WHAT HAPPENED: Showing the form that helped her break into the WTA's Top 10 last year, No. 22 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil overcame a slow start to defeat No. 15 seed Anna Kalinskaya, 6-3, 6-1, in a Round 3 evening match in Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The 28-year-old Haddad Maia, who reached the semifinals at Roland Garros in 2023, took advantage of Kalinskaya's 25 unforced errors to win the match in 80 minutes. A native of Sao Paulo, Haddad Maia reached a career high No. 10 in June 2023.
Kalinskaya opened the match with a service break in the first game and went on to establish a 3-1 first-set lead. Haddad Maia rallied and came back to win five straight games, breaking Kalinskaya in the sixth and eighth games of the set. The Brazilian left-hander served out the 44-minute set as Kalinskaya stroked a crosscourt forehand long on set point.
Haddad Maia dominated the second set as she won six straight games after Kalinskaya held serve in the first game. The Brazilian closed out the match with a booming forehand winner on break point in the seventh game.
“I’m working well and I’m doing good things. I’m feeling better. Every match I’m proving something. I feel more confident. I feel more prepared for the next round,” Haddad Maia said following the Round 3 victory.
“Coming here for the first time [in an Armstrong night session]... It’s a bit different. There is a lot of noise and the perspective is different. It’s not easy to come and start well,” she added as she spoke about overcoming her slow start. “I wasn’t happy at the beginning, but it’s tennis. I’m happy the way I changed my mentality. I try to be positive. I felt strong and competitive.”
WHAT IT MEANS: Playing in her fourth career US Open, Haddad Maia reaches Round 4 at Flushing Meadows for the first time. She is now 1-0 in head-to-head meetings with Kalinskaya.
Following her straight-sets victory over Kalinskaya, Haddad Maia will now face former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki in Round 4. The match will mark their first career head-to-head meeting.
MATCH POINT: Even before her win tonight, Haddad Maia was the first Brazilian woman to reach the US Open third round since Tennis Hall of Famer Maria Bueno accomplished the feat in 1976.
