Brilliant Rogers storms back to stun world No 1 Barty in thriller at US Open
Down 5-2 in the final set, Shelby Rogers produced an incredible comeback in front of a packed home crowd to upset world No 1 Ash Barty in the third round
Shelby Rogers at the Adelaide International tennis tournament at Memorial Drive on February 23, 2021 in Adelaide, Australia.
Credit: ICON SMI / PANORAMIC
US Open Women’s Third Round
Shelby Rogers beat Ash Barty (1) 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (5)
What happened: American Shelby Rogers upset Wimbledon champion and world No 1 Ash Barty 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (5) to reach the fourth round of the US Open
You will also learn: Rogers had never beaten Barty in five career meetings prior to Saturday, including all four matches they had played in 2021
Why you should read this: Rogers is the last American woman remaining at this year’s US Open
28-year-old American Shelby Rogers scored the biggest win of her career on Saturday night in front of a partisan home crowd on the US Open’s Arthur Ashe Stadium to knock out world No 1 Ash Barty in three sets and reach the second week of her home Slam for the second year in a row.
Rogers, who had reached the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows last year, started the match strong winning the first set 6-2, before Barty found her game and won the second set 6-1 to level the match.
With the momentum behind her, Barty broke twice in the final set to build a 5-2 lead and looked set to move into the last 16.
Rogers comes from 5-2 down in decider to end five-match losing streak against Barty
However, Rogers did not give up and a break in the eighth game spurred her on to level the set at 5-5. After that, both players held serve once each to send the match into a third-set tiebreak.
Once there, both players battled hard with long rallies before Rogers got the decisive mini-break to go up 6-5 and won the next point on her serve to win the match in two hours and eight minutes.
Incredibly, this was the fifth meeting between the pair in 2021, with Barty having won all four of their earlier encounters. The Australian had also won their only prior meeting to 2021 (at the 2017 Australian Open).
Shelby Rogers now the last American woman in the singles draw
With the win, Shelby Rogers is through to the fourth round where she will meet British teen Emma Raducanu. The 18-year-old Brit scored an impressive 6-0, 6-1 win over Sara Sorribes Tormo to reach the last 16 for the second Grand Slam in a row.
Rogers is now the only American woman left in the singles draw at the US Open. In contrast, there are three American men – Jenson Brooksby, Frances Tiafoe and Reilly Opelka – who have reached the fourth round.
