After rainy conditions delayed play on Wednesday, the second round of the 2025 US Open qualifying tournament resumed Thursday morning with eager fans sprawled around the grounds to get a glimpse of the action-packed schedule.
Thursday’s order of play saw a mix of young and veteran American qualifiers looking to solidify their spots into the final round, as well as many former Top 100 players looking to make their way back to a Grand Slam main draw in the final slam of the year.
Leading the American cohort of women heading into Round 3 are Katie Volynets and Claire Liu, who won against their respective opponents: fellow American Amelia Honer (Volynets won by retirement) and Australian Maddison Inglis. For the American men, Zachary Svajda booked his spot into the third round after mounting a comeback in the second set playing Kazakh Beibit Zhukayev, and Mitchell Krueger advanced to the final day of qualies after a tough battle against Argentina’s Andrea Collarini.
Four up-and-coming American players Garrett Johns, Martin Damm, Hina Inoue and Ayana Akli are looking to secure their first ever Grand Slam main draw entry at their home slams.
Johns, who has captured three titles this year, has a strong record of 46-19, with 25 of those wins coming on hardcourts. His most recent hardcourt performance came in the Chicago Challenger, where he made the semifinals. Johns is playing Leandro Riedi—who is also vying for his first US Open main draw berth—to claim his spot in the main draw.
Damm is another young American with lots of promise and a strong tennis background. Playing on his favorite and preferred surface, the 21-year-old is immensely comfortable on the hardcourts, winning all seven of his career ITF titles on this surface, two of which he won earlier this year. As a junior he made the second round here in Flushing Meadows. Damm is facing Yuta Shimizu for his chance at booking his spot as a senior player in the US Open main draw.
Inoue, the youngest female American qualifier left in the draw, beat No. 24 seed Simona Waltert in convincing fashion. Like Damm, she is another American who plays her strongest on the hardcourts, where she has won eight ITF titles, collecting one earlier this year at Monastir. Inoue will play Italian Lucrezia Stefanini for a main draw spot.
Akli closed out Thursday night’s second round play under the New York lights, taking out talented Brit Harriet Dart in straight sets. Akli also had a very strong year on the ITF tour with a 49-20 record, 27 of those wins coming on hardcourts. The 24-year-old won her first ITF earlier this year on the clay in Bethany Beach and is looking to continue her year of firsts in Flushing Meadows. Akli will play Oksana Selekhmeteva in the final round to join her other American compatriots in the main draw.
