One of the biggest upsets of the 2023 US Open so far came from the racket of Taylor Townsend.
The 27-year-old American beat 18th-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil on Wednesday in two sets, 7(7)-6, 7-5, to advance to the third round. Haddad Maia is the No. 19 player in the world, according to the Women's Tennis Association, while Townsend is ranked 132nd.
No. 7 Caroline Garcia, No. 8 Maria Sakkari, No. 12 Barbora Kreju010díková and No. 16 Veronika Kudermetova also fell in the opening two rounds.
Townsend proved to be a worthy challenger from the start and pushed Haddad Maia to a tiebreak in the first set, in which the American steamrollered the Brazilian to take the set with a 7-1 tiebreak win.