WHAT HAPPENED: Only a handful of points separated winner Karolina Pliskova and loser Ashleigh Barty in Sunday’s fourth-round US Open match in Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The 2016 Open runner-up, Pliskova, converted on her two break point chances, while Barty failed on all eight that she had, to give the No. 8-seeded Czech a 6-4, 6-4 victory and a spot in the last eight for the third consecutive year.
“Every game was tough and I won the important points,” said Pliskova, who lost in the quarterfinals last year.
The numbers confirm how close the one-hour-and-24-minute match was: Pliskova won 70 points, Barty 60.
The two pivotal service breaks against the No. 18-seeded Australian came in the opening game of the match and then in the third game of the final set.
The first game lasted five minutes and Pliskova took it on a Barty forehand error. It was one of 20 errors that Barty made in the first set. She made five more crucial mistakes in the eighth game, failing to capitalize on a 0-40 lead.
Yet another error came from Barty on the second set point, when she netted a backhand.
Barty, the first Aussie woman in the Round of 16 at Flushing Meadows since Casey Dellacqua in 2014, cut down on her mistakes in the final set. However, after holding serve for 1-0, she never led again as she lost her serve in the third game.
Pliskova fended off two break points in the second game and then three more in the fourth game.
As the players came on the court for the final game, a fan pleaded “Come on Ashleigh, let’s do it.”
However, at 30-30, Pliskova pounded in two unreturnable first serves to wrap up the match.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN: Pliskova is the first woman into the last eight and waits to play the winner of the Serena Williams and Kaia Kanepi match.
Pliskova, 26, opened the season by reaching the Australian Open quarterfinals, but lost in the third round at the French Open and in the fourth round at Wimbledon.
Her run of strong play during the first week — without losing a set — comes after a tough summer campaign for the Czech, who lost in the first round at New Haven and in the second round at both Montreal and Cincinnati.
MATCH POINT: Pliskova added four aces to raise her season total to 298, the second-most on the tour behind Julia Goerges (394). Pliskova will need to continue to serve big, especially if she winds up playing Williams in the next round.
