Aryna Sabalenka moved into the third round of the US Open with a commanding 6-1, 6-1 victory over debutant Polina Iatcenko. The world number one gave Iatcenko little opportunity to settle into the contest, which lasted only 53 minutes.
Iatcenko, who is ranked 160th in the world, produced only three winners throughout the match, while Sabalenka struck 24 as she in New York.
Iatcenko's nerves were evident early, although she managed to avoid a bagel by holding serve for 1-5 in the opening set. Sabalenka then closed out the set without dropping a point, taking only 24 minutes to move ahead. The Russian took a bathroom break before the second set, using the stoppage to change her kit. Sabalenka remained active during the wait, practising her serve before returning to court.
After which, the defending champion quickly established another advantage, moving 3-0 ahead after breaking twice. She briefly surrendered her own serve in the fourth game but responded by breaking Iatcenko twice more before completing the victory. She will now face Uzbekistan's Kamilla Rakhimova in the third round.
Meanwhile, the result comes during a difficult stretch for Sabalenka despite her exceptional opening to 2026. She reached the Australian Open final and won the Indian Wells and Miami tournaments in succession. Her only loss in her first 27 matches came against Elena Rybakina in Melbourne.
Sabalenka loses calm in press conference
Since then, however, her record has fallen to 17-7 and she has reached only one WTA semi-final in the last five months. Sabalenka has acknowledged dealing with "several things" before arriving in New York. Her mood appeared tense after Wednesday's win when a reporter questioned her preparation.
"What kind of question is that? Just because I posted some activities with brands, you think that I've been partying [and] not training?" countered Sabalenka.
Asked if she was "getting serious" now the tournament had begun, Sabalenka replied with. "Oh yeah, I wasn't serious before that. Next question."
Notably, the stakes in New York extend beyond the title. Sabalenka needs another championship run to have a chance of retaining the number-one ranking. However, Rybakina would take the top spot by reaching the semi-finals even if Sabalenka wins the tournament. Coco Gauff remains another potential challenger for the number-one position if she wins the title.
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