Fan favourite Coco Gauff said the reception she has received in New York is different to anything she has experienced before after defeating Zhang Shuai 7-5 7-5 on Sunday.
In a closely contested battle, Gauff was just a little too good, winning 52 per cent (91-of-176) of the total points, while creating 11 break point opportunities compared to nine for Zhang.
It continues a terrific run of form for the 18-year-old, who will break into the top 10 of the world rankings for the first time when it updates this coming week.
Speaking to the media after advancing to the quarter-finals, Gauff compared the atmosphere inside Arthur Ashe Stadium – where she has played every match this tournament – to an NBA game.
"It's way different [to a normal tennis crowd]," she said. "On the 6-5 changeover, people were saying 'let's go, Coco' – I was literally trying not to smile.
"I was, like, I've got to stay in the zone. Inside I was trying my hardest not to smile. This is a surreal moment for me – on Arthur Ashe Stadium and people are chanting my game. I feel like I'm at an NBA game.
"That's a special thing about tennis. When you go to a football game or an NBA game, people are chanting the team's name. That's great as a player.
"For you to have the whole crowd chanting your name specifically is something I won't take for granted."
When asked if the incredible attention she has received this week has been a distraction, she said it only helps her in the heat of the contest.
"I think it depends on the player – for me though, I just feed off of it," she said. "I think it helps me more.
"I mean, for some players, they prefer a more chill, relaxed environment. For me, if anyone has seen me play, I like to get pumped up. The New York crowd seems to like it too."
A meeting with the in-form Caroline Garcia is scheduled for the quarter-final, and she said it is no secret that she is one of the hottest players on tour right now.
"I think she's playing the best tennis she's played in a long time," she said. "It's going to be a challenge.
"When you play these players that are hot, I think it's more of a mental challenge. You just gotta accept she's going to hit some great shots, because I know she will.
"I think my mentality has been great. I played I feel like two similar opponents, Maddie Keys, who can hit some unbelievable shots from the wings. Same with Shuai today. She was hitting some great shots.
"I think I was doing a good job of accepting it, clapping my hands, moving on to the next point. I think I'm going to have to do that for the next match."
Gauff and Garcia have played twice before, with the American winning both matches against the Frenchwoman.
Margaret Court does not believe Serena Williams has ever "admired" her and claims the modern game is significantly easier than it was in her own era.
Williams, widely considered one of the greatest sportspeople of all time, stepped away from top-level tennis following defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round of the US Open.
Although her time on tour now looks to be over, the 40-year-old admitted "you never know" when asked about future appearances, but a U-turn is widely considered to be highly improbable.
Williams is bowing out with 23 grand slam singles wins – one fewer than record holder Court.
Court, 80, is a Pentecostal church pastor now and has been criticised in recent years for comments about race, homosexuality and the transgender community.
She was blunt when asked about her feelings on Williams, telling the Telegraph: "Serena, I've admired her as a player. But I don't think she has ever admired me."
Court won her grand slam singles titles between 1960 and 1973, and the Australian believes players in the modern era have it much easier than she did during her remarkable career.
"I would love to have played in this era; I think it's so much easier," she said. "How I would love to have taken family or friends along with me. But I couldn't, I had to go on my own or with the national team.
"People don't see all that. As amateurs, we had to play every week, because we didn't have any money. Now, they can take off whenever they want, fly back whenever they want.
"We would be away for 10 months. That's why I first retired in 1965, because I used to get homesick. You might be with the odd other person, but it's not like having your family there.
"We didn't have psychologists or coaches with us. It's a whole different world. That's what disappoints me; that players today don't honour the past of the game."
Margaret Court does not believe Serena Williams has ever "admired" her and claims the modern game is significantly easier than it was in her own era.
Williams, widely considered one of the greatest sportspeople of all time, stepped away from top-level tennis following defeat to Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round of the US Open.
Although her time on tour now looks to be over, the 40-year-old admitted "you never know" when asked about future appearances, but a U-turn is widely considered to be highly improbable.
