NEW YORK -- Shelby Rogers lingers on the court, looking at Arthur Ashe Stadium fans for a photo souvenir of her victory over Ash Barty. Not only at the US Open, but all of them.
Rogers lost in five of the four meetings against the women's number one. Rogers was the No. 1 player in the women's draw, which forced the American last left to change her method.
Rogers was urged on by a raucous crowd and hit moon balls. He waited, as Barty made a series of errors. This resulted in Rogers' early exit from Flushing Meadows.
Rogers won the third set 5-2 after being down by Barty. He defeated Barty 6-2.1-6.7-5 (5) at Arthur Ashe Stadium. This was the biggest win in Rogers' 28-year-old career.
Rogers stated that it couldn't get worse after her past failures against Barty. Rogers said that she lost to Barty every time. So, try something new.
Since Serena Williams' 2014 victory, the top seed on the women's side of the US Open has not reached the final. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, the seven-year drought ranks as the longest in any major of the Open Era.
Rogers was a quarterfinalist at New York last year, while Barty has titles from the French Open 2019 and Wimbledon this summer, but has never made it past the fourth round at Flushing Meadows.
Rogers received a lot of support from Barty in ending her winless streak. Barty hadn't dropped a set during the tournament, but she was slow from the beginning. Rogers was able to regain control of the match after Barty made 17 errors in the first set. She then made three more. Rogers broke Barty twice during the third set, when Barty was serving for the match.
As they do for most Americans, Rogers was roared by the Ashe crowd. She waved her arms and encouraged the fans to scream louder. A year ago, the coronavirus pandemic prevented fans from attending the U.S. Open.
Rogers stated to the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd that "the crowd is next-level" this year. Rogers said, "You have chosen who you want to win. So thank you for choosing me tonight."
Barty couldn't avoid the numerous upsets that have swept the tournament. Barty was beaten by Naomi Osaka, the defending champion, and Andrey Rublev, two of the top five male players, Stefanos Tisipas and Andrey Rulev.
Shelby Rogers was 0-5 in the match against Ash Barty prior to Saturday's three-set win at the US Open. Photo by Elsa/Getty Images
Rogers will next face Emma Raducanu (18-year-old), who defeated Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-0, 6-1 to advance.
Maria Sakkari, who beat Petra Kvitova, two-time Wimbledon champion, in the third round of women's matches, continued her success against top-20 opponents.
Sakkari is 17th in seeding and reached the semifinals at the French Open. She won her eighth match against a player ranked in the top 20. As she reached Flushing Meadows Week 2, Sakkari had nine aces, and never lost on serve.
Kvitova, seeded 10th in the rankings, was able to finish with 34-16 unforced errors.
Next, Sakkari will face 2019 champion Bianca Andreescu. She improved to 10-0 with a 6-1 and 6-2 win over Greet Minnen (104th) in the US Open.
The Canadian player seeded sixth won the match in less than an hour. She delivered 21 winners and made only 11 unforced mistakes, while saving all four break points.
Minnen was a "lucky losser" who qualified but got in the main draw after another player withdrew.
In her US Open debut, Williams beat Andreescu in the final in New York in 2012. Andreescu was then forced to miss Flushing Meadows's final last year due to a series injuries that she sustained in her young career.
Belinda Bencic (Tokyo Olympic gold medalist), seeded 11th, reached the fourth round with a 6-2 victory over No. 23 Jessica Pegula in a rematch of the Summer Games.
Bencic was a semifinalist in the 2019 US Open. Next, she will face Iga Swaitek, who defeated Anett Kontaveit 6-3, 6-8, 6-3.
Swiatek, a seventh-seeded Swiatek who won the French Open 2020, is now in the fourth round at each Grand Slam tournament.
Raducanu, a Canadian-born player who represents Britain, has advanced to the fourth round of the US Open. She reached Week 2 at Wimbledon at the age of 18, her major debut. With three wins in qualifying, and three in her main draw, she has won each of the 12 sets she's played in New York.
She won 29 against Tormo.
This report was contributed by The Associated Press.
