US Open: Swiatek, Djokovic progress, Chinese players forge ahead

NEW YORK, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Defending champion Iga Swiatek of Poland secured a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Australia's Daria Saville in the women's singles second round of the US Open on Wednesday.

"I just felt like I prevailed. I wanted to be intense, and mostly I was in charge of how I played because I was the one attacking," said the 22-year-old, who will face Kaja Juvan of Slovenia next.

World No. 2 Novak Djokovic maintained his momentum, defeating Spain's Bernabe Zapata Miralles 6-4, 6-1, 6-1. He will meet his Serbian compatriot Laslo Djere in the third round of men's singles.

The first set was challenging for both players, but Zapata Miralles missed some key opportunities. Djokovic noted, "We are just trying to get ready for anything that can potentially await you on the court. That's why we train several hours every day in humid and hot conditions."

Swiss qualifier Dominic Stricker also saw success, upsetting seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in a tight match 7-5, 6-7(2), 6-7(5), 7-6(6), 6-3. The match lasted slightly more than four hours on Day 3 of the US Open, marking a significant victory for the 21-year-old.

"It's a very special day for me. I don't know how I came back in the fourth set, but I did it somehow," Stricker said. "I'm just super happy right now. It's such a great win. It gives me a lot of confidence."

China's Zhu Lin advanced to the women's singles third round, defeating Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 6-3, 6-3. "There are no easy matches at the Grand Slam where anything can happen. I need to be confident and aggressive, aiming for the best in a high-level tournament," Zhu noted.

Wang Xinyu of China also moved forward with a 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 win over Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo. Her fellow Chinese Wang Xiyu, however, fell to Bernarda Pera of the United States 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-2.

In the men's singles, China's Zhang Zhizhen upset fifth seed Casper Ruud of Norway 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 0-6, 6-2. "I believed in myself and tried to remain calm throughout the match. Otherwise, the fifth set might have had a different outcome," Zhang said.

With the doubles events getting underway on Wednesday, the eighth-seeded Chinese-German duo, Yang Zhaoxuan and Kevin Krawietz, advanced to the mixed doubles second round, while China's Xu Yifan and Tereza Mihalikova of Slovakia lost 6-4, 6-1 to Czech pair Barbora Strycova and Marketa Vondrousova in the women's doubles.

Elsewhere, top-seeded women's pair Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic secured a 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4 victory over the Japanese-American team, Makoto Ninomiya and Sabrina Santamaria.

Matthew Ebden of Australia and India's Rohan Bopanna dominated the Australian duo Aleksandar Vukic and Christopher O'Connell 6-4, 6-2 in the men's doubles.