Tennis on Sling: Round 3 of the U.S. Open
(All times Eastern)
Thursday at the U.S. Open, Serena Williams tied Martina Navratilova with her 306th grand slam match win by beating Vania King 6-3 6-3, and is now just one match behind Roger Federer, who isn’t playing this tournament, at 307 for the all-time record; Andy Murray took Marcel Granollers in straight sets, 6-4 6-1 6-4; Venus Williams, the oldest seeded player at 36, beat Julia Goerges 6-2 6-3; Juan Martin del Potro advanced by defeating Steve Johnson 7-6 6-3 6-2; and Bernard Tomic was fined $10,000 for losing his cool in the face of a heckler on Tuesday, unfurling a blue streak of invective that included a couple of rather crude suggestions of intimacy.
Rafael Nadal (4) vs. Andrey Kuznetsov
Rafael Nadal advanced to the third round by defeating Andreas Seppi 6-0 7-5 6-1, as he continues to build his strength following a brief layoff this summer with a wrist injury. Andrey Kuznetsov, #47 in the world, moved on by beating Albert Ramos-Vinolas (who bears an uncanny resemblance to “Silicon Valley” star Thomas Middleditch) 7-5 6-4 7-6, in about as grueling a 3-set match as possible, needing 2 hours and 54 minutes to complete. This Kuznetsov’s third U.S. Open, and the second time he’s made it to the third round. Nadal has beaten Kuznetsov in each of their three previous matches, dating back to their first meeting just last summer in the French Open.
Catherine Bellis vs. Angelique Kerber (2)
Just 17 years old, Catherine “Cici” Bellis, #158 in the world, finds herself in the third round of the U.S. Open, just two years after making it to the second round here before she was old enough to drive. Bellis on Wednesday beat Shelby Rogers 2-6 6-2 6-2, but won’t be cashing the $140,000 check that accompanies such a feat, as she has committed to attending Stanford, and wants to maintain her eligibility. Nice work, NCAA. Bellis will have her work cut out for her today, however, as she faces Angelique Kerber, the #2 ranked woman in the world and reigning Australian Open champ. Kerber beat Mirjana Lucic-Baroni Wednesday, by a score of 6-2 7-6.
Here’s the complete lineup of Men’s and Women’s Singles for Friday:
Watch the 2016 U.S. Open Friday at 1pm ET on ESPN, and 7pm on ESPN2; Saturday starting 11am on ESPN2; and Sunday starting at 11am on ESPN2 by subscribing to the Sling Orange.