Williams is bowing out with 23 grand slam singles wins – one fewer than record holder Court.
Court, 80, is a Pentecostal church pastor now and has been criticised in recent years for comments about race, homosexuality and the transgender community.
She was blunt when asked about her feelings on Williams, telling the Telegraph: "Serena, I've admired her as a player. But I don't think she has ever admired me."
Court won her grand slam singles titles between 1960 and 1973, and the Australian believes players in the modern era have it much easier than she did during her remarkable career.
"I would love to have played in this era; I think it's so much easier," she said. "How I would love to have taken family or friends along with me. But I couldn't, I had to go on my own or with the national team.
"People don't see all that. As amateurs, we had to play every week, because we didn't have any money. Now, they can take off whenever they want, fly back whenever they want.
"We would be away for 10 months. That's why I first retired in 1965, because I used to get homesick. You might be with the odd other person, but it's not like having your family there.
"We didn't have psychologists or coaches with us. It's a whole different world. That's what disappoints me; that players today don't honour the past of the game."
Caroline Garcia has dialled up the aggression and is reaping the rewards as the Frenchwoman emerges as a serious title contender at the US Open.
On Sunday, Garcia moved through to the quarter-finals by beating Alison Riske-Amritraj 6-4 6-1 on Louis Armstrong Stadium.
She has won four matches without dropping a set in the first week of the grand slam in Queens, New York, but that is just the continuation of a sensational hot streak.
Garcia, now 28, has won 30 of her last 34 matches, landing titles in Bad Homburg, Warsaw and Cincinnati along the way.
At the 2011 French Open, ATP superstar Andy Murray was so taken by the 17-year-old Garcia's performance against Maria Sharapova that he predicted: "The girl Sharapova is playing is going to be number one in the world one day."
Perhaps Murray will turn out to be right after all, with that forecast having long hung over Garcia, as well intended as it was at the time.
She reached a peak of number four in 2018 but was down at 79th on the WTA list in late May of this year.
Now she sits 17th and will keep climbing after reaching the last eight at the US Open for the first time.
On a 12-match winning streak at present, Garcia said after sinking the hopes of American Riske-Amritraj: "I'm so excited to be in the quarters of the US Open. It's been a great couple of weeks for me."
She came through qualifying to win the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati, beating Petra Kvitova in that final after felling three seeds along the way.
Recent wins over Iga Swiatek in Poland and Emma Raducanu at Wimbledon, beating home favourites, have showed Garcia is suddenly fearless.
"I'm really trying to play aggressive, go for my shots, even when I'm tight or even when I don't feel it," she said.
"It's how I improved so much in the last couple of months and I really enjoy playing like that, moving forward, and I'm having fun."
Garcia was not at her most fluent in the first set of Sunday's fourth-round match but improved and finished the contest having hit 30 winners.
She has only played one grand slam quarter-final before, losing to Karolina Pliskova at that stage in the 2017 French Open.
Suddenly, though, she is playing top-five standard tennis again, and Garcia will take some stopping.
"I want to enjoy every single win I have," Garcia said in an on-court interview.
"When you don't have them, you miss them, so I want to enjoy this one and recover and get ready for the big match in the quarter.
"I'm really having fun here in the US. I got a lot of confidence from Cincinnati, really enjoy the good energy in New York."
Zhang Shuai went winless in her first 14 appearances at major tournaments but has turned her fortunes around as she prepares for a US Open fourth-round clash with Coco Gauff.
The Chinese tennis player was said to be considering retirement in 2015 after 14 unsuccessful attempts at grand slams, though was convinced to keep fighting by friend and fellow competitor Sam Stosur.
Simona Halep at the 2016 Australian Open was the first scalp Zhang claimed at a major before she went on to reach the quarter-finals.
The 33-year-old, who has two grand slams titles in doubles with Stosur, has not looked back from that win over Halep and has made it to the second week at all four majors in 2022.
