Sabalenka comes back from a set down to defeat Collins, advances to US Open quarterfinal

Former World No.2 Aryna Sabalenka overcame a dominant first set performance by Danielle Collins in their round of 16 US Open encounter, battling past the American to reach the quarterfinal stage for the second straight year.

Sabalenka erased a slow start in her 3-6 6-3 6-2 victory, despite the crowd fully behind the local favorite. Collins looked to be in control as she powered through the first set, emerging victorious in the groundstroke battle as her Belarusian opponent failed to hit her off the court.

However, the second set saw both ladies remain level with Sabalenka serving at 3-3. The 2021 US Open semifinalist endured a 15-minute service game, where she had to save multiple break points as Collins was unable to capitalize. After winning that battle, Sabalenka would go on to win the next two games, pushing the match to a deciding set.

Collins seemed to lose momentum as this point, as the 2022 Australian Open finalist began to fall apart. She committed some costly double faults, 12 in total, and saw her down 1-4. This was more than enough for Sabalenka, who showed more confidence as the match progressed. The 24-year old maintained her composure and closed out the match, hitting 38 winners to 28 unforced errors in her two and a half hour victory.

The sixth seed will face Karolina Pliskova in an attempt to reach a second consecutive semifinal at Flushing Meadows, as the 2021 Wimbledon runner-up battled past two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka earlier in the day.