8 Russian and Belarusian players who missed Wimbledon reach 4th round of US Open 2022 ft. Daniil Medvedev, Victoria Azarenka, and Andrey Rublev
Unlike the Wimbledon Championships a couple of months ago, the US Open decided to allow Russian and Belarusian players to compete in the 2022 edition of the tournament. Now, eight players who missed out on competing at Wimbledon have reached the fourth round of the New York Slam, including former Grand Slam champions and Top-10 players.
The Wimbledon ban came in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine earlier this year. However, the US Open decided not to follow suit, allowing them to play instead without a flag and national representation.
On the women's side, two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka reached the 4th round with wins against Ashlyn Krueger, Marta Kostyuk, and Petra Martic, and will face former No. 1 Karolina Pliskova in the Round of 16.
I barely blinked and Victoria Azarenka beat Petra Martic 6-3, 6-0 to reach the US Open last 16 for the [checks notes] one millionth time.
Love her on these courts.
Sixth seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus also reached the 4th round, where she will face American player Danielle Collins. Sabalenka overcame a 2-6, 1-5 deficit in the second round against Kaia Kanepi in the second round to eventually win the thrilling match 2-6, 7-6(8), 6-4.
ALL❤️
Aryna Sabalenka fights back from 6-2, 5-1, down to take down Kanepi! https://t.co/iypJDmZdzA
18th seed Veronika Kudermetova of Russia is yet to drop a set and has reached the Round of 16 with wins against Donna Vekic, Maryna Zanevska, and Dalma Galf. She will face 5th seed and Wimbledon finalist Ons Jabeur for a place in the quarterfinals.
Unseeded Russian player Ludmilla Samsonova stunned 2021 finalist Leylah Fernandez in the second round en route to reaching the second week. Samsonova has also not dropped a set through her first three matches and will face Ajla Tomljanovic, who defeated Serena Williams, for a place in the quarterfinals.
Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev among male players to reach the 4th round of the 2022 US Open
Among the ATP players who did not play at Wimbledon, current World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev is through to the fourth round of the 2022 US Open with wins against Stefan Kozlov, Arthur Rinderknech, and Wu Yibing.
The defending champion has not dropped a set so far and faces his toughest test yet in the form of Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round. Medvedev will have to defend his title to retain the No. 1 ranking.
Medvedev is bulldozing through the #USOpen draw. https://t.co/gcnxiQo5Ho
Ninth seed Andrey Rublev survived a thrilling five-set battle 6-3, 2-6, 6-7(3), 6-4, 7-6(7) against Denis Shapovalov in the third round to reach the last-16 stage. Rublev won in a match-tiebreaker after earlier going down two-sets-to-one. The Russian player also won his opening match against Laslo Djere in five sets.
One to remember in Grandstand!
Andrey Rublev is into Round 4. https://t.co/Py8FVPyOHk
Karen Khachanov joined his compatriots Medvedev and Rublev in the fourth round with victories against Denis Kudla, Thiago Monteiro, and Jack Draper. This is Khachanov's best result at the US Open.
Belarusian player Ilya Ivashka is also through to the 4th round of the US Open for the first time in his career. The unseeded Ivashka stunned 8th seed Hubert Hurkacz in the second round before registering another big win against Italian Lorenzo Musetti to set up a clash against Jannik Sinner in the second week.
Meanwhile, among players who missed Wimbledon due to reasons other than a ban, Matteo Berrettini and Marin Cilic have also made it through to the last-16 stage of the US Open. Both players withdrew from Wimbledon after testing positive for COVID-19.