Venus Williams out of U.S. Open

Zheng Jie, the WTA's answer to the Energizer Bunny, advanced to the third round of the U.S. Open tonight when she defeated two-time U.S. Open champion Venus Williams 6-3, 2-6, 7-6. The match lasted just a bit over three hours; the third set lasted an hour and a half. The first set was a showcase of Zheng's game, and the second belonged to Williams. The final set, however, was an all-out battle, with both women utilizing their strengths in long, sometimes breathtaking, rallies. In the end, though, Williams' 44 unforced errors did her in.

There was a lot of rain today, and some of it--in sprinkle form--fell during the Williams-Zheng match. Serena Williams' night match had to be postponed until tomorrow.

Also advancing today were Li Na, Agnieszka Radwanska, Carla Suarez Navarro, Laura Robson, and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. An especially interesting result of today's play is that Li and Robson will meet in the third round. Last year, they played in the third round, and Robson upset Li 6-4, 6-7, 6-2. This occurred, of course, after Robson knocked Kim Clijsters out in the second round.

Klara Zakopalova, the 31st seed, lost in straight sets to Hsieh Su-Wei. It was Zakopalova's tenth consecutive loss in the first round of the U.S. Open.

Also today, Tennis Channel viewers were treated to an in-depth interview with the great Monica Seles. Doubles play began, and 3rd seeds Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik advanced to the second round.