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Turkish tennis player Zeynep Sonmez defeated American Katie Volynets 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of the US Open on Monday, advancing to the second round of her first main draw appearance at the tournament.
Sonmez, ranked 81st in the world, overcame Volynets, who qualified for the main draw and is ranked 109th globally. The 23-year-old Turkish player is competing in her first US Open main draw after making history earlier this year at Wimbledon.
At Wimbledon, Sonmez became the first Turkish player to reach the third round of a Grand Slam singles tournament in 75 years, matching the achievement of Bahtiye Musluoğlu, who reached the third round at the 1950 French Open.
Sonmez will face the winner of the match between Britain's Katie Boulter and Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk in the second round. Should she advance, her third-round opponent would be either France's Diane Parry or Mexico's Renata Zarazua.
The women's final is scheduled for September 6, with the men's final set for September 7.
In a separate development, former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev was eliminated in the first round by France's Benjamin Bonzi in a match overshadowed by a contentious officiating decision and crowd interference.
The controversy erupted during a crucial moment in the third set, with Bonzi serving at 5-4 and match point. A photographer stepped onto the court between Bonzi's first and second serves, prompting chair umpire Greg Allensworth to intervene.
Allensworth ruled the interruption an "unreasonable delay" and awarded Bonzi a first serve, a decision that sparked an immediate angry reaction from the 2021 US Open champion.
Medvedev gestured to the crowd, drawing them into the dispute as he approached the chair umpire. The crowd responded with chants of "second serve," and play was suspended for 6 minutes and 24 seconds as the situation escalated.
During the delay, Bonzi told the umpire, "He [Medvedev] started this, he should get a time violation." When play resumed amid continued crowd noise, Bonzi missed his first serve to applause but managed to close out the match after two more hours of play, winning 6-3, 7-5, 6-7, 0-6, 6-4.
Following the match, Medvedev remained in his chair and repeatedly smashed his racket against metal barriers before breaking down in tears. He was still seated when Bonzi began his on-court interview.
In a post-match press conference, the six-time Grand Slam finalist revealed he considered retirement during the match.
"Today I felt like I want to finish my career," Medvedev said. When asked if this was goodbye, he replied: "Not today. But you never know where you want to finish your career. Today I thought, 'It could be a good place to finish it.'"
The United States Tennis Association announced that the photographer involved in the incident had been removed from the court and had his tournament accreditation revoked for the remainder of the event.
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