"This year, I already have three third rounds," Zhang said after her third-round win at the US Open. "Oh my god, I won six matches! Before I couldn't win one match in many, many years. How happy!
"That's why when we meet some players who want to stop or feels sad after the match, I always tell them next match, see how you are better.
"When I started the tour, how bad [were my] results? No one was worse than me. [These girls are] much better than me, right? You guys are still young. Keep trying."
Gauff awaits Zhang in the round-of-16 as the latter searches for a maiden major success and fourth singles title.
World number one Iga Swiatek says she reminds herself that it is impossible to continually play at the level she achieved during her 37-match winning run earlier this year.
Swiatek reached the second week at the US Open for only the second time after Saturday's 6-3 6-4 win over Lauren Davis and has moved into title favouritism, creating a level of perceived pressure.
That comes amid a run of form where the 2020 and 2022 French Open champion has been far from the levels achieved during her 37-match winning streak which ended in July at the hands of Alize Cornet at Wimbledon.
Since then, Swiatek has only won seven of 10 matches. Swiatek's victory over Davis marked the first time since the winning streak that she has managed three straight victories.
The Pole's hard-court form line has not been compelling either but the exit of Serena Williams along with top seeds Anett Kontaveit, Maria Sakkari, Paula Badosa and Simona Halep has thrust her into US Open favouritism.
But the 21-year-old is trying not to put any extra pressure on herself with that in mind, nor re-discovering the form she displayed earlier in the year.
"Honestly I didn't even focus on that cause I still remember how it is to lose," Swiatek told reporters. "After the tournament in Cincinnati [when she lost to Madison Keys in August], I knew like it's not the end of the world that I'm losing in third round.
"It's not like the whole universe changed so right now I'm always going to be in quarter-finals or finals or whatever, win tournaments. I tried just to remind myself that it's kind of normal, that it's impossible to play always on the same level.
"Here I just took it match by match. I wasn't expecting maybe too much because of the losses, so that's good. It's not like I lost confidence or something. I still know anything can happen on these tournaments."
Swiatek admitted she lacked rhythm against Davis, who had led 4-1 in the second set, before the Pole fought back to win the final five games.
The 21-year-old won 21 of the final 25 points of the match, securing her 53rd victory of the 2022 season, closing in on Ash Barty's 57 from 2019.
"It wasn't as smooth as in first and second round," Swiatek said. "I'm pretty happy I made it through and could close it in second set and come back. That was pretty important for me.
"For sure she played totally differently than most of the players, which threw me a little bit off the rhythm. But I'm happy I was fighting till the end."
Top seed Iga Swiatek reached the US Open fourth round for the second time in her career after reeling off the final five games to beat Lauren Davis on Saturday.
The two-time French Open champion, who enjoyed a 37-match winning streak earlier this year, defeated Davis 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 57 minutes.
Swiatek had trailed 3-0 in the second lap but fought back emphatically to seal her passage into the last 16 where she will face either Jule Niemeier or Zheng Qinwen.
The attention in the women's singles has firmly turned to Swiatek, with Serena Williams eliminated along with the second, third and fourth seeds.
The Pole did not disappoint, hitting 25 winners and six aces, albeit with 38 unforced errors and an apparent lack of rhythm.
Swiatek wrapped up the first set in 59 minutes but world number 105 Davis offered a tougher test in the second after breaking in the second game.
The highly favoured Swiatek had to work out to avoid a 4-0 deficit, holding her serve in a 16-point game, but she showed she was back breaking Davis to love to make it 3-4.
Swiatek won 21 of the last 25 points of the match to book her spot in the second week in New York for the second straight year.
Data Slam: Swiatek finding her hard-court groove
The win improved Swiatek's 2022 tally to 53 matches but it also moved her a step closer to becoming the first player since Serena Williams in 2014 to win seven titles in a single year.
