Aryna Sabalenka lightheartedly commented on Roger Federer attending her US Open quarterfinal match as the Belarusian tennis star remarked she thought the Swiss tennis icon probably came for the Grigor Dimitrov and Frances Tiafoe match but that didn’t stop her from wanting to put up a show for the former 20-time Grand Slam champion.
In the first match of Tuesday’s evening session at Flushing Meadows, the No. 2 seed routinely booked a semifinal ticket after destroying seventh-seeded Zheng Qinwen 6-1 6-2. And it all happened in front of one of the greatest players ever, who famously won five consecutive US Open titles between 2004 and 2008.
“Yeah, I saw, I saw him there, saw him on the big screen. I mean, I’m pretty sure he came to watch Tiafoe and Dimitrov, but still, I was like, okay, ‘I have to play my best tennis so he enjoys it. I have to show my skills,’ you know, slice skills, come to the net and all that stuff. (Laughter.) Yeah, that was a nice moment. Nice to see him around,” Sabalenka said.
Considering how well the No. 2 played against this year’s Australian Open runner-up, it is safe to say that Federer was probably left impressed with the two-time Grand Slam champion’s performance.
In each of the two sets, Sabalenka earned…
