US Open: Angelique Kerber survives mid-match meltdown to beat Johanna Larsson and reach third round

Kerber let slip a 5-2 lead in the second set, twice failing to serve out for the match and failing to convert two match points, before finally beating the world No 82

Angelique Kerber is through to the third round of the US Open but the Wimbledon champion had to survive a major meltdown here on Thursday before beating Sweden’s Johanna Larsson 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.

Kerber, who arrived here having won only one match in her two tournaments since her triumph at the All England Club last month, let slip a 5-2 lead in the second set, twice failing to serve out for the match and failing to convert two match points, before finally beating the world No 82.

The conditions were marginally less gruelling than previous days, but by 1pm the temperature was still up to 32C and rising while the humidity was nearly 50 per cent. For the third day in a row the tournament’s heat rule was in operation, entitling the women to 10-minute breaks after second sets and the men to the same after third sets.

Larsson and Kerber are good athletes and the match, which lasted two hours and 24 minutes, was full of lengthy rallies. Larsson hit 36 winners to Kerber’s 34, but it was the Swede’s 49 unforced errors, 11 more than her opponent, that ultimately proved decisive. Kerber now plays Dominika Cibulkova, who beat Su-Wei Hsieh 7-6, 4-6, 6-4.

Kerber won the first set in the opening match in Arthur Ashe Stadium in just 39 minutes, breaking serve twice while Larsson did not have any break points. It was looking like a typical performance by Kerber, with the world No 4 content to keep making her opponent hit the extra ball while Larsson made too many mistakes.

The match appeared to be heading for a swift finish when Kerber went into a 5-2 lead after breaking serve three times in a row, but Larsson finally found her range.

Kerber won the first set in just 39 minutes (Getty Images)

While Kerber started to make some uncharacteristic mistakes, Larsson hit some big winners from the back of the court. Kerber dropped serve when she served for the set at 5-2 and failed to take two match points in the following game, Larsson hitting a forehand winner down the line on the first and an audacious drop shot on the second.

By now the wheels were falling off the Kerber bandwagon and at 5-4 she again failed to serve out for the set. By the time Larsson had broken serve to take the set the Swede had won five games in a row.

After the 10-minute break the deciding set was tight. From 3-3, however, Kerber got the better of three successive breaks of serve and this time she held her nerve when serving out for the match, Larsson hitting a backhand long on match point after a typically gruelling rally.

“It’s always a battle here, especially in these conditions,” Kerber said afterwards. “It’s a really hot and you just have to play it point-by-point.”

Angelique Kerber came through a test at Arthur Ashe Stadium (Getty Images)

She added: “I think we both played at a really high level from the first point. She played a great match. I think in the end it was just one or two points that decided the match.”

Petra Kvitova also delivered an up-and-down performance before beating Yafan Wang 7-5, 6-3 in Louis Armstrong Stadium. The side of the arena exposed to the sun was almost deserted as spectators sought the shade.

When Kvitova broke serve in the opening game and again to lead 4-1 it seemed that the Czech was comfortably in control, but Wang, the world No 90, kept her composure. The 24-year-old Chinese struck the ball well from the back of the court and chased down plenty of Kvitova’s big ground strokes.

Serving at 4-3, Kvitova was broken to love. At 5-5 Kvitova broke again, but was pushed hard when she served for the set.

Angelique Kerber shakes hands