Americans Young and Isner Seek U.S. Open Quarterfinal Berths
The last four quarter-finalists of the U.S. Open on the men’s side of the draw will be determined Monday, Day Eight of the U.S. Open, as seven seeded players are in action alongside American comeback king Donald Young. A pair of USA vs. Switzerland showdowns are set for Arthur Ashe Stadium, as Young challenges Roland Garros champion Stan Wawrinka, then top-ranked American John Isner defends his perfect service record against five-time U.S. Open winner Roger Federer. On Louis Armstrong Stadium, 2012 U.S. Open champ Andy Murray faces Kevin Anderson for the fifth time in 15 months, then a pair of former U.S. Open semifinalists go head-to-head when Tomas Berdych meets Richard Gasquet.
In the opening match on Ashe, Young looks to reach his first Grand Slam quarterfinal in 26 major appearances when he plays Wawrinka for the third time. Both of their prior meetings came on a hard court in 2011, with Wawrinka winning in three sets at ATP Masters 1000 Shanghai just six weeks after Young upset him at the U.S. Open. Young has rallied from two sets down twice at this year’s U.S. Open, doing so to defeat the 11th-seeded Gilles Simon in the first round and the 22nd-seed Viktor Troicki in round three.
Under the lights on Ashe, Federer looks to become the first player to break Isner in Flushing Meadows since Philipp Kohlschreiber did so in the third round of the 2013 U.S. Open. Isner has held serve 93 straight games in 2014-2015. Fresh out of college at the 2007 U.S. Open, Isner took the first set off Federer in a tie-break before being broken five times by the Swiss in their third-round encounter. Federer went on to capture the fourth of his five consecutive U.S. Open titles and has beaten Isner in three of four meetings since. Federer leads overall 4-1.
On Armstrong, Murray continues his campaign for a second U.S. Open title, despite falling behind two sets to love in the second round against Adrian Mannarino. The Scot has reached the quarterfinals or better in his last 18 Grand Slam appearances, including four in a row at the U.S. Open. It’s a place Anderson has yet to be in his eight-plus years on the ATP Tour. Murray is 0-7 lifetime in fourth-round matches at the majors, most recently giving up a two-set lead against eventual champion Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon earlier this summer. Murray has a 5-1 career head-to-head advantage over Anderson.
Later on Armstrong, Berdych and Gasquet meet in a rubber match after splitting their first 12 meetings on Tour. The sixth-seeded Berdych has had the upper hand of late, sweeping six straight sets against the 12th-seeded Gasquet over the last 11 months. Of their 12 match-ups, 11 have been decided in straight sets, including their only prior meeting at a Grand Slam, won by Berdych at the 2011 Australian Open.
Also on Monday, the field in the women’s side of the draw begins to further shrink as four matches will determine the four quarterfinalists who inch closer to Grand Slam glory.
The number 24 seeded German Sabine Lisicki will face the number two seeded Simona Halep in the afternoon at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Making her eighth appearance at U.S. Open, Lisicki is through to the Round of 16 for the second time. Prior to this year, she advanced to the Round of 16 in 2011 and reached round three in 2013 and 2014. Halep is bidding to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time at the U.S. Open. This remains the only major where she has yet to reach the quarterfinals or better. Halep has three wins in four career matches against Lisicki, the last meeting a Halep victory in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2014.
Under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium, qualifier Johanna Konta of Great Britain faces the fifth-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic for the first time in their careers. Kvitova is bidding to be the first Czech woman through to the quarterfinals at the U.S. Open since Daja Bedanova in 2001. Konta is making her third main draw appearance at the U.S. Open. Prior to this year, Konta reached the second round in 2012, fell in the opening round in 2014 (l. Peer) and fell in 2013 qualifying. Konta is the first British woman through to the Round of 16 at the U.S. Open since Laura Robson in 2012.
Kicking things off at Arthur Ashe Stadium, it will be American Varvara Lepchenko taking on the number 20 seed, Victoria Azarenka of Belarus. Azarenka has a 3-1 career record over Lepchenko. Lepchenko is one of four Americans through to the Round of 16 at the Open, the best showing by U.S. women in Flushing Meadows since 2004. Making her 10th consecutive appearance at the U.S. Open, Azarenka is a two-time runner-up, in 2012 and again in 2013. Azarenka is a two-time Grand Slam champion, at the 2012 Australian Open and 2013 Australian Open.
Capping off the afternoon action on Ashe, it will be Australian Samantha Stosur, the number 22 seed, facing the number 26 seed Flavia Pennetta of Italy. Pennetta is a perfect 6-0 lifetime over Stosur, the last meeting earlier this year at Indian Wells. Making her 11th main draw appearance at U.S. Open, Stosur was crowned champion in Flushing Meadows in 2011, defeating Serena Williams in the finals. Stosur is only one of only three women who have been able to defeat Serena in a Grand Slam final. Pennetta is playing in her 49th Grand Slam main draw at the 2015 U.S. Open.
Click here to view the full schedule for Day Eight of the U.S. Open.
