Romanian Sorana Cirstea sent big-hitting fourth seed Elena Rybakina tumbling out of the US Open with a thrilling 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 6-4 victory late on Friday to reach the fourth round at Flushing Meadows for the first time in her career.

Rybakina came into the clash the fresher of the two players after her second-round opponent Ajla Tomljanovic pulled out, but the Indian Wells and Rome champion, who had strapping on her right shoulder, made a sluggish start.

Australian Open runner-up Rybakina failed to make the most of two set points at 6-5 and squandered two more chances to draw level in the tie-break but got across the line with a cross-court winner, much to the joy of the Louis Armstrong Stadium crowd.

But Cirstea composed herself to take charge of the decider and went up 4-1 before staving off a late comeback attempt by Rybakina and closing out the match with a decisive late break after a double fault from her opponent.

“I’ve been paying for quite a few years and this was the best crowd I’ve ever played in front of,” Cirstea said.

Sabalenka sails

History repeated itself as Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka pummeled France’s Clara Burel 6-1, 6-1 in a third round match on Saturday.

Sabalenka had swatted aside Burel in the third round a year ago and once again the Australian Open winner would not be denied as she fired off 22 winners in a brisk one-hour affair at Louis Armstrong Stadium.

The perennial major contender Sabalenka demoralised her opponent from the start, winning the first five straight games in the opening set, where she never faced a break point.

Burel showed some signs of life when she fended off a pair of break points in the opening game of the second set but Sabalenka quickly retook control.

A semi-finalist in New York the last two years, Sabalenka faced her only break point of the match in the sixth game of the second set but extinguished Burel’s chances with a well-placed drop shot.

Gauff advances

Coco Gauff won the final 10 games of her match against Elise Mertens, completing a 3-6, 6-3, 6-0 comeback and reaching the round of 16, where she will face Caroline Wozniacki on Sunday.

The American appeared in big trouble at the outset of the match as the Belgian smartly changed up the pace of her shots to frustrate the teenager, who was broken for a second time when her forehand went long on set point.

After some exchanges of breaks early in the second set Gauff seized the momentum for good when she broke for a 4-3 lead, pumping her arms and pointing to her ear when her backhand winner leveled the contest at a set apiece.

The third set was all one-way traffic as Gauff’s speedy defense, pinpoint serving and terrific play at the net overwhelmed former two-time quarter-finalist Mertens.

Next up for sixth seed Gauff is an enticing first meeting with returning veteran Wozniacki, who won the battle of US Open comeback queens by rallying to beat Jennifer Brady 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 on Friday.

Wozniacki and Brady have been the feel-good stories at Flushing Meadows and their storylines converged on a sun-kissed Arthur Ashe Stadium court with the 33-year-old Dane continuing her dazzling return by reaching the last 16.

It seemed improbable just weeks ago that the former world No.1 Wozniacki, back playing competitive tennis after a three-year break to raise a family, and Brady, rising star and Australian Open finalist in 2021 but sidelined for two years with knee and foot injuries, would face each other at a major.

But 28-year-old Brady, just four tournaments into her comeback, and Wozniacki, playing in her third, looked as if they had never been away. However, Wozniacki had the last laugh.

American high

Americans Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton all moved safely through to the last 16, raising hopes of a first homegrown men’s champion in two decades.

It has been 78 grand slams since Andy Roddick won the 2003 US Open and there is growing belief that the talent is there to end the drought of American champions.

Ninth seed Fritz is seen as the main US contender for the title and he blasted his way into the fourth round with a 6-1, 6-2, 6-0 demolition of 18-year-old Czech qualifier Jakub Mensik.

Tiafoe advanced with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 (8-6) victory over Adrian Mannarino.

Paul, seeded 14th, dispatched Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-1, 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 and will next face 20-year-old compatriot Shelton, a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 winner over Aslan Karatsev.