Welcome to This Week in Tennis, where we catch up on all the latest and biggest stories from the ATP and WTA Tours.
Williams, Fernandez making Cinderella run
The team of Venus Williams and Canadian Leylah Annie Fernandez continue to impress in Flushing Meadows, reaching the quarter-final at the US Open in what many thought would be a quick sendoff for the legendary 45-year-old American.
Williams and Fernandez upset the sixth-seeded team of Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez in the first round before ousting another seeded team on Sunday, beating the No. 12 pair of Ekaterina Alexandrov and Shuai Zhang to reach the quarter-final.
The wild-card pairing came together at the last minute, when Williams called Fernandez one night before the start of the doubles draw and asked if she would like to pair up. The unlikely partnership has worked out very well, as the pair have not dropped a set through three rounds.
Read also: WTA Power Rankings - Can the Stars Bounce Back at the US Open?
"We’re on the same wavelength, and hopefully we can keep it going," Williams said after Sunday’s round-of-16 win.
“I have full confidence in Venus, and I hope she has full confidence in me during our match,” Fernandez said.
Next up for Williams and Fernandez are the reigning Australian Open champions, the top-seeded pair of Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova.
Read also: Fernandez Loses Tough Battle Against Top Seed Sabalenka in US Open Third Round
Sinner, Alcaraz on collision course once again
Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are barrelling towards another clash in a Grand Slam final.
The pair have dominated the competition en route to the quarters, with only one set being dropped between the two over the first week of the tournament.
Read also: ATP Power Rankings - Sinner, Alcaraz Looking for History in New York
The world No. 1 is coming off a commanding 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 win over Alexander Bublik as he looks to repeat as US Open champion. He dropped his only set of the tournament to open his third round match against Canadian Denis Shapovalov before rattling off three straight sets to take the match. He will need to beat Lorenzo Musetti and the winner of the Félix Auger-Aliassime - Alex de Minaur match on Wednesday.
Alcaraz reached the quarters with a straight-sets win over Arthur Rinderknech on Sunday. He has now reached the final eight in each Grand Slam this season. The second seed will need to get through Jiri Lehecka and either Novak Djokovic or Taylor Fritz to get to the final.
Sinner and Alcaraz have faced off in two Slam finals this season with the Spaniard winning at Roland-Garros and the Italian taking Wimbledon.
Read also: Auger-Aliassime returns to Grand Slam Quarter-final with win over Rublev at US Open
Feature Photo : Martin Sidorjak
