Iva Jovic edges Alexandra Eala in three sets as Madison Keys and Taylor Fritz fall at US Open

Jovic outlasts Eala on Arthur Ashe

Eighteen-year-old American Iva Jovic advanced to the fourth round of the US Open on Saturday night, defeating Alexandra Eala of the Philippines 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 in a three-hour and three-minute contest on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The 14th seed trailed 4-2 in the deciding set before taking five of the final six games to secure her third victory in three career meetings against Eala across three different surfaces. The encounter featured 17 service breaks across 33 games, including seven breaks in the opening 11 games. Jovic broke back to level the third set at 4-4 with a return winner and converted match point when Eala netted a forehand.

Jovic described the physical and mental toll of the three-set battle after reaching the round of 16 in New York for the first time.

That felt like a marathon and I felt like I lost my sanity five times over to win that match. But it's really worth it for this feeling.

Comebacks reshape the third round

Home contenders suffered several third-round exits across Flushing Meadows on Saturday. Former finalist Madison Keys led China's Zheng Qinwen 5-0 in the final set on Grandstand and held a match point at 5-1 on serve before Zheng mounted a seven-game run to win 1-6, 7-6(3), 7-5. Zheng, the 2024 Olympic champion ranked 121st following elbow surgery, converted consecutive break points to complete her sixth straight victory of the tournament after progressing through qualifying.

Zheng credited her persistent approach during the final set comeback.

I'm just telling myself keep holding every single point, never give up, stay there and somehow little by little it just happened. The hard work pays off.

On Arthur Ashe Stadium, 2024 men's finalist Taylor Fritz surrendered a two-set lead against 24th seed Francisco Cerundolo. The Argentinian fought back to take a 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 4-6 victory, saving three break points at 4-3 in the fifth set before serving out the win. Elsewhere, 10th seed Amanda Anisimova converted only three of 16 break points during a 6-2, 7-5 loss to 24th seed Anastasia Potapova.

Gauff and Swiatek advance to the last 16

Fourth seed Coco Gauff secured her place in the fourth round with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Spain's Cristina Bucsa, setting up a meeting with Jovic. Gauff, the 2023 champion in New York, joins Jessica Pegula, Taylor Townsend and Emma Navarro among American women in the fourth round. On the men's side, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul and Alex Michelsen advanced to the round of 16, with Learner Tien and Michael Zheng scheduled to play.

Eighth seed Iga Swiatek reached the fourth round with a 7-6(3), 7-6(3) win over Marie Bouzkova on the Grandstand court. Swiatek noted the contrast between the 8,000-seat outside venue and the louder 24,000-capacity Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Well, Ashe is really alive. Sometimes too much, I'd say. This court is nice. Honestly, I don't see any negatives about it. It has fewer screens. It's smaller in a way that's more normal, I would say, because Ashe is huge. The court seems small compared to the green part that you have around it. It's not easy to play on that court. The Grandstand seems nice and normal, a nice court. I don't really mind, honestly.

On Louis Armstrong Stadium, fifth seed Flavio Cobolli lost 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0, 6-3 to Belgian Alexander Blockx, with Cobolli observing that crowd noise levels at Flushing Meadows presented a distinct challenge compared to standard tour conditions.