Polish disappointment at the opening of the US Open. The Pole did not even win a set
Magdalena Fręch ended the first round of the US Open Grand Slam. The Łódź player unexpectedly lost to the lower-ranked Belgian Greet Minnen.
The US Open 2024 proved to be exceptionally interesting for Polish tennis fans from the very beginning. On the first day, three of our representatives appeared on the court. On the women’s side, Magdalena Fręch was the first to appear. The player from Łódź faced the Belgian Greet Minnen.
US Open: Magdalena Fręch eliminated from the tournament in New York
Looking at the WTA ranking, it seemed that the Polish tennis player would have more arguments on her side. Fręch came to New York as number 43 on the world list. As for the Belgian, she is a player who is ranked 70th in the WTA ranking. Although paradoxically, Minnen has reached the next stage of her career on the US Open courts, reaching the third round twice, in 2021 and 2023. In the case of Fręch, it ended at the second hurdle, achieved a year ago.
The match started very well for Fręch. The Pole took a 2:0 lead with a break, at the first opportunity, in the opening game. But what good was that, since the Belgian responded quite quickly, because after a dozen or so minutes it was 2:2, and then 3:2 for Minnen, although without a break. The Belgian added a lot of power to her shots, completely different than the player from Łódź, famous for her more technical, finesse play on courts all over the world.
Ultimately, the first set ended with Minnen winning 7:7. The Belgian broke the Pole in game number 12, using her first break point since the previous break. What’s worse, after losing the set, Fręch completely stopped using her tennis arguments. A lot of mistakes mixed with discouragement meant that Minnen started with a lead of as much as… 4:0!
However, the player from Łódź managed to wake up and make an effective chase, equalizing at 4:4, to the surprise of the Belgian. After passing the 1.5 hour limit, the ladies entered the second set at 5:5. The Belgian managed to control her nerves a bit, and the Pole tried to keep an eye on her increasingly better game. But what good is it, since in game number 11 the player from Łódź had a chance to break, which she did not convert into a concrete point. The Belgian, on the other hand, added power in the next game and broke her opponent, closing the match in two sets, at 7:5 in the second set.
When will Iga Świątek and Hubert Hurkacz play their matches at the US Open?
On Tuesday (August 27), the best singles duo from Poland, Iga Świątek and Hubert Hurkacz, will enter the court in New York. The Wrocław player, seeded 7th in this year’s bracket, will play against Kazakh Timofey Skatov. The match will start at 5:00 PM Polish time.
In the case of Świątek, the first opponent in the US Open 2024 will be Kamilla Rakhimova. The Russian entered the tournament as a so-called lucky loser, losing in the last round of qualifications but entering the tournament due to an injury to one of the players. The Świątek-Rakhimova clash will start at 18:00, looking at Polish watches.
The women’s singles final is scheduled for Saturday, September 7, with the men playing for the title on Sunday, September 8. Both the winner and the runner-up will receive $3.6 million for their victory. Coco Gauff and Novak Djokovic are defending their title from last year.
US Open matches are available on Eurosport channels and the MAX platform.