Rybakina defeats Raducanu to reach US Open last 16

Elena Rybakina crushed Emma Raducanu 6-1, 6-2 in the third round of the US Open on Friday at Louis Armstrong Stadium, dispatching the British former champion in 62 minutes to reach the last 16 in New York for the first time. The ninth seed’s power serving and deep, clean groundstrokes left Raducanu with little room to operate and ended the Briton’s run at Flushing Meadows.

Rybakina dominated from the outset, breaking Raducanu early and repeatedly pressuring the world number 36’s serve. She turned relentless depth and pace into a steady stream of winners and forced multiple breaks of serve, while Raducanu’s first-serve percentage and ability to hold on the second serve fell short of the standard that had carried her through the opening rounds. Rybakina later said she had to play aggressively and keep the rallies deep, and conceded in her postmatch press conference that she had been “a bit lucky” on a couple of occasions when her balls landed on the lines.

Raducanu arrived in New York having ended a four-year wait for a main-draw win at the tournament, rallying through two quick victories over qualifiers in the first week and working under new coach Francisco Roig. She...