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Sabalenka’s US Open run prompts a rethink from Croft as Navratilova holds firm
Sabalenka’s US Open form has changed Croft’s view, while Navratilova still sees room for improvement.
Aryna Sabalenka’s progress at the 2026 US Open has already altered the tone around her title defence. Annabel Croft, who had questioned whether the world No 1 could cope with recent setbacks, has now shifted her assessment after watching the top seed move through New York with authority. Martina Navratilova, meanwhile, remains more reserved and says Sabalenka’s latest display still leaves room for improvement.
Sabalenka entered the final major of the season under scrutiny after early exits at both the Canadian Open and Cincinnati Open, results that led many to doubt whether she could win a third straight US Open. Her ranking situation also added pressure, with Elena Rybakina set to move ahead if the second seed reaches the semi-final at Flushing Meadows.
Before the tournament, Croft told The Times: “… those losses will have damaged that aura. She’s vulnerable, and regardless of your ranking, tennis is about confidence – and her opponents will sense that if they can take her the distance, then she may unravel again.”
That view has changed after Sabalenka’s straight-set wins over Camila Osorio, Polina Iatcenko, Kamilla Rakhimova and Taylor Townsend. Croft later told Sky Sports Tennis: “There was a lot of ferocious intensity to what Sabalenka brought onto this court. When she went a break down in the second set, she really galvanised herself. When she got back on track, she let out the most enormous shriek and you just knew she meant business.
“The passion, the aura, the mentality, the personality, she brings so much to every court. She’s a great showwoman and puts on a show whenever she plays tennis. She understands this isn’t just sport, it’s entertainment as well.
“She is going to take some beating. She doesn’t look as vulnerable as I was expecting. So far, she hasn’t dropped a set and looks in very good shape.”
Against Taylor Townsend, Sabalenka was broken three times in the opening set but answered with four breaks of her own. Townsend also moved 3-1 ahead in the second, only for Sabalenka to respond with three more breaks and complete a 6-4, 6-3 victory.
Navratilova gave the performance a more cautious review: “It was good enough. It was pretty solid. Townsend had more winners, but Aryna did really well returning serve and with passing shots,” the 18-time Grand Slam singles winner said on Sky Sports Tennis.
“Townsend tried to come into the net more, but she wasn’t successful there, that’s how well Sabalenka played from the baseline.
“Overall, I would give Sabalenka a B because she lost her serve so many times, but she played really well when it mattered.”
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Osaka and Jovic exit as quarter-final field takes shape at the 2026 US Open
Osaka and Jovic fell in the US Open fourth round, with rankings and prize money.
The quarter-final bracket at the 2026 US Open is now complete, and it will not include Naomi Osaka or Iva Jovic after both were beaten convincingly in the fourth round.
Osaka, seeded 13th, had needed three sets in each of her previous two matches, but she found world No 2 Elena Rybakina far too strong. The second seed moved through 6-1, 6-4, ending Osaka’s run in straightforward fashion. Even so, the former world No 1 was measured in her assessment afterwards.
“Maybe I’m just getting older, but I don’t feel sad,” Osaka said. “I think, also, if I reflect on my career and the things that I’ve been able to do, there’s nothing that I regret or there’s nothing that I’m sad about … If I win another Grand Slam, it’s not going to change my life.”
Jovic also arrived in the round of 16 after a long battle in the previous round, needing three hours to get past Alex Eala. Against fourth seed Coco Gauff, the American could not repeat that resilience and fell by the same 6-1, 6-4 scoreline.
Gauff had warm words for her 18-year-old compatriot after the match, saying: “She plays beyond her years. I’m looking to many more battles out here.”
Both players still leave New York with ranking consequences. Osaka had been defending the semi-final points she earned 12 months ago, and because a fourth-round result is worth only 240 points, she drops 540 points from her tally and falls four places to No 17 in the Live WTA Rankings.
Jovic is also set to slide after losing points from multiple events, including her Guadalajara Open title defence from 2025. In total, she drops 281 points and moves down two places to No 16 in the Live WTA Rankings.
There is prize money to add as well. Osaka’s fourth-round showing is worth $480,000, lifting her 2026 earnings to $2,489,474 and her career total to $27,092,806 once the payment clears. Jovic’s run takes her to $3,515,036 in career prize money, with $1,909,288 earned in 2026.
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Swiatek’s 2026 major hopes fade after Zheng beats her at US Open
Swiatek’s US Open loss to Zheng leaves her without a 2026 Grand Slam title.
Iga Swiatek’s difficult 2026 season reached another low point at the US Open, where Qinwen Zheng ended her run in the fourth round. Zheng won 7-5, 6-3, a result that confirms Swiatek will finish the year without a Grand Slam title for the first time since the 2021 season.
The defeat also underlined how rare a deep major run has been for the six-time Grand Slam champion this year. Swiatek has not reached a semi final at any major in 2026. Her Grand Slam results have been limited to fourth-round exits at the US Open and Roland Garros, a third-round loss at Wimbledon, and a quarter final showing at the Australian Open.
After the match, Swiatek gave a subdued press conference, but she made clear that she still expects to keep pushing through the closing stretch of the season. When asked about whether she might stop early to continue working with coach Francisco Roig, she replied: “I don’t intend to stop; I know I can improve my game. This second part of the season is better for me anyway.”
Swiatek has often produced her best tennis during the WTA Tour’s Asian swing, which may help explain her decision to remain on schedule through the end of the year. Her career titles in that part of the season include the Korea Open, the China Open, and the San Diego Open, all won between September and November.
She also lifted the WTA Finals in 2023 and will hope to find enough form to return to that event in 2026. The season-ending championship is being held at Indian Wells this year and is reserved for the top eight players in the race.
Swiatek is currently 10th in the standings, placing her outside the qualification spots. She sits behind Marta Kostyuk and Linda Noskova, with Noskova expected to qualify after her Wimbledon triumph. Two WTA 1000 events remain, the China Open and the Wuhan Open, so the picture can still change.
Swiatek will not play the Singapore Open, but she is entered for the China Open, which begins on September 30 and gives her more than three weeks before her next scheduled match.
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Swiatek’s US Open run ends as Zheng exposes tension and a rare season setback
Swiatek’s US Open exit ends a rare streak and raises fresh questions over her box.
Iga Swiatek’s US Open campaign ended in disappointing fashion, with Qinwen Zheng defeating her in straight sets and bringing a sudden close to her run at Flushing Meadows.
Swiatek started the match in command, racing to a 5-0 lead in the opening set. Yet the advantage slipped away, and Zheng turned the set around to win it 7-5. From there, Swiatek could not recover.
The defeat carried wider significance as well. It confirmed that Swiatek will not win a Grand Slam in a season for the first time since 2021. For a player who has collected six majors since her debut year in 2019, that absence stands out sharply.
Her summer on North American hard courts had suggested momentum was returning after her Canadian Open title, but her relationship with coach Francisco Roig again drew attention during the loss. Marion Bartoli, working courtside for Sky Sports Tennis, pointed to visible friction between the pair in the fourth-round match.
“I can tell you that at 15-40 [at 5-7, 2-3] when Iga Swiatek stepped in on the return and tried to take the wide serve early, Francisco Roig almost jumped out of his chair because that’s not a tactic he wants her to use,” said the Frenchwoman.
“He wants her to let the ball drop, stay far behind the baseline, and start the point. Fortunately for Iga Swiatek, she’s been trying to close out the point a fraction too early despite Francisco Roig’s advice and he’s not happy about it.”
Martina Navratilova also noted an unusual exchange from Swiatek’s box, saying, “I think she might have lost a little confidence in her box when they told her to get a looser racket because she’s missing balls,” said Navratilova. “That’s just a peculiar piece of advice. And now maybe she’s questioning everything.”
Swiatek’s exit also dropped her to world No 9 and ended another personal mark. Before losing to Zheng, she had never lost to a qualifier or lucky loser at a Grand Slam.
Her next likely return is during the WTA Tour’s Asian swing between September and November, which includes the China Open and the Wuhan Open.