Swiatek has not quite reached the same dizzying levels lately since her 37-match winning streak, which was halted in the third round at Wimbledon, with this victory being only her fifth from eight during the hard-court season.
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Swiatek – 25/38
Davis – 12/34
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Swiatek – 6/3
Davis – 0/6
BREAK POINTS WON
Swiatek – 3/14
Davis – 1/3
Matteo Berrettini outlined his desire to see Roger Federer return to the court as he compared the 20-time grand slam champion to retiring legend Serena Williams.
Federer has not played competitively since losing to Hubert Hurkacz in the Wimbledon quarter-finals last year, and has since undergone his third knee surgery in two years.
But the 41-year-old is hopeful of returning to the court for this month's Laver Cup, where he is set to team up with Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic for Team Europe.
Federer recently shared an encouraging video of a practice session on social media after stepping up his rehabilitation.
With tennis set to lose one legend after Williams' final US Open campaign was ended by Ajla Tomljanovic on Friday, the return of Federer would represent a major boost for the sport.
Speaking after beating Murray in the third round at Flushing Meadows, Berrettini said: "I think I said it so many times. Probably it's never going to be enough. One of the reasons why I'm here now is Roger.
"He was my idol when I was growing up. I was cheering for him, so I want him back really badly.
"He's just like Serena, I guess, one of a kind, you know?
"I wish him a really speedy recovery in whatever he's doing to come back. I wish I could play one more time against him."
Berrettini has lost each of his two tour-level matches against Federer, including a straight-sets defeat at Wimbledon in 2019.
Nick Kyrgios believes no other player will be able to emulate the career Serena Williams has enjoyed, after the grand slam great confirmed her retirement.
Williams went down 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 to Ajla Tomljanovic – Kyrgios' former partner – on Friday in the third round of the US Open.
That brought an end to her playing career, though the 40-year-old suggested she would leave the door open for a potential return.
Kyrgios, who defeated J.J. Wolf to set up a contest with reigning men's champion Daniil Medvedev, is in awe of what Williams has achieved, as he ranked the 23-time grand slam champion alongside Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
"She's had a career that I don’t think no one else will emulate," Kyrgios said.
"You've got a couple on the men’s side who are trying to catch her in grand slams, but Nadal, Serena, Federer, Novak, these are once in a generation athletes – I wouldn't even put myself in the same category, ever.
"It's a special moment for her, she played extremely well, she won two matches and nearly got on top [against Tomljanovic], it's a hell of a way to go out.
"I just appreciate what she's done and I'm sure everyone in this building does as well."
After beating Wu Yibing, world number one Medvedev said of Williams: "That was a crazy match, it was close to being three hours.
"It's definitely a pity that she lost. If it's the last match of her career, it was definitely an amazing match and she was really close to winning.
"Ajla played at a great level, it was not easy against the crowd and it was a high-level match."
Williams bows out with the most grand slam wins in the Open Era of any player, male or female.
Daniil Medvedev has described both himself and US Open fourth-round opponent Nick Kyrgios as "electric", but says the pair share more "respect" than friendship.
The world number one will continue his men's single title defence against the Australian in the last 16 at Flushing Meadows after a 6-4 6-2 6-2 Win over China's Wu Yibing.
The pair are set to meet for the fifth time on the ATP Tour, with Kyrgios holding an impressive 3-1 record over the Russian in their previous four encounters, including in the final of the 2019 Citi Open.
But Medvedev defeated the former on home turf at the Australian Open earlier this year, in arguably the biggest clash between the duo.
Speaking ahead of the pair's encounter, Medvedev stressed he does not see the pair as friends, but he has strong admiration for his opponent's game and is impressed at how he has revived his fortunes this year.
"I don't think we are friends," he added. "I feel like we respect each other a lot. We are both quite electric. You never know what's going to happen in the future
"Nick is a little bit different from other tennis players on the court. That's his choice. That's his life. I'm not the one to judge. I feel a lot of respect for him."
