NEW YORK — Serena and Venus Williams were once again the main attraction at the U.S. Open. Carlos Alcaraz sure wasn't going to miss it.
"I think there is no better plan (than) to watch the doubles, the Williamses once again, while getting a treatment," the defending men's champion said after winning his match. "I'm going to be ready for that."
The match was a thriller, with the sisters battling back to force a 10-point match tiebreaker, but then blowing a 5-0 lead and losing 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (10-7) on Friday night to Hao-Ching Chan and Maya Joint.
It was the first U.S. Open match since 2022 at the Grand Slam tournament the sisters won twice. They battled back from 4-1 down in the third set to tie it, but then faltered late in front of disappointed fans desperately rooting them on.
“I think the crowd is pretty much what we expected. We expected a full stadium, everyone cheering for them, which, pretty much was that,” Joint said. “But the atmosphere is something that, yeah, it’s super special. Not really going to get again with many other players.”
Serena came back to tennis this year at 44. Venus has continued to play on tour at 46.
Perhaps it was their ages, could have been Serena's long layoff, or maybe it was nerves. But both double-faulted during the tiebreaker after they had played so brilliantly late in the third set and then in the first few points.
The U.S. Tennis Association said the sisters would not be available for comment.
Serena lost to Joint for the second time this summer. She fell to the Australian in three sets at Wimbledon in her return to singles play, and she and Venus then had to pull out of their doubles match after Serena hurt her knee.
That delayed their return to the Grand Slam stage until New York, where they won in 1999 and 2009 and are now 27-8 in their 10 appearances.
The match got a spot in the night session in Arthur Ashe Stadium — practically unheard of for first-round doubles.
The sisters were once dominant in women’s doubles, teaming to win 14 Grand Slam titles along with Olympic gold medals in 2000, 2008 and 2012. They shared the No. 1 ranking in women’s doubles for eight weeks.
It appeared a first-round loss in 2022 was their last time together, with Serena stepping away from tennis that year after winning 23 Grand Slam singles titles. She came back this summer and now has two heartbreaking defeats with her older sister. They also lost in a match tiebreaker at the Cincinnati Open.
Venus Williams also lost in the first round of singles.
The champions lead the field into the fourth round
Alcaraz won easily but two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka was finally challenged — by her opponent and by the smell of marijuana — in her victory.
Sabalanka beat Kamilla Rakhimova 6-3, 6-4. The No. 1 seed was pushed in a second set that lasted 54 minutes — a minute longer than her entire previous match.
Trying to become the first player to win three straight U.S. Open titles since Serena Williams from 2012-14, Sabalenka will face Taylor Townsend in the round of 16.
Alcaraz returned to the round of 16 by beating Wu Yibing 6-3, 6-4, 6-1. Back for this tournament after missing four months because of a right wrist injury, the two-time champion will face No. 20 seed Tommy Paul, who edged No. 15 Alexander Bublik in five sets.
“To be honest I’m better than I thought,” Alcaraz said.
Sabalenka smelled marijuana, Jessica Pegula struggled for tennis reasons
Sabalenka was serving in the third game of her match in Louis Armstrong Stadium when she tossed the ball but then let it fall to the court. She did the same thing on the next point, with something clearly bothering her.
She then approached the chair umpire to ask for help because she smelled marijuana.
“I was like, guys, you can do whatever, you can smoke whatever, you can relax as much as you can, but please, do not do it around the tennis courts,” Sabalenka said, when asked what she was thinking at the time. “It’s a bit tricky to handle that smell while you’re trying to compete at your best.”
Pegula, the No. 3 seed, fought back to beat 2021 runner-up Leylah Fernandez 1-6, 6-4, 6-3. Pegula, who lost to Sabalenka in the 2024 final and again last year in the semifinals, had a dismal start in which she put only 5 of 16 first serves in during the first set.
Fernandez hadn't won a Grand Slam singles match this year until getting to New York and was trying to reach the fourth round at the U.S. Open for the first time since falling to Emma Raducanu in the final five years ago. Pegula handled her easily in their only meeting this year but said Fernandez showed her different looks that gave her trouble.
“I didn’t start off very well. It was tough,” Pegula said. “I had to dig deep there in the second to turn that around, and it very well could have not turned around.”
Pegula advanced to face Sorana Cirstea, the 36-year-old from Romania who is contemplating retirement after this season. She will have at least one more Grand Slam match after the No. 16 seed beat No. 19 Jasmine Paolini 6-3, 6-3.
Townsend reached the round of 16 for the second straight year by knocking off No. 15 seed Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-3 and seemed eager for the matchup with Sabalenka.
“I’m so excited. I feel like I thrive in these moments,” the American said. “I’m built for these moments and so now is my time, I’m ready to take it. I’m ready to go.”
Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova and Marta Kostyuk, the No. 11 seed, advanced, setting up a rematch of their semifinal meeting at the All England Club. No. 7 seed Karolina Muchova, who lost in that final, was ousted by No. 26 Emma Navarro.
Daniil Medvedev, the 2021 champion, beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. The No. 7 seed will face No. 11 Frances Tiafoe, who topped No. 22 Valentin Vacherot 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.
A resurgent Stefanos Tsitsipas reached the fourth round of the U.S. Open for the first time by knocking off No. 18 seed Jiri Lehecka and awaited the winner of the match that followed the Williams sisters between No. 8 Ben Shelton and Denis Shapovalov.
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