US Open 2023: Ons Jabeur overcomes breathing difficulties to sail into Round 2

Ons Jabeur of Tunisia returns a shot against Camila Osorio of Colombia during their Women`s Singles First Round match on Day Two of the 2023 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Pic/AFP

2022 US Open finalist Ons Jabeur of Tunisia valiantly fought against breathing difficulties to edge past Colombian youngster Camila Osorio 7-5, 7-6(4) to reach the women's singles second round at the tournament on Tuesday.

The 2022 runner-up, who turned 29 on Monday, defied breathing difficulties to edge Colombian youngster Camila Osorio just about put the icing on the cake for a belated birthday celebration with a gutsy performance inside Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Jabeur sprinkled in her trademark drop shots and looping lobs, changing the direction at will, to race 4-1 ahead.

The Tunisian will next play Czech Republic teenager Linda Noskova, who is a 6-2, 6-1 winner over Madison Brengle, on Thursday.

Ekaterina Alexandrova got the better of Leylah Fernandez, the 2021 US Open women's singles runner-up from Canada, in a first-round match in the women's singles competition.

Also Read: US Open 2023: Medvedev registers 50th tour-level win, Berrettini advances to Round 2

In a tight contest featuring some high drama, Alexandrova was able to seize the initiative to win the match 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4.

In other first-round matches on Day 2, Katie Boulter of the United Kingdom defeated Diane Parry of France 6-4, 6-0 while Maria Tatjana of Germany went down to Petra Martic of Croatia 6-2, 6-1.

In other matches of the day, former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev hardly broke any sweat in defeating Hungarian Attila Balazs 6-1, 6-1, 6-0 to sail into the second round at the tournament on Tuesday. Interestingly, this was the third-seed Russian player's 50th tour-level win of the season.

Medvedev now holds a 24-5 record at the US Open, having earned more wins at the hard-court event than the three other majors (Australian Open 21, Wimbledon 13, Roland Garros 7). He will next take on the winner of an Australian match between Max Purcell and Christopher O'Connell.

(With AP inputs)