Asked if he is surprised at Kyrgios' improved form following a first grand slam final this year at Wimbledon, Medvedev added: "To be honest, yes.
"We all knew that he's capable of doing big things. We always knew on [his] day, he is capable of beating anyone.He [has] proved it many times, against the biggest players in the world."
Kyrgios, meanwhile, is relishing another battle on a big occasion, adding that his attempts to seize victory against the odds of public opinion allow him to "thrive".
"You want to be in those moments," he said. "I want to be playing on the biggest stadiums in the world in front of millions of people broadcasted globally. That's where I want to be. That is why I work hard.
"It makes it even sweeter. I know a lot of people don't want me to succeed. I know a lot of people hate my game, the way I do things, the way I go about it. I always thrive on it. I never want to forget all the things people say.
"I always carry this chip on my shoulder. Win or lose, I'm proud of how far I've come. I think that's where every tennis player wants to be, playing the best players in the world in the best stadiums in the world."
Ajla Tomljanovic explained she just had to block out the noise surrounding Serena Williams in order to progress at the US Open.
Williams' called time on her illustrious career following Friday's 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 loss to Tomljanovic, though did leave the door open to a possible return.
The 40-year-old had announced her impending retirement last month in Vogue, and before each of the three matches she played at Flushing Meadows, the tournament organisers paid tribute to the 23-time grand slam champion.
Williams had the backing of the crowd against Tomljanovic, who knew she had to cut through the background noise and focus on her game.
"I'd say the biggest thing was just to block out all the noise. At the end of the day I tried to keep it simple," she said.
"It's just another tennis match for me. I'm happy to be in the third round and have a great opportunity to play on Arthur Ashe. It's what I dreamed of when I was a kid. Just not make it bigger than it is because everyone else already made it huge.
"From the first moment I walked on court, I didn't really look around much. I was completely in my own little bubble."
Tomljanovic will face Ludmilla Samsonova in the next round and is already putting her win over Williams to one side.
"It's already kind of in the past. I mean, I'm happy I won, I actually think a little too quickly about the next one! I never feel like I have a problem with that. I have more of an issue chilling out and taking it easy the next day," she said.
Williams did not bow out without a fight, saving five match points in the deciding set before finally falling short.
"I stopped counting after the second [match point]," Tomljanovic said. "You know what, every match point she saved, it was all credit to her. I didn't feel like I did much wrong.
"I had this weird calmness because I felt like if I get broken, I mean, so what? Serena broke me. Wow, I'm just like the next person she broke when she's down 5-1.
"I know she comes up with her best tennis when she's in the most trouble. I didn't feel like I'm choking it away or something. I just kept calm and actually took a page of her book."
Ajla Tomljanovic had conflicting emotions after beating Serena Williams, as she admitted she felt like a "villain".
Williams' called time on her illustrious career following Friday's 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 loss to the Australian, though did leave the door open to a possible return.
The 23-time grand slam champion did not let it go easy, clawing back five match points before Tomljanovic finally clinched the deciding set.
While Tomljanovic is sad to see Williams go, she could not say she was sad to have won, sealing a place for herself in tennis history in the process.
"No one's going to pronounce my name right," she quipped after it was suggested she would now be the answer to a common trivia question regarding Williams' final opponent.
"That's going to suck. I don't think I've of been part of tennis history [before], so that's pretty cool.
"I do feel a little bit like the villain. Like I said in Cincinnati, I really did want to play Serena before she retired. If I was the loser today I'd probably be really sad. I don't want to say I'm sad, but just conflicted.
"Probably the most conflicted I've ever felt after a win. During the match I was so eager to win. I mean, I wanted to win as much as the next person because I didn't look at her like, 'oh, Serena, her last tournament'.
"But then when it ended, it almost didn't feel right. When she started talking about her family and everything, I got emotional because I can relate to having a strong bond with your family.
"When she said that she wouldn't be there if it wasn't for them, I relate to that a lot. Just the whole moment after was just tough to handle a little bit."
Asked what Williams meant to her, Tomljanovic replied: "Growing up I didn't really have idols, but Serena and Venus [Williams] were just so good that I looked up to them the most, I'd say.
"What always drew me to them was their bond with their family, like the togetherness. They always spoke about that, like it was so important to them. I can relate to that because I'm very close to my family and I wouldn't be where I am without them.
"From a young age I remember seeing them with their dad and thinking that's kind of like my story a little bit. Just the fact that you don't have to have anything other than supportive family, a dream, and just will and passion and love for the game to make it. Not just make it, but what she's achieved is absolutely incredible.
"I don't know if it's ever going to be repeated while I'm still around. I still have years left in me. I want to dream bigger than I have so far because that's what she embodies."
Williams bows out with the most grand slam titles in the Open Era, though one short of Margaret Court's all-time record of 24.
Tributes have poured in across the sporting world for Serena Williams following her apparent US Open swansong on Friday, though the 23-time grand slam winner has kept the door ajar on a shock return.
The American, widely considered one of the greatest sportspeople of all time, suggested she would step away from top-level tennis following the tournament at Flushing Meadows.
Following a 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 loss to Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic in the third round, her journey now looks to be over – though the 40-year-old admittted "you never know" when asked about future appearances.
Her likely last dance, however, has prompted an outpouring of glowing tributes from far and wide, with a host of major names paying their respects to an unparalleld career.
15-time major-winning golfer Tiger Woods called her "the greatest on and off the court" while four-time NBA champion LeBron James hailed her as "so dope".
World number one Daniil Medvedev was levels above his third-round opponent Yibing Wu on Friday, defeating him 6-4 6-2 6-2 to set up a highly anticipated clash with Nick Kyrgios in his next match.
While Medvedev had the clear power advantage – finishing with 10 more winners and 11 more aces – he also allowed Wu to beat himself, with 18 unforced errors and three winners in the opening set.
Despite his early wastefulness, Wu still created six break point opportunities in the opening set, but could only capitalise on one. It would be his last break of the match as Medvedev tightened the screws down the stretch.
The Russian took the first four matches of the second set to take away any hope Wu had of fighting back into the contest, and in the third set Medvedev's serve really hit top gear.
He faced no break point opportunities in the final frame as he converted over 70 per cent of his points on both first serves (13-of-18) and second serves (eight-of-11), while Wu's errors returned, with 15 and just four winners.
Against Kyrgios next, Medvedev will be looking for his second win against the Australian in their fifth meeting. In their two matches this year – and their only two since 2019 – Medvedev won in four sets at the Australian Open, before Kyrgios got one back at the Canadian Open.
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Medvedev – 12/5
Wu – 1/0
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Medvedev – 26/27
Wu – 16/42
BREAK POINTS WON
Medvedev – 6/12
Wu – 1/8
Nick Kyrgios was far too good J.J. Wolf in the third round of the US Open on Friday, not having his serve broken a single time in the 6-4 6-2 6-3 victory.
Kyrgios dominated the match with his serve, racking up 21 aces to Wolf's five, and of the seven break point opportunities the Australian allowed, he saved all seven.
His return game was sharp as well, creating 11 break points and converting five, and he used it to break away in the second set, rattling off five consecutive games to comfortably go up two sets to love.
The third set was more competitive as Kyrgios had a pair of double faults, and more unforced errors (17) than winners (16), but he ultimately had too much firepower for the 23-year-old American.
After coming back from a love-40 deficit, saving four break points in the game, Kyrgios put the finishing touches on the straight sets win with another break of serve to seal it.
With the win, he books his spot in the fourth round, where he will meet world number one Daniil Medvedev.
Kyrgios has won three of the four career meetings between the pair, including their most recent fixture at the Canadian Open.
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Kyrgios – 21/5
Wolf – 6/1
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Kyrgios – 36/32
Wolf – 20/26
BREAK POINTS WON
Kyrgios – 5/11
Wolf – 0/7
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