Bia Haddad breaks series of losses and advances at US Open

Bia made a very solid start to the game, confirming her serve without major issues and was rewarded in the sixth game when Kartal, under pressure, hit an easy forehand into the net and made another left-hand error. These mistakes gave Bia a break and a 4/2 advantage. Kartal had a more aggressive seventh game and broke back but Bia was more solid in rallies and took another game off the Briton’s serve to go up 5/3. After that, it was just a matter of confirming her serve and closing the set: 6/3. The second set started with the Briton breaking Bia’s serve and taking a 2/0 lead. Bia had a break point to get back on serve but made a mistake with a drop shot. Kartal then went up 3/0 and extended her lead to 5/1 when she broke Bia again, as the Brazilian struggled with her first serve. Shortly after, Kartal won 6/1 and forced a third set. After a long pause in the game for Bia to use the bathroom, the Brazilian came back stronger for the third set. With three unforced errors from Kartal, Haddad Maia went up 2/0. The Briton seemed to be experiencing physical problems, and Bia took advantage to go up 3/0. In the middle of the set, the São Paulo native also seemed physically uncomfortable and struggled with her serves, but she was already leading 4/0. Kartal managed to break back in the fifth game but couldn’t do more than that. Bia got another break in the sixth game, won 5/1, and closed the match shortly after.