Romanian Elena-Gabriela Ruse, a 122nd-ranked qualifier, upset Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova in the second round of the U.S. Open.
Ruse, 26, swept the Czech Krejcikova 6-4, 7-5 to reach the third round of a major for the first time in 20 appearances (including qualifying).
“I have no words at this moment,” Ruse said in an on-court interview. “It’s just a dream for me.”
She next gets No. 26 seed Paula Badosa of Spain, a 6-3, 7-5 winner over American Taylor Townsend, on Friday.
U.S. OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Order of Play
At No. 8, Krejcikova is the highest men’s or women’s seed to lose so far. She didn’t play any hard-court lead-up tournaments after being eliminated in the Olympic quarterfinals on July 31. She withdrew before a tournament in Toronto citing a thigh injury.
She said before the U.S. Open that obligations after winning Wimbledon “took a lot of energy from her,” but that she felt more relaxed having claimed her second major after the 2021 French Open.
“I feel much more calm than I did before because, I mean, the season wasn’t going really well,” Krejcikova said last week. “Before Wimbledon I had many doubts, and things just weren’t going my way. Right now after Wimbledon, I kind of told myself just please never doubt yourself again because there is no reason to do that.”
Serena Williams is the lone woman in the last 20 years to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in the same summer, doing so in 2012 (when she also won Olympic gold).