Collins slams 52 winners in win over Cornet, sets up Sabalenka clash

American Danielle Collins hit an impressive 52 winners in a hard-fought straight-sets win over Frenchwoman Alize Cornet to reach the fourth round of the US Open in New York on Saturday.

Collins, known for her ability to slam winners off both flanks at will, took control of the match with her 52 winners, more than cancelling out her 29 unforced errors to beat Cornet 6-4, 7-6 (9), saving three set points in a tense second set.

“I was really impressed with the quality of serving on both sides” Collins mentionned after the match. “One of the things that Alize does on her serve is she mixes her targets and has incredible placement. Even if it’s not coming in at a really, really high speed, she’s placing it so close to the lines, sometimes it skids.

“That was happening quite a bit. She was holding, I was holding. Went to battle in the tiebreak. Luckily got a couple points on her serve. That gave me some confidence. Was able to close it out.”

The 28-year-old Collins, who reached the Australian Open final in January, already defeating Cornet in quarter finals, needed one hour and 53 minutes to reach the fourth round at her home Slam for the first time in her career.

Collins has yet to drop a set this week, having scored a 7-6, 6-3 win over Naomi Osaka (7-6 (5), 6-3) and a 6-2, 7-5 win over Spanish qualifier Cristina Bucsa (6-2, 7-5).

Collins aiming for first win over Sabalenka in next round

She will next meet sixth seeded Aryna Sabalenka, against whom she has a 0-3 record, Collins will be hoping to score her first win over the Belarusian just as she did against Osaka earlier in the week after losing her first three matches to the Japanese player.

Two of their previous three matches have come at the US Open itself with Sabalenka winning in three sets in the first round in 2018 and in straight sets in the third round last year.

“I’m not really a vengeful person” commented Collins. “I just kind of come out here and do my best. Love to compete. Any win is a bonus for me. Lucky to be here with a lot of the challenges I faced. I’m motivated from within. I just do the best that I can. I’ve got an incredible work ethic. I think that that comes out a lot in my performances.”

US Open, New York City (Grand Slam), other third-round results

• Aryna Sabalenka beat Clara Burel (Q): 6-0, 6-2
• Jule Niemeier beat Qinwen Zheng: 6-4, 7-6 (5)
• Iga Swiatek (1) beat Lauren Davis: 6-3, 6-4
• Karolina Pliskova (22) beat Belinda Bencic (13): 5-7, 6-4, 6-3
• Victoria Azarenka (26) beat Petra Martic: 6-3, 6-0
• Jessica Pegula (8) beat Yue Yuan (Q): 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-0
• Petra Kvitova (21) beat Garbine Muguruza (9): 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (10)
• Caroline Garcia (17) beat Bianca Andreescu: 6-3, 6-2
• Ajla Tomljanovic beat Serena Williams: 7-5, 6-7 (4), 6-1
• Liudmila Samsonova beat Aleksandra Krunic: 6-3, 6-3
• Alison Riske-Amritraj (29) beat Xiyu Wang: 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
• Coco Gauff (12) beat Madison Keys (20): 6-2, 6-3
• Shuai Zhang beat Rebecca Marino: 6-2, 6-4
• Veronika Kudermetova (18) beat Dalma Galfi: 6-2, 6-0
• Ons Jabeur (5) beat Shelby Rogers (31): 4-6, 6-4, 6-3

You might also like this

US Open: Two-time champion Osaka goes down to Collins in first round

tennis majors

NCAA in the U.S. – a vehicle to the pros, Norrie, Collins, McEnroe, Brady, Isner, 10 questions about college tennis

tennis majors

“Now I’m able to live my best life and feel like a normal person” – Danielle Collins on life after endometriosis surgery

tennis majors

US Open: Sabalenka drops only two games to set up power-packed showdown against Collins

tennis majors

Swiatek equals best US Open performance by reaching fourth round, meets Niemeier next

tennis majors

“The fist pumps, the just crazy intensity, and so much love” – Serena Williams on how to be remembered

tennis majors