Rybakina needed a tiebreak, which she almost lost, and the Ukrainian held the set point to win her 44th match of the season. She is two wins from replacing Aryna Sabalenka as world No. 1, and has been invited to the court to reflect on it.
“Not yet. It’s still a long way off,” Rybakina said. “I have to focus on my next match and not think about it. Whatever it is, I’m just trying to do my best. Trying to enjoy and fight till the end. I hope to reach the goal very soon. If not, I’ll struggle and try to do it later. It doesn’t matter.”
Osaka apologizes to the crowd
Osaka reached the same round the night before, beating Elise Mertens 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, her third win in two weeks to go the distance or close to it after two tiebreak sets against Anastasia Zakharova and three sets against Katerina Siniakova.
He was harder on himself than the score indicated. “Honestly, I didn’t feel like I was playing great and it was really frustrating because I was very negative about myself, so I’m really sorry for my behavior,” the two-time champion said on court. “For the little kids watching, I’m really sorry.”
“This is my favorite tournament, so I really wanted to play well in front of you. I’m really happy to have another match.” The two met once, a few weeks ago in Toronto, where Rybakina won in three sets. Osaka described it as a tough loss when he arrived here and said he wanted to build on it.
Jovic makes it 2-4 and Eala crosses the net
The other tie ended in a teenage contest that neither player deserved to lose. 18-year-old Iva Jovic defeated Alexandra Eala 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 after trailing 2-4 in the deciding set. This is the fourth round of the American’s third Grand Slam and the fourth top-20 win of her career.
What happened next was the part he wanted to talk about. Eala walked around the net to hug him.
“That says a lot about him as a person. I’m going to start crying,” Jovic said. “To be able to do that after a game like that and still come to hug me and wish me well. And even behind closed doors in the dressing room. It just says a lot about him and his character. He’s incredible.”
He now plays with Coco Gauff, who lead them 1-0 from the encounter in Rome, where Gauff saved a point. “I’ll be more than happy to bring this fight and energy, whatever it is,” Jovic said. “Then I can walk away with my head held high. He plays some incredible tennis and is a really great person.”
US Open 2026, women’s fourth round
A. Sabalenka (1) vs T. Townsend – Sunday, Arthur Ashe Stadium, 11:30 kick-off
M. Kostyuk (11) vs. L.
J. Pegula (3) vs S. Cirstea (16) – Sunday, Louis Armstrong Stadium, no earlier than 15:00
A. Kalinskaya (21) vs E. Navarro (26) – Sunday, Arthur Ashe Stadium, 19:00
M. Andreeva (5) vs A. Potapova (24) – scheduled for Monday
I. Jovic (14) vs C. Gauff (4) – scheduled for Monday
I. Swiatek (8) vs Q. Zheng (Q) – scheduled for Monday
N. Osaka (13) vs E. Rybakina (2) – scheduled for Monday
US Open 2026, women’s third round
A. Sabalenka (1) d. K. Rakhimova: 6-3, 6-4
T. Townsend d. D. Schneider (15): 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-3
M. Kostyuk (11) d. E. Alexandrova (18): 6-3, 6-2
L. Noskova (6) d. A. Lee (29): 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-2
J. Pegula (3) d. L. Fernandes (31): 1-6, 6-4, 6-3
S. Cirstea (16) d. J. Paolini (19): 6-3, 6-3
A. Kalinskaya (21) d. E. Svitolina (9): 6-3, 2-6, 6-3
E. Navarro (26) d. K. Muchova (7): 6-3, 7-5
M. Andreeva (5) d. N. Bartunkova: 6-2, 7-6(5)
A. Potapova (24) d. A. Anisimova (10): 6-2, 7-5
I. Jovich (14) d. A. Eala (17): 7-5, 3-6, 7-5
C. Gauff (4) d. K. Buksa: 6-3, 6-4
I. Swiatek (8) d. M. Buzkova (25): 7-6(3), 7-6(3)
Q Zheng (Q) d. M Keys (22): 1-6, 7-6(3), 7-5
N. Osaka (13) d. E. Mertens (23): 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
E. Rybakina (2) d. Y. Starodubtseva: 7-6(6), 6-3