WATCH: Lindsay Davenport recalls historic 2004 Cincinnati Open title
After Lindsay Davenport had considered retiring in the summer of that year, she won the Cincinnati Open in 2004 when the WTA returned to Mason.
MASON, Ohio — Many fans left center court at the Lindner Family Tennis Center on a rainy Friday afternoon after world number one Jannik Sinner did not show up because his opponent, Australian Jordan Thompson, withdrew from the Cincinnati Open due to a rib injury.
If they had ultimately returned to the 11,435-seat arena, they might have missed the sheer dominance of 21-year-old Ben Shelton.
Shelton, who moved to Centre Court after Sinner’s walkover win, shone on an overcast afternoon, hitting eight aces and winning 79% of his first serves in a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan.
It was a breakthrough win in many ways for the Atlanta, Georgia native. Shelton reached the quarterfinals in Cincinnati for the first time (he lost in the round of 16 in 2022). He also became the youngest American to reach the quarterfinals in Cincinnati since 2017 (Jared Donaldson).
Finally, Shelton’s second quarterfinal appearance in the 1000-meter class gives a significant boost to his season.
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Can he make more history? Shelton has never reached the semifinals of an ATP 1000 tournament and if you look closely, no American has won the Cincinnati Open since Andy Roddick in 2006.
The next step on the road to the Rookwood Cup will be against someone who has won the trophy before. Shelton will face 2021 Cincinnati Open winner Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Can 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva beat world number one Iga Swiatek?
Shelton is the second youngest ATP player in the top eight after Holger Rune, who was the first Dane to reach the quarterfinals in Cincinnati. On the WTA side, it is no secret which youngster is taking the tournament by storm.
Mirra Andreeva, a 17-year-old Russian living in France, was one of the giant-killers in her Mason debut. The world number 24 beat No. 11 seed Emma Navarro in straight sets in the first round, then Karolina Pliskova in the round of 32 before eliminating No. 5 seed Jasmine Paolini 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Friday.
Andreeva is the first woman under 18 to reach the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open since the WTA returned in 2004 and will face world number one Iga Swiatek on Saturday.
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Don’t expect Andreeva to shy away from the big stage, as in the last two months she won a silver medal in doubles at the Paris Olympics and reached the semifinals of the French Open in singles (where she lost to Paolini).
Pavlyuchenkova spoils Zheng’s winning streak
In the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open, there was still room for a veteran in a young field of participants.
World number seven Qinwen Zheng had won 12 matches in a row before her second match of the day, Friday’s showdown on Centre Court, including a gold medal in Paris and a WTA 250 title in Italy.
Experienced Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who lost to Maria Sharapova in her first main draw appearance in Cincinnati (2010), spoiled the fun with a dominant 7-5, 6-1 victory that lasted less than 90 minutes.
Pavlyuchenkova is now in the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open for the fourth time and for the first time since 2015. The world number 28 will face Paula Badosa on Saturday.
With Zheng’s elimination, only four seeded players remain on the WTA side: Swiatek (No. 1), Aryna Sabalenka (No. 3), Jessica Pegula (No. 6) and Liudmila Samsonova (No. 10).
