It’s been a rough year for Venus Williams in 2013, but she got off to a good start at the U.S. Open with a first-round upset victory against No. 12 Kirsten Flipkens.
U.S. Open 2013 scores: Venus Williams pulls the upset, Rafael Nadal advances
The U.S. Open is underway and one notable American already pulled a first-round upset.
Matthew Stockman
The 33-year-old Williams dominated the match, winning 6-1, 6-2 to advance. Williams entered the tournament unseeded and the victory was her first against a top-20 opponent in nine months. She may have not been at her best and cruised to victory despite 20 unforced errors, but it was a positive result following her first-round loss at the French Open. Williams is now 15-0 in the first round at the U.S. Open.
No. 3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska also cruised to a 6-1, 6-2 victory, defeating Silvia Soler-Espinosa. No. 5 seed Li Na advanced with a 6-2, 6-2 victory. Sloane Stephens didn’t advance quite as easily, but the No. 15-seed was able to move on with a 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 win against Mandy Minella.
On the men’s side, No. 2 Rafael Nadal improved to 16-0 this season on hardcourts with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 victory over Ryan Harrison. Nadal entered the tournament playing well with two wins this month and looked strong once again. No. 8 Richard Gasquet also advanced in straight sets with a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win against Michael Russell.
The biggest upset of the day on the men’s side thus far came when Daniel Evans knocked off No. 11 Kei Nishikori in straight sets. Evans won the first two sets 6-4 and closed out the match with a 6-2 win in the third set.
Complete results can be found at USOpen.org.
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