By Karl Plume
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Victoria Azarenka saw her 17th attempt at winning the U.S. Open come to a disappointing end on Friday as unseeded Wang Yafan downed the veteran 20th seed 6-4 3-6 6-1 on the New York hard court.
A polished Wang bested the two-time major winner in lengthy exchanges to extend her deepest ever run at a Grand Slam.
Azarenka, a three-time U.S. Open runner-up, committed 32 unforced errors and dropped serve six times in the two hour 22 minute battle.
The Belarusian former world No. 1 saw an early 3-1 first-set lead erode as Wang rallied back to take the opener with a cross-court forehand blast that the two-time Australian Open champion sent long.
Azarenka, who beat Wang at the Washington Open a month ago, made her greater experience count as she rattled off four straight games in the second set to force a decisive final frame.
But a jubilant crowd packed with Chinese fans, still buzzing from Zheng Qinwen’s win in the prior match on Grandstand, cheered on 80th ranked Wang as she opened up a 4-0 lead in third set before securing victory.
(Reporting by Karl Plume in New York, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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