Rybakina, Andreeva race into Cincinnati third round

Elena Rybakina and Mirra Andreeva advanced to the third round of the Cincinnati Masters on Sunday, marking another strong showing from two reigning Grand Slam champions. The tournament, held on hard courts in Ohio, saw several top players progress past the second round, including Rybakina, the Australian Open winner, and Andreeva, the Roland Garros titleholder. Rybakina, seeded second, faced Taylor Townsend and secured a straight-sets victory with scores of 6-3, 6-4. The Kazakh player, who recently finished as runner-up in Toronto, expressed relief at starting the tournament with a relatively stress-free match. “Today I’m happy with the serve,” she said. “Definitely it helped me a lot. Last week in Toronto was very difficult. A lot of three set matches.” Rybakina emphasized her focus on recovery after a demanding week, which included multiple long matches. Mirra Andreeva, the fifth seed, dominated Oleksandra Oliynykova in a swift 65-minute encounter, winning 6-1, 6-0. The Russian star broke her opponent five times while saving all seven break points on her own serve. This performance underscored Andreeva’s aggressive style and composure under pressure. Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek, the defending champion and seventh seed, recorded a commanding 6-3, 6-0 win over Emiliana Arango of Colombia. Swiatek, who claimed her first title of the season in Toronto, admitted the challenge of adapting to the Cincinnati courts. “It was necessary to get to know the court,” she said. “I'm happy I was patient. I came out for the second set knowing what I needed to improve. Things went pretty smoothly after that.” Swiatek will face Maria Sakkari, whom she defeated earlier in the year at Indian Wells. Other notable results included Sara Bejlek continuing her impressive run against fellow Czech players, defeating Barbora Krejčikova 7-6 (7/5), 6-4. Bejlek had already beaten Karolina Pliskova in the first round, showcasing her dominance on the clay courts of Cincinnati. In men’s singles, Felix Auger-Aliassime made steady progress toward his U.S. Open preparations, overcoming Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-5. The second-seeded Canadian, who had been sidelined due to back pain, returned to competition after a lengthy absence. His victory marked a positive step in his comeback following a five-set Wimbledon quarter-final loss to Novak Djokovic. Auger-Aliassime noted the challenging conditions during the final moments of the match, citing strong winds that affected his serve. “It got really windy, it was pushing against me,” he said. “I felt like I had no power in my serve. It was a tricky ending, but luckily I was able to get the break back.” Fourth-seeded Daniil Medvedev also advanced to the third round, defeating Marco Trungelliti 6-4, 7-5. The Russian, a consistent performer on hard courts, extended his record of Masters 1000 wins, achieving his 100th such victory and his 32nd of the season. Medvedev, who previously won the 2019 Cincinnati title, showed resilience by turning around the second set after trailing 2-5. Chris O’Connell capitalized on Casper Ruud’s withdrawal to reach the third round, winning the first set 7-5 before Ruud retired from their match. O’Connell’s success highlights the unpredictable nature of the tournament, where upsets can occur even among higher-ranked players.