The Latest: No. 2 Barty out of the US Open, beaten by Wang
NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the U.S. Open tennis tournament (all times local):
12:45 p.m.
Second-seeded Ash Barty is out of the U.S. Open, beaten 6-2, 6-4 by Wang Qiang, who advanced to a Grand Slam quarterfinal for the first time.
The 18th-ranked Wang, who had never been beyond the third round of a major in 20 tries, kept Barty back with consistent groundstrokes that landed deep in the court and she had just 14 unforced errors to her opponent’s 39. Barty overcame three match points before Wang finally served out the match, pumping her fist in the air as the Australian’s return sailed long.
Barty’s loss ends an impressive run of Grand Slam performances this year, having won the French Open, reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the round of 16 of Wimbledon. That record, along with titles at tour events in Miami and Birmingham, England, helped her hold the No. 1 ranking for nearly two months this summer before Naomi Osaka regained the spot.
Wang, the first Chinese woman to get this far in the U.S. Open since Peng Shuai made a run to the semis in 2014, next faces the winner of the match later between No. 8 Serena Williams and No. 22 Petra Martic.