WHAT HAPPENED: In a result that contradicts their previous 2019 form, 22-year-old Jelena Ostapenko hit her way past American Alison Riske, 6-4, 6-3, in the Grandstand.
The one-hour, 40-minute contest was closer than the score suggests, featuring 26 deuces.
Six of those deuces came in an 18-point, nine-minute opening game, as Ostapenko double-faulted seven times (out of 17 for the match) but still managed to hold serve on her way to an early 4-0 lead.
Riske countered to get on the board, punctuating the next two games with a down-the-line backhand return winner and an ace out wide for 4-2, before four Ostapenko unforced errors made it 4-3.
With Riske serving with a chance for 4-all, the ensuing game took on an added tension, illustrated by intense self-motivation from both players between points. Aggressive return play paid dividends for Ostapenko as she battled through deuce to claim the pivotal game.
Though Riske broke back, Ostapenko sealed the set after the changeover. Two winners turned game point for the American into set point, and a flurry of poweful ground strokes forced and error for the set.
The second set featured two 16-point games—the first and fifth of the set—both won by Ostapenko on serve. But Riske would not let up, leveling at 3-all.
But at closing time, the 2017 French Open champion and former world No. 5 showed her pedigree. She dropped just four points in the last three games for a surprisingly stress-free finale.
"I knew it was going to be a tough match because she was playing amazing [during the summer]," Ostapenko said after the match.
WHAT IT MEANS: Known as a streaky player with her ultra-aggressive baseline style, Ostapenko may be hitting a purple patch at just the right moment. Now ranked No. 77 on the WTA Tour, she started 2019 with a three-match first-round losing streak and had yet to notch a Grand Slam win prior to her Round 1 victory over Aleksandra Krunic in New York.
The Latvian will take on the winner of the Kristie Ahn vs. Anna Kalinskaya match in Round 3 on Saturday, after taking the court with Ukranian Lyudmyla Kichenok in women's doubles on Friday.
Riske, conversely, has been in the midst of a banner year at age 29. She came into New York level with her 2017 career high of No. 36, and will likely set a new high mark in the post-tournament edition of the WTA rankings after improving on her first-round US Open exit last year. A Wimbledon quarterfinalist this year, she had previously only reached the Round of 16 at a Slam once, at the 2013 US Open.
MATCH POINT: Ostapenko has not lost in the second round of a major since the 2015 US Open (7-2 overall), according to the WTA. Her straight-sets victory countered a trend for Riske: 11 of her previous 12 WTA main-draw matches have gone the distance, including all five in her Wimbledon quarterfinal run.
