Coco Gauff has advanced with authority into the round of 16 at this year’s US Open, continuing a polished run at her home Grand Slam. The American has moved past Zeynep Sonmez, Paula Badosa, and Cristina Bucsa without losing a set, and now faces Iva Jovic for a place in the quarter finals.

Her form has not gone unnoticed. Martina Navratilova has been impressed by what Gauff has produced at Flushing Meadows and believes the young American has a clear edge over much of the field as she seeks a third Grand Slam title.

“It’s a hard one. Sabalenka, I think she’s the most, perhaps, fired up for this because she hasn’t won a major [this year] and usually she does, but Coco Gauff. I think she plays better under pressure than the rest of them [the draw],” said Navratilova on Sky Sports.

“Everyone else is a little more up and down, whereas Coco rises for it and here in New York she has consistently played well,” said the multi-time Grand Slam champion.

“And the crowd is going to go nuts for her as well. It’s like the known, unknown. She’s been through so much. She’s such a veteran, at such a young age.

“She just gets on with it, plays the next point, and if anything, it makes her even more dug in, to hit the backhand because the forehand can go off a little bit.

“She’s handled it well and she’s hitting both shots harder now, and consistently well, as she has all year, so I think she’s pulling her game together just in time.”

Even so, Navratilova ultimately settled on Sabalenka as her pick to win the tournament. Sabalenka has captured the last two US Open titles, while Gauff remains a proven force at the event after winning in 2023.

The title picture is also tied closely to the battle for world No 1 on the WTA Tour. Gauff, Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, and Jessica Pegula are all in contention, with Sabalenka needing to defend her title to stay on top. Gauff and Pegula likely need the same result to reach No 1, while Rybakina will move there if Sabalenka, Pegula, or Gauff do not win the trophy at Flushing Meadows.

Brad Gilbert said he was struck by the level of support Alex Eala drew during her third-round meeting with Iva Jovic at the US Open.

The matchup between two of the women’s game’s most promising young players was among the most talked-about contests of the tournament, and it delivered on Arthur Ashe Stadium. In a tense battle lasting more than three hours, 18-year-old Jovic recovered from a break deficit in the third set and edged through 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 on Saturday night.

At the finish, the American collapsed to the court in emotion before embracing the Filipina, who has now lost three times to Jovic this year.

When asked what was required to secure the victory, the teenager said, “It took losing my earrings, falling literally flat out on the floor, cuts on my knees, mental breakdowns. It took literally everything.”

Even though the US Open is Jovic’s home Grand Slam, the atmosphere often felt far more partisan than expected. Eala’s supporters were loud throughout, and Gilbert, mindful of how strongly American players are usually backed at this event, said he was surprised Jovic did not feel like the crowd’s clear choice.

He said on the Big T podcast, “ That great spirit that was played in. It was kind of surprising to see an American, you know, not have the crowd with her.

“But you know what’s so refreshing is to see two players play without scream grunting, without squawking and yelling at their box. And it was played with great sportsmanship.”

Gilbert, who coached Andre Agassi for much of his career, called it the match of the tournament, while co-host Ajla Tomljanović went even further and labeled it the match of the year.

Tomljanović also praised the intensity from both teenagers, saying, “What really impressed me with Eala and Jovic… it was hard hitting from start to finish. But there were so many little momentum shifts. And you know what? Not at any point did they let up.

“Even if they lost the point, they kept going for it. And I think this is what you see when you see young players go for it under pressure. That to me is a champion mentality. So they’re never going to be really afraid of the moment.”

Jovic next faces fellow American Coco Gauff in round four on Monday.

Iga Swiatek’s US Open campaign was halted on Monday after qualifier Qinwen Zheng turned the match around in impressive fashion.

The eighth seed had moved through the event without dropping a set before the round of 16 at Flushing Meadows, and she appeared in complete control when she opened up a 5-0 lead in the first set. But Zheng, the 2024 Australian Open runner-up, refused to let the set slip away. She won seven of the next seven games to seize the opener 7-5.

From there, the Chinese player held firm against any response from the six-time major champion and closed out a 7-5, 6-3 victory. The result continues a striking pattern for Zheng, whose fightback qualities have already defined her run in New York. In the previous round, she had recovered from 5-0 down and saved a match point in the final set to defeat Madison Keys in round three.

Swiatek’s defeat also brings to an end a four-year stretch in which she had won at least one Grand Slam each season. Her major titles in that span included the French Open and US Open in 2022, further Roland Garros triumphs in 2023 and 2024, and her first Wimbledon crown last year.

Her 2026 Grand Slam record now shows quarter-final exits in Australia, the fourth round at the French Open and the US Open, plus a third-round loss at Wimbledon.

The defeat carries ranking and financial consequences in New York. The total prize fund at this year’s US Open is a record $108million, with the singles champions in both draws set to receive $5.5m. Swiatek’s fourth-round finish earns her $480,000 and 240 ranking points. She drops to ninth in the WTA Tour rankings on 4,619 points, while Zheng moves on to 52nd. In the WTA Tour Race, Swiatek sits 11th on 3,584 points and could miss the WTA Tour Finals in Indian Wells later this year. Zheng rises to 42nd on 1,018 points.