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WOMEN'S UPDATE, DAY 3: Swiatek swats aside Arango, Anisimova in command

football26 August 2025 20:43| © Reuters
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Amanda Anisimova © Gallo Images

Former champion Iga Swiatek kicked off her US Open campaign with a 6-1 6-2 win over Colombia's Emiliana Arango on Tuesday as the Pole aims to keep her hot streak on track in New York.

Order of Play

The blindingly bright sun appeared to be the biggest challenge the Wimbledon winner had to cope with at Arthur Ashe Stadium as she never faced a break point and sent over 26 winners compared to five from her opponent.

Swiatek, who broke retired great Monica Seles's record for most consecutive WTA singles opening matches won in the professional era (65), will next play Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands.

"Pretty happy with my performance in Cincinnati and trying to get, you know, some confidence from that," said Swiatek, who reached the semifinals at the Australian Open and Roland Garros this year. "There are a lot of positive vibes in the team."

The 2022 champion unleashed her usual precision play to break unseeded Arango from the baseline in the fourth game and sprinted through the rest of the set from there, dropping only one of her first-serve points.

Swiatek broke her opponent in the opening game of the second set, where she produced just five unforced errors, and Arango shouted in frustration as she helped the six-times major winner to another break with a clumsy shot into the net in the seventh.

The 24-year-old had her devoted Polish fans on their feet as she closed it out with a forehand winner, giving a subdued celebration.

"Polish fans are kind of everywhere, it's super nice to feel the support always," said the world number two.

Swiatek arrived in New York in pristine form, showing no signs of fatigue as she entered the US Open mixed doubles a day after lifting the trophy at the Cincinnati tune-up tournament and reached the final with Norwegian Casper Ruud.

ANISIMOVA STARTS WITH COMMANDING FIRST-ROUND WIN

Amanda Anisimova made a confident start to her campaign, earning a 6-3 6-2 first-round win over Australia’s Kimberly Birrell.

The American eighth seed is chasing another shot at Grand Slam glory, building on a strong season that included her maiden WTA 1000 title in Doha and a run to the Wimbledon final, where she suffered a crushing 6-0 6-0 defeat to Iga Swiatek.

"It's not easy playing in the first round of a Grand Slam, I never played against her so it was tricky," Anisimova said.

"It's been a special year, I'm just enjoying the journey. I try to have fun every day but these are the moments I enjoy the most.

"I lost in the first round last year, so I'm really happy to have done better than that."

The 23-year-old, who returned to action last year after a long mental health break, was barely troubled in a one-sided affair at Flushing Meadows’ Louis Armstrong Stadium.

She broke to love for a 4–2 lead, and although the world number  83 broke back, Anisimova immediately reasserted control with another love break before serving out the first set with an ace.

Riding her momentum into the second, Anisimova broke Birrell twice, held serve comfortably to wrap up the win and advance to the second round. She will next face another Australian, Maya Joint.

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