See it to be it! Sabalenka meets her adorable mini-me after US Open win

NEW YORK — World No.2 Aryna Sabalenka rolled into the third round of the US Open after defeating Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti 6-3, 6-1 on Wednesday.

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A champion at the Cincinnati Open last week, Sabalenka’s win over Bronzetti extended her current win streak to seven matches. The 26-year-old former No.1 has won all 14 sets she’s played over that span, with only one player able to win more than six games against her.

But the highlight of her day came after the win, when she came face to face with one her biggest fans, who had already stolen the hearts of the Louis Armstrong Stadium crowd with her boisterous cheering throughout the match.

“It was a really adorable moment,” Sabalenka said after the match. “I just looked up, and I saw on the big screen, like, a mini me. It was so cute.

“It’s such a motivation to keep going to inspire the young generation. That’s the main goal.”

Sabalenka made her way to the stands to pull out a girl dressed in her pink Nike dress and holding a small plush tiger. The young fan even had Sabalenka’s iconic tiger tattoo — we presume it was temporary — on her forearm.

“Can I take a picture with you?” Sabalenka asked as she pulled out her phone for a selfie.

A finalist here last year, Sabalenka will face No.29 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the third round. Alexandrova held off a stern challenge from 16-year-old American wild card Iva Jovic to win 4-6, 6-4, 7-5.

Sabalenka has made the quarterfinals or better in her past seven Grand Slam appearances. Having already defended her title at the Australian Open in January, Sabalenka is bidding to become the first woman to sweep both hard-court majors in a single season since Angelique Kerber in 2016.

Coming off her 6-3, 6-3 win over Priscilla Hon in the first round, Sabalenka fired 24 winners past 76th-ranked Bronzetti. Sabalenka landed 73 percent of her first serves and did not face a break point in the match, closing out the win in 60 minutes.

The victory improved Sabalenka to 23-6 at the US Open, eclipsing the Australian Open as her winningest Grand Slam by match-wins. Among active players, Sabalenka (80.6%, 45-11) trails only Naomi Osaka (81%, 47-11) in career winning percentage at hard-court Slams.

More early results from Day 3:

• No.26 seed and Washington D.C. champion Paula Badosa advanced to her first US Open third round after easing pats Taylor Townsend 6-3, 7-5. The Spaniard has not lost a set through her two matches. She will face Elena-Gabrela Ruse, who stunned No.8 seed and Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova 6-4, 7-5. The Romanian qualifier is into her first third round of a major.
• No.14 Madison Keys has lost just nine games across her two matches to return to the third round. Keys defeated Australia’s Maya Joint 6-4, 6-0 and will face No.33 seed Elise Mertens. The Belgian defeated Ajla Tomljanovic 6-3, 6-2.

More to follow…