US Open: No. 10 Amanda Anisimova and No. 22 Madison Keys suffer upset defeats in third-round play

Two top American women suffered upset defeats in the third round of the US Open on Saturday.

No. 10 seed Amanda Anisimova lost to No. 24 Anastasia Potapova in straight sets, 6-2, 7-5. Shortly thereafter, No. 22 Madison Keys fell to unseeded Zheng Qinwen, 1-6, 7-6, 7-5.

Keys loses final seven games in third set

Keys was eager to improve on losing in the first round to Renata Zarazúa at last year's US Open. She advanced to the Round of 32 with wins over Russia's Alina Korneeva and Hungary's Anna Bondár. But she ultimately fell short against Qinwen, squandering a 5-0 lead in the third set.

The defeat was stunning, considering how Keys played from the outset. In the first set, she dominated, winning 6-1 in just 23 minutes and losing only two points on her first serve. Zheng seemingly had no answer for Keys, beating herself by committing four double faults.

Zheng finally broke Keys in the second set, as the American wasn't as formidable with her serve. But Keys battled back as Zheng lost control on her serve. She was helped out on some errant forehand returns from Keys, however, and eventually won a tiebreak to force a third set.

Anisimova can't match last year's run to US Open final

Anisimova failed to follow up on last year's improbable run to the US Open final, defeating Iga Świątek and Naomi Osaka before losing to Aryna Sabalenka .

One of three American women among the tournament's top 10 seeds, Anisimova fell behind quickly, unable to hold serve against Potapova. She faced particular difficulty controlling her forehand, missing with several shots and letting her Austrian opponent take the advantage.

Anisimova also couldn't break Potapova's serve, losing her first seven break points in the first set. As a result, Potapova cruised to the lead while Anisimova constantly tried to catch up and could never quite get there. While she battled back in the second set, 46 unforced errors were too many to overcome.

The early-round exit continues a difficult year for Anisimova, who played in last year's Wimbledon final in addition to the US Open. She began 2026 at No. 3 in the WTA rankings.

But in the Australian Open quarterfinals, she lost to Jessica Pegula, who also defeated her at Dubai and Cincinnati. At Indian Wells, Anisimova fell to Victoria Mboko and later lost to Elina Svitolina at the Canadian Open.

In Grand Slam tournaments, Anisimova was defeated by Diane Parry at the French Open. And at Wimbledon this year, she fell to Madison Keys in the third round.

This story will be updated with more information.