US Open 2022: 5 Biggest stories from Day 1 ft. Serena Williams postpones her retirement in style, Yibing Wu makes Grand Slam history
Day 1 of the 2022 US Open has finally drawn to a close and it has been nothing short of extraordinary. From men's top seed Daniil Medvedev continuing his unbeaten streak at Flushing Meadows to 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams registering yet another win at the tournament, fans have been treated to several interesting plotlines on the opening day.
While the day did see some fan favorites fall, including the likes of local boy Taylor Fritz and former World No. 1 Simona Halep, new and unknown heroes have cropped up to take their stead and etch their names onto the record books.
Without further ado, here's a look at the most interesting stories that arose from Day 1 of the 2022 US Open:
#1 Serena Williams postpones her retirement in style with a commanding win
Serena Williams came into the 2022 US Open fully knowing that it would be her farewell tournament and that every match could be her very last. Facing off against Danka Kovinic, however, the 23-time Grand Slam champion lived to fight another day, beating the Montenegrin 6-3, 6-3 in commanding fashion.
Serena Williams' daughter, Olympia, wore white beads in her hair on Monday, a nod to her mom's hairstyle when she won her first U.S. Open in 1999 at age 17.
Williams won her first match Monday at what is expected to be her last U.S. Open.
Read more: apnews.com/article/us-ope… https://t.co/ZfPO4ThPHp
With the victory, Williams became only the fourth woman in the Open era to win a Slam match as a teenager, a 20-year-old, a 30-year-old and a 40-year-old, following in the footsteps of Martina Navratilova, Kimiko Date and sister Venus Williams. Up next, she will take on second seed Anett Kontaveit, a more potent opponent than Kovinic.
#2. Seeds fall like flies on Day 1 of the 2022 US Open
Day 1 of the 2022 US Open saw the exit of several favorites, the most high profile of which was two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep. A former semifinalist at Flushing Meadows, the Romanian was stunned by qualifier Daria Snigur of Ukraine in a tense three-setter, who was playing in only her first ever Major main draw match.
Also exiting the women's draw was 10th seed Daria Kasatkina, fresh off her title run at the Granby National Bank Championships last week. The Russian lost out to Brit Harriet Dart in three sets. 27th seed Martina Trevisan and 30th seed Jil Teichmann also made hasty exits, losing in straight sets to Evgeniya Rodina and Shuai Zhang respectively.
Upset of the day goes to Daria Snigur who beat Simona Halep in three sets on Armstrong! https://t.co/xepcG1yXml
In the men's draw, 16th seed Roberto Bautista Agut was the first seed to be shown the door, falling to wildcard JJ Wolf in straight sets. 24th seed Francisco Cerundolo also bit the dust, outdone by aging warhorse Andy Murray in straight sets. 31st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili's lacklustre 2022 season continued as he fell to qualifier Yibing Wu in straight sets in his opener.
OUT in the first day of the #USOpen
4. Tsitsipas
10. Fritz
16. Bautista
24. Cerundolo
30. Cressy
31. Basilashvili
7. Halep
10. Kasatkina
27. Trevisan
30. Teichmann
30th seed and local boy Maxime Cressy made a hasty exit as well, retiring after going two sets and two breaks down in the third against Martin Fucsovics. 10th seed Taylor Fritz, one of the favorites to make a deep run at the tournament, was sent packing unexpectedly by compatriot and local sensation Brandon Holt, with the qualifier besting him in four sets.
The biggest upset of the day, however, came in the form of fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas' exit, who was beaten comprehensively by qualifier Daniel Elahi Galan in four sets in the night session.
#3. Yibing Wu makes history as the first Chinese man to win a Grand Slam match in the Open Era
Yibing Wu, slayer of 31st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili, etched his name in history as the first Chinese man to win a Grand Slam match in the Open Era, an honor that almost slipped out of his hands.
Former junior World No. 1 Wu Yibing continues making history at #USOpen
The 22-year-old became 1st Chinese male in 63 years to win a singles match at a grand slam by overcoming 31st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 in R1
🇨🇳Former junior World No. 1 Wu Yibing continues making history at #USOpen
👏The 22-year-old became 1st Chinese male in 63 years to win a singles match at a grand slam by overcoming 31st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 in R1
#tennis @CaoYi_MFA @xuejianosaka @hangzhoufeel https://t.co/x7qNAdcHrF
His compatriot Zhizhen Zhang was on the cusp of beating Tim van Rijthoven, only to fail to convert seven match points before being overpowered by the Dutchman in five sets. Up next, Wu takes on Nuno Borges on Wednesday for a place in the third round.
#4. 3 children of former Grand Slam winners into the second round
Brandon Holt, son of two-time singles Grand Slam champion and youngest female US Open champion Tracy Austin, booked his spot in the second round of the 2022 US Open with an upset win over Taylor Fritz.
Elizabeth Mandlik, daughter of four-time Grand Slam champion and one of the greatest players of all-time Hana Mandlik, meanwhile, beat Tamara Zidansek in three sets to progress to the second round.
Sports are incredible.
Brandon Holt celebrates his first #USOpen win with his mom and 2x champion, Tracy Austin. https://t.co/i5AgMVDZu5
Also into the second round is Sebastian Korda, son of former Australian Open champion Petr Korda, thus ensuring the presence of the children of three former Grand Slam champions in the second round at Flushing Meadows.
#5. Former Grand Slam winners Dominic Thiem and Stan Wawrinka lose out while Andy Murray, Bianca Andreescu and Barbora Krejcikova surge forward
Of the players who came into Day 1 of the 2022 US Open with a Grand Slam title under their belt, three-time Major winner Stan Wawrinka and former US Open winner Dominic Thiem fell in their openers. While the Swiss had to retire from his clash against Corentin Moutet while trailing by two sets, Thiem pulled one back against Pablo Carreno Busta but eventually fell in four sets.
We’re fired up to see @andy_murray’s first #USOpen win in five years! 👏🔥
Andy won earlier today in straight sets over 24 seed Francisco Cerundolo!
#CitiOpen | 📸 @AustralianOpen https://t.co/cpnGJrEhwZ
Three-time Major winner Andy Murray, on the other hand, bulldozed his way past Francisco Cerundolo, beating the Argentine in straight sets to record his first straight-sets victory at a Slam in five years.
On the women's side, former US Open winner Bianca Andreescu and former French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova continued on their merry ways, with the former getting stretched to three sets by Harmony Tan and the latter beating Fernanda Contreras Gomez in straight sets.
Also Checkout:- US Open 2022 Schedule