Venus Williams is out of the U.S. Open two days after upsetting the 12th-seeded player, falling in an epic, three-set match to Zheng Jie Wednesday night.
U.S. Open 2013 results: Venus Williams loses, Juan Martin del Potro advances
The “early matches” at the U.S. Open wrapped up after 8 p.m.
Matthew Stockman
Their match started around 1 p.m., but more than four hours of rain delays meant the match ended just after 8 p.m., and included a bizarre moment at 5-5 in the third set when a drizzle started up again. Matches on all other courts were put on hold, but Williams was in the middle of a major rally, and the chair umpire decided to let the match go on, despite the players’ clear trepidation over the condition of the court.
The rain stopped soon after, and the third set went into a tiebreak, which Zheng won 7-5. Williams had the crowd firmly behind her the entire time, and after the match, in her interview with Pam Shriver, Zheng told the thousands at Louis Armstrong Stadium, “sorry, guys.”
While thousands of fans waited outside of the front gate of the Billie Jean King Tennis Center for the night session that was supposed to start at 7 p.m., Juan Martin del Potro, the No. 6 seed, needed four sets and more than four hours to put away Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, 6-3, 6-7 (7-5), 6-4, 7-6 (9-7). Garcia-Lopez made del Potro look tentative somewhat -- his devastating forehand only surfaced a handful of times -- but Delpo, the 2009 U.S. Open champ, turned it up in time to not need a fifth set.
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