US OPEN
New York, Aug 29: The U.S. Open delivered two memorable storylines on Thursday, as American Tommy Paul battled through one of the tournament’s latest-ever finishes in a dramatic five-set win, while veteran Venus Williams rolled back the years to claim her first women’s doubles victory at Flushing Meadows since 2014.
Paul, the 14th seed, edged Portugal’s Nuno Borges in a gripping second-round clash that lasted four hours and 25 minutes, ending at 1:46 a.m. in Arthur Ashe Stadium. It marked the 17th-latest finish in U.S. Open history and the second-latest second-round conclusion.
The American looked set for a routine victory after taking the first two sets and holding match points in the third, but Borges rallied strongly to push the contest into a deciding fifth set.
Paul eventually prevailed 7-6 (6), 6-3, 5-7, 5-7, 7-5, breaking Borges in the final game with a frantic exchange that left him momentarily unsure whether he had actually won the point.
“I was all twisted around when I hit the last shot,” Paul admitted afterward. “I didn’t even know if he made it or not. I threw my hands up like I won the point, but I wasn’t actually sure.”Exhausted but relieved, Paul praised the fans who stayed late into the night. “Definitely was happy that it was with the win and not a loss,” he said.
“It was an emotional roller coaster, for sure.” He next faces Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik, the 23rd seed, in the third round.
The match followed another late-night spectacle earlier in the week, when Daniil Medvedev’s five-set opening-round loss to Benjamin Bonzi stretched into the early hours, setting the tone for what has already been an eventful tournament.While Paul’s marathon win unfolded in the main stadium, history was also being made on the doubles courts. Venus Williams, at 45, partnered with Canada’s Leylah Fernandez to defeat the sixth-seeded pairing of Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez 7-6 (4), 6-3 in Louis Armstrong Stadium.
For Williams, it was her first women’s doubles triumph at the U.S. Open in more than a decade, and her first win in the format at any Grand Slam since the 2018 French Open. The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion had lost early in singles and mixed doubles earlier in the week, but alongside Fernandez she rediscovered her spark.The duo quickly became fan favourites, with the crowd repeatedly breaking into chants of “Here we go, Venus, here we go!” and rising to its feet after they clawed back from 5-2 down to steal the opening set in a tiebreaker.
Fernandez, the 2021 singles runner-up in New York, said teaming up with Williams felt surreal. “I felt like a kid on Christmas Day,” she said, recalling her excitement after learning that Williams wanted to partner with her. “It’s probably the biggest compliment I’ve ever gotten,” she added, after Venus likened her competitive spirit to that of Serena.
Williams, who twirled and waved to the crowd after the victory, described Fernandez as “the best partner I ever played with — outside of Serena.”
With the win, the pair advanced to face Ulrikke Eikeri and Eri Hozumi in the second round. For Williams, who returned to the tour in July after a 16-month absence, the result reaffirmed her belief in continuing.
“I didn’t have to come back to play tennis, but eventually I found my way back,” she said. “With some luck, we’ll stay, maybe win another round and just keep getting better.”
As midnight thrillers and veteran comebacks lit up Flushing Meadows, the U.S. Open once again underlined why it is regarded as the most unpredictable of all Grand Slams. (AP)