Rising teen Maya Joint data her first Grand Slam singles main-draw win at US Open 2024.
New York, USA, 27 August 2024 | Leigh Rogers
Maya Joint achieved a significant profession milestone on the US Open immediately, scoring her first Grand Slam main-draw singles win.
The 18-year-old Australian qualifier outclassed German Laura Siegemund, an skilled participant double her age, to document a shocking 6-4 7-5 victory in opening-round motion at Flushing Meadows.
“It’s unimaginable. I didn’t count on to return this far, I’m misplaced for phrases,” Joint advised Stan Sport after the match. “I don’t know what to say, it feels nice.”
From four-all within the opening set, Joint reeled off seven consecutive video games to take management of the match. Nevertheless, her emotional maturity was examined when Siegemund got here charging again late within the second set.
“I received very nervous. I felt like my ft weren’t working. I felt like my legs have been filled with sand,” Joint stated.
After squandering a 5-0 benefit, and a match level on the two-time US Open doubles champion’s serve at 5-4, Joint impressively discovered a strategy to shut out the largest win of her burgeoning Grand Slam profession.
She steadied to carry after which broke Siegemund’s serve within the twelfth recreation, clinching victory on her fourth match level.
“She positively made me work for it,” stated Joint, describing the match as “a battle”.
🇦🇺 Maya Joint, the third-youngest girl within the draw, wins her Grand Slam debut! pic.twitter.com/pnORDC6FKl
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 26, 2024
It continues a exceptional rise for Joint, who had a WTA Tour singles rating of world No.1390 this time final yr.
Now sitting at a career-high No.135, Joint is the highest-ranked 18-year-old on the planet.
The promising athlete, who was born and raised within the American state of Michigan, switched allegiance to Australia, her father’s homeland, in mid-2023.
Joint relocated to Brisbane to coach at Tennis Australia’s Nationwide Tennis Academy, the place she has been guided by Chris Mahony.
She demonstrated her potential through the Australian summer season earlier this yr. As a wildcard she tallied 4 top-200 wins to succeed in a quarterfinal at a WTA 125 event in Canberra after which progressed to the ultimate qualifying spherical on the Australian Open, the place she prolonged eventual semifinalist Dayana Yastremska to 3 units.
Since then, Joint has gone from strength-to-strength. She has recorded 53 wins on the skilled tour and received two ITF singles titles to this point this season.
At present’s victory towards world No.92 Siegemund is her second profession win towards a top-100 opponent.
Joint, who misplaced within the opening spherical of the US Open women’ singles competitors final yr, will quickly flip her focus to enjoying US school tennis. She has dedicated to attending the College of Texas and plans to review psychology and criminology.
“I’m actually excited by psychology, simply due to the thoughts side of tennis and to see what I can do higher,” Joint advised tennis.com.au earlier this yr. “And criminology simply because I watch so many crime exhibits and hearken to true-crime podcasts, that are so intriguing.”
However for now, she is hoping to increase her Grand Slam breakthrough when she faces 14th-seeded American Madison Keys within the second spherical.
“I’ve no strain,” Joint stated. “I’ve seen Madison Keys play a number of occasions on tv, however clearly by no means performed towards her. I’m excited, I feel it needs to be a very good match.”
Aussies in motion – US Open
RESULTS
Girls’s singles, first spherical
[Q] Maya Joint (AUS) d Laura Siegemund (GER) 6-4 7-5
Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) d [Q] Ann Li (USA) 6-4 6-4
[24] Donna Vekic (CRO) d [Q] Kimberly Birrell (AUS) 6-4 6-4
Males’s singles, first spherical
[28] Alexei Popyrin (AUS) d Soonwoo Kwon (KOR) 7-5 6-2 6-3
Alexandre Muller (FRA) d Adam Walton (AUS) 3-6 7-6(7) 6-3 6-4
> READ: Popyrin powers into second spherical at US Open 2024
COMING UP
Girls’s singles, first spherical
Daria Saville (AUS) v [Q] Ena Shibahara (JPN)
[Q] Arina Rodionova (AUS) v Wang Xinyu (CHN)
[WC] Taylah Preston (AUS) v [25] Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
[Q] Destanee Aiava (AUS) v [4] Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
[Q] Priscilla Hon (AUS) v [2] Aryna Sabalenka
Girls’s singles, second spherical
[Q] Maya Joint (AUS) v [14] Madison Keys (USA)
Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) v [33] Elise Mertens (BEL)
> VIEW: US Open 2024 ladies’s singles draw
Males’s singles, first spherical
[10] Alex de Minaur (AUS) v Marcos Giron (USA)
Jordan Thompson (AUS) v Fixed Lestienne (FRA)
Rinky Hijikata (AUS) v Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP)
James Duckworth (AUS) v [31] Flavio Cobolli (ITA)
Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS) v [11] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE)
Chris O’Connell (AUS) v [26] Nicolas Jarry (CHI)
Max Purcell (AUS) v Aleksandar Vukic (AUS)
[Q] Li Tu (AUS) v [3] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP)
[WC] Tristan Schoolkate (AUS) v Taro Daniel (JPN)
Males’s singles, second spherical
[28] Alexei Popyrin (AUS) v Pedro Martinez (ESP)
> VIEW: US Open 2024 males’s singles draw
> READ: Ten Australians to contest doubles at US Open 2024
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