Ukraine's No. 2 player, Kostyuk, defeated a Russian opponent and advanced to the round of 16 at the U.S. Open
Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk confidently defeated “neutral” player Ekaterina Aleksandrova in the third round of the 2026 U.S. Open. Ukraine’s No. 2 player won the match in two sets—6–3, 6–2—and defeated this opponent for the first time in her career.
Marta Kostyuk advanced to the round of 16 at the 2026 US Open. In the third-round match, the Ukrainian faced Russian tennis player Ekaterina Aleksandrova, who is competing under neutral status. The match ended with a confident victory for Kostyuk—6–3, 6–2. The match lasted just 1 hour and 18 minutes.
Marta took control of the match from the very beginning. In the first set, the Ukrainian player pulled ahead and took a 3–0 lead. Aleksandrova tried to get back into the set, but Kostyuk did not let her opponent regain the initiative. The Ukrainian calmly closed out the set with a 6–3 victory. In the second set, the situation changed at the start. Aleksandrova managed to win the first two games and took a 2–0 lead.
However, this score did not throw Kostyuk off her rhythm at all. On the contrary, Marta went on to win six games in a row. The Ukrainian played superbly on her serve, was aggressive on the return, and forced Aleksandrova into errors. As a result, the second set ended with a score of 6–2. Thus, Kostyuk secured one of her most convincing victories over this opponent and took an important step forward in New York.
Kostyuk defeated Aleksandrova for the first time
This victory holds special significance for Marta. Prior to this, the Ukrainian had faced Aleksandrova twice—in 2021 and 2022—and both previous matches ended in defeat for Kostyuk.
So the third meeting was Marta’s chance to finally get her revenge. This time, the Ukrainian gave her opponent little chance and defeated Aleksandrova for the first time. For Kostyuk, this is also an important result in the context of her performances at Grand Slam tournaments.
Reaching the Round of 16 for the Second Year in a Row
Reaching the fourth round of the US Open marked a repeat of Marta’s best result at this tournament. The Ukrainian has advanced to the round of 16 at the US Open for the second consecutive season.
In addition, Kostyuk has now reached at least the fourth round in her third consecutive Grand Slam tournament. This means that the Ukrainian is performing consistently at major tournaments and regularly advancing to the decisive stages. Marta is currently ranked 11th in the WTA world rankings and is Ukraine’s No. 2 player.
Who will be her next opponent?
For a spot in the quarterfinals, Kostyuk will face the winner of the match between Czech player Linda Nosková and American Ann Lee. Thus, the Ukrainian has already secured another match on the courts of New York. Ahead lies the battle for a spot in the US Open quarterfinals. After two previous losses to Aleksandrova, Kostyuk finally managed to break that unfortunate streak. And she did so in the most convincing way possible—6-3, 6-2. This is according to the match results.
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka defeated Kamila Rakhimova 6-3, 6-4 in the third round of the US Open. The two-time defending champion of the tournament secured her 16th consecutive victory at the US Open.
