Elise Mertens and her doubles partner, Russian player Diana Shnaider, advanced to the quarterfinals of the US Open women’s doubles tournament after defeating Ellen Perez and Demi Schuurs in straight sets, 7-5, 6-3, according to Le Soir. The pair entered the tournament as the eighth-seeded duo.
Path to the Quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows
The eighth-seeded pairing of Mertens (WTA doubles No. 8) and Shnaider (WTA doubles No. 31) secured their spot in the next round by overcoming Australia’s Ellen Perez (WTA doubles No. 23) and the Netherlands’ Demi Schuurs (WTA doubles No. 21), who were seeded tenth, as reported by Le Soir. Their progression through the draw was aided earlier by a walkover; Mertens and Shnaider did not need to play their second-round match after their scheduled opponents, Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk (WTA doubles No. 133) and Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse (WTA doubles No. 82), withdrew from the tournament.
Shifting Focus After Singles Exit
For Mertens, the doubles run provides a continued presence at Flushing Meadows following a singles disappointment. La Libre noted that the Belgian player reached the third round of the singles draw before being eliminated by Naomi Osaka. Shifting full attention to doubles keeps Mertens in contention at a major event she previously won in 2019 alongside Aryna Sabalenka, who is currently the world’s top-ranked singles player.
Upcoming Quarterfinal Matchup
In the quarterfinals, Mertens and Shnaider face potential meetings against familiar opposition. According to La Libre and Le Soir, another former partner of Mertens, Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-Wei (WTA doubles No. 12), stands across the path. Hsieh, playing alongside Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko (WTA doubles No. 13) as the tournament’s fourth-seeded team, advanced past the fourteenth-seeded duo of Taiwan’s Chan Hao-Ching and Australia’s Maya Joint in the round of 16.
Worth a look
