US Open 2025: Aryna Sabalenka eases into quarters, Elena Rybakina stunned in 4th round

Aryna Sabalenka’s quest for a maiden Grand Slam title this year gathered pace as the world No. 1 brushed aside unseeded Spaniard Cristina Bucsa 6-1, 6-4 in the fourth round at Louis Armstrong Stadium on Sunday, August 31. Meanwhile, ninth seed Elena Rybakina bowed out in the last 16, beaten in a battle of Wimbledon champions by world No. 60 Markta Vondrousova at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Sabalenka, runner-up at both the Australian Open and the French Open before a semi-final defeat at Wimbledon, looked at her imperious best, dismissing Bucsa in under an hour to book a quarter-final clash with Vondrousova.

"I was super happy with the straight-sets win. The second set was a little tricky, but I'm glad that I was able to close it without dropping my serve," Sabalenka said after extending her streak of reaching Grand Slam quarterfinals to 12.

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For Vondrousova, the run to the quarter-finals has been a story of redemption. After her breakthrough Wimbledon triumph in 2023, her career was derailed by injury. A premature first-round exit at Wimbledon 2024 as defending champion — making her just the second woman since Steffi Graf to suffer such a fate — was swiftly followed by left shoulder surgery.

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Once ranked as high as No. 6, Vondrousova endured another spell on the sidelines, withdrawing from both the US Open in 2024 and the Australian Open earlier this year. Subsequent early exits at Roland Garros and Wimbledon compounded her struggles, but the 26-year-old now appears to be regaining her top form.

“It’s amazing. It was an amazing match. After everything I’ve been through, it’s amazing to be standing here again,” Vondrouosova said, reflecting on her return from repeated injury setbacks.

The left-hander was at her fiery best at Arthur Ashe against Rybakina, who had shown glimpses of her vintage power in New York the previous week. Vondrouov fired 13 aces and struck 29 winners in a commanding performance, prevailing 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 to reach her second US Open quarter-final.

Rybakina fought hard to level the contest, absorbing the serving barrage with dogged defence to claim the second set. But after holding serve to open the decider, she was gradually overpowered by Vondrousova’s relentless hitting and intent.

The Czech heads into the last eight having ousted back-to-back top-10 seeds, having also eliminated seventh seed Jasmine Paolini in the third round on Friday.

Vondrousova will now face Sabalenka for the tenth time in her career. The world No. 1 beat her in straight sets as recently as last month at the Cincinnati Masters, though Vondrousova defeated Sabalenka on grass in Berlin earlier this year. Her last hard-court victory over the Belarusian dates back to 2018.