American Taylor Townsend earned an impressive win against No. 20 Maja Chwalinska, finishing 6-2, 6-3. Remarkably, she wore an outfit of her own design that featured red, white, and black, complete with a mesh top and tassels.
“This is the first time I’ve done something like this. I really wanted to create my own brand from the start,” Townsend mentioned. “It’s quite challenging and requires finding the right people to execute it, especially in tennis.”
“People often don’t realize that after one tournament ends, you need to focus on the next immediately because everything moves so quickly. We’re playing now, and in just two weeks, it’s the Asia Swing. It’s a rapid cycle to show up looking different for every tournament. So, I’m grateful to the team; they did a fantastic job bringing these looks to life,” she added.
With five outfits prepared for the U.S. Open, Townsend is quite popular in New York. She even hosted a “welcome to the U.S. Open” party. While she enjoys exploring the city and recently tried riding a Citi Bike for the first time, she doesn’t have a specific routine when she visits.
“Honestly, I don’t think anyone in New York has a routine. It’s more about spontaneity: ‘Let’s do this or that,’” Townsend laughed. “I tried a chopped cheese sandwich, which was amazing. And riding the Citi Bike—I was terrified at first, but once I got the hang of it, I had a blast.”
“It’s tough to plan because our schedules are hectic. We ordered from a restaurant we really enjoy… Philippe Chow, which was great,” she recalled.
Next up for Townsend is a matchup against wild card Taylah Preston in the second round.
Iga Swiatek is continuing her strong performance, winning her eighth consecutive first-round match at the U.S. Open, defeating China’s Wang Xiyu in straight sets.
She has now made history as the first player to achieve 28 consecutive opening match wins at Grand Slam events since Serena Williams.
Only three players this century—Serena Williams, Venus Williams, and Kim Clijsters—have achieved 25 U.S. Open career wins in fewer matches than Swiatek, who has reached that milestone in just 31 matches.
Swiatek, a strong contender for this year’s championship, aims to add another title to her 2022 U.S. Open victory after exiting in the quarterfinals the past two years.
Matteo Berrettini dominated his match against Stan Wawrinka, winning 7-6 (4), 7-6 (3), 6-0 on Grandstand.
Filipina star Alexandra Eala, who has a significant fan following, is ready to make her mark at the U.S. Open. After drawing crowds last year, she will compete in her first-round match on Tuesday night against American qualifier Mary Stoiana.
Eala, 21, gained over a million followers on Instagram during her breakout performance at the Miami Open and has since doubled that number leading into this tournament. Expect to see many Filipino flags in the audience.
Even after being knocked out of the singles draw early Monday morning, Venus Williams still has doubles planned with her sister Serena later this week. However, she hasn’t given much thought to her future beyond that match.
“I don’t think I should have to think about the future,” Williams said to a small gathering of reporters near her locker room. “Right now, my focus is on that doubles match and how to recover from this really intense evening.”
The Williams sisters are set to play doubles either Thursday or Friday.
