The pair of Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils have begun the US Open’s mixed doubles event on a high. After getting past Alexandra Eala and Felix Auger-Aliassime 4-1, 4-1 in the Round of 16, the duo delivered a stunning performance to knock out the No. 1 pairing, Katerina Siniakova and Henry Patten. Svitolina and Monfils recorded a hard-fought 5-4, 4-5, 10-8 victory in the match. When asked about the result, Svitolina couldn’t find enough words to describe it.

“To be fair, it’s tough to put together the words,” she said during the post-match interview. “Until the very last point, there was lots of tension. Thanks to this guy bringing a few points here and there.”

When asked how he feels about his life partner also being his doubles partner, Monfils came up with a hilarious answer. But he also credited Svitolina for her tough mentality that helped them a lot in their victory.

“Happy wife, happy life. That’s my answer. It’s not easy. She’s a tough one,” he said during the interview. “She’s actually a big fighter. That’s what I like. I think I’m a big fan of her hand and mentality. Sometimes I think she’s ice and I’m the fire. We need to find the balance. We did today. That was amazing.”

This is the first time that Svitolina and Monfils have teamed up for a competitive event. They have only played together at charity events so far, but their competitive performance is still at a high level. The win over Siniakova and Patten was especially impressive, considering who they had defeated in the first round.

Siniakova and Patten ousted the pairing of Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic in the first round. They had a poor start to their match and lost the opening set 1-4 after just 12 minutes. But they turned around the match in the next set by gaining an early break. They took the second set 4-2 and then dominated their opponents 10-2 in the decider.

It is safe to say that they were the favorites coming into the clash against Svitolina and Monfils. It was a tight match with no team giving an inch. While Svitolina and Monfils edged the first set, Siniakova and Patten ensured that the match went into a decider by clinching the second. However, the 10-point tiebreaker didn’t prove to be easy on this occasion for them and went down to the wire.

Eventually, Svitolina and Monfils claimed the victory to reach the semifinals. Elsewhere, Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik have also reached the semis, while Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli have made it to the quarterfinals. It has already been quite an eventful day at the US Open, but the main event is yet to be played.

Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz are set to be in action at the Arthur Ashe Stadium

The duo of Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz was among the final pairs to receive a wildcard for the event. Their opponents weren’t decided in the initial draw as they were scheduled to be up against one of the qualifiers.

The pair will be in action later during the day at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. They will be taking on doubles specialists Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool. This will be the first doubles match of Alcaraz’s season, and it will be the first mixed doubles clash for Serena since she made her return in June.

While there is a lot of hype around Serena and Alcaraz, they won’t be the favorites heading into their first encounter as a team. With both of them coming back from injury layoffs, there are still doubts over their fitness.

While Alcaraz has been out of action for the last four months due to a wrist injury, Serena sustained a knee injury at Wimbledon and didn’t play for a month before eventually returning at the Cincinnati Masters.

Regardless of the concerns, the Arthur Ashe Stadium is expected to be jam-packed for the clash. With this being the first time that Serena and Alcaraz are teaming up, fans would want them to go as deep as they can in the competition so that they can witness them playing multiple matches.

Additionally, Diana Shnaider and Casper Ruud will be going up against Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz later on. This match will be played at the Louis Armstrong Stadium and can turn out to be a close affair.