Anisimova leads run of upsets on storm-marred third day of D.C. Open

The hottest day of the week at the D.C. Open brought the worst thunderstorms as upsets and the best play of the tournament were showcased early Wednesday before rain postponed action for the third day in a row.

Amanda Anisimova continued her comeback march, upsetting No. 7 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-4, to be the first to advance to the women’s quarterfinal.

The American has won four matches in five days after fighting through weekend qualifying to reach the main draw, dropping her first set of the tournament only today and in a tiebreak. Anisimova hit 17 aces and broke serve six times in beating Pavlyuchenkova for the second time this year.

After stepping away from the sport last year due to burnout and to prioritize her mental health, the New Jersey native is back in a WTA quarterfinal for the first time since 2022.

The only other women’s match to begin before play was suspended for more than two hours just after 4 p.m. had Britain’s Emma Raducanu leading American Peyton Stearns 5-4 in the opening set.

The ATP took center stage in the afternoon with another major upset by a qualifier.

South Korean Shongchan Hong notched the biggest win of his career, beating No. 3 seed Karen Khachanov handily, 6-2, 6-4.

It’s Hong’s first win over a top 50 player, which comes just two days after his first-ever win in an ATP main draw. He’ll face American Alex Michelsen in the third round on Thursday.

Two more upsets punctuated the day. Fan favorite Thanasi Kokkinakis defeated a fellow Australian for the second straight match, a 6-4, 7-6 (4) win over No. 14 Aleksandar Vukic. He and Hyattsville native Frances Tiafoe were scheduled to play in doubles later in the day, but the duo pulled out due to fatigue from the quick turnaround. Both remain alive in the singles tournament.

Another Aleks, Aleksandar Kovacevic, fared better, with the two-time All-American at Illinois upsetting No. 11 Roberto Carballes Baena 7-6 (4), 7-6 (3).

In a 2-hour, 30-minute battle, eight-seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain held on in three sets over American challenger Mitchell Krueger, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4. Eleven of his 13 wins on tour this season have been on hard courts.

Three seeded players advanced in straight sets. No. 9 seed Giovanni Mpetschi Perricard of France needed two tiebreakers to beat Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori 7-6 (6), 7-6 (6). Italian Flavio Cobolli, the tenth seed, knocked off Belgium’s David Goffin 7-6 (4), 6-3. And fifteenth-seeded Alex Michelsen, who at 19 is the youngest American in the ATP top 200, was a 6-3, 7-6 (1) winner over Mattia Bellucci of Italy.

The other result went to No. 16 seed Arthur Rinderknech, with the Frenchman advancing on a first-set walkover after China’s Jerry Shang retired due to lower back pain.