match that promised, and the difference came in the third and fourth sets, when Shelton's serve held up under pressure and Shapovalov's did not.

Stefanos Tsitsipas produced the day's most emphatic recovery, losing the opening set to Jiri Lehecka before winning 2-6 6-1 7-6 6-1. The third-set tie-break was the hinge: had Lehecka taken it, the shape of the match changes entirely. Frances Tiafoe was rather more straightforward, beating Valentin Vacherot 6-4 6-2 6-4, and Tomas Martin Etcheverry saw off Mariano Navone 6-4 6-4 6-3 in an all-Argentine meeting. Alex Michelsen completed the picture with a 7-6 6-4 6-3 win over Daniel Merida.

On the Challenger circuit, Juan Pablo Varillas came from a set down to beat Jay Clarke 6-7 7-5 6-1 in Como, while in Porto Hugo Dellien was clinical against Pedro Vives Marcos, winning 6-4 6-1, and Facundo Mena outlasted Gustavo Heide 7-6 3-6 6-3 to set up Sunday's final. Plovdiv produced two three-set semifinals, Yanaki Milev beating Valerio Aboian 6-4 5-7 6-2 and Georgii Kravchenko recovering to defeat Dusan Obradovic 2-6 6-2 6-3. In Zhangjiagang, Kasidit Samrej beat Chun Hsin Tseng 6-3 7-6 and Ilia Simakin got past Mitsuki Wei Kang Leong 6-3 6-7 6-3. Felix Balshaw completed the day's semifinal list, beating Mark Lajal 7-6 7-5 in Mallorca.

Tomorrow brings the last-16 programme in New York. Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one, faces Taylor Townsend, ranked 96th; Carlos Alcaraz meets Tommy Paul; Daniil Medvedev takes on Tiafoe; and Shelton plays Tsitsipas in a rematch of contrasting styles. Jessica Pegula faces Sorana Cirstea, Noskova meets Marta Kostyuk and Kalinskaya draws Emma Navarro. Michelsen against Etcheverry pits hard-court comfort against clay-bred patience. Alexander Zverev, Naomi Osaka, Jakub Mensik and Learner Tien are also scheduled, and Porto's final between Mena and Dellien closes the Challenger week.