British tennis players dominated the third qualifying round at the US Open, with six advancing to the final stage of competition in New York. Among the standouts was Heather Watson, who staged a dramatic comeback against Spain’s Angela Fita Boluda in a nearly three-hour marathon. The 34-year-old, seeking her first main draw appearance since 2021, recovered from a deficit to force a deciding tie-break, ultimately prevailing 6-4 5-7 7-6 (10-5).
Watson’s victory sets up an all-British clash with Harriet Dart for a guaranteed spot in the main draw. Dart earned her place by defeating American teenager Kristina Penickova with a commanding 5-7 6-0 6-3 performance. Meanwhile, Francesca Jones also advanced through her qualifying encounter, defeating Germany’s Mona Barthel 7-6 (7-3) 1-6 6-2, positioning herself to potentially join Katie Boulter in the women’s main draw.
The men’s qualifying rounds saw impressive showings from several British competitors. Jacob Fearnley recovered from adversity to beat Luka Pavlovic 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-4, while Toby Samuel claimed victory over fellow Briton Billy Harris 4-6 6-4 6-1 in his attempt to qualify for the first time. Harry Wendelken dramatically saved match point in his three-hour encounter with Switzerland’s Remy Bertola, securing a 5-7 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 win to reach the final qualifying round.
Katie Swan and Jack Pinnington Jones fell short of advancing, eliminated by American Mary Stoiana and Finland’s Otto Virtanen respectively. The main draw begins Sunday.
Originally reported by Sports.yahoo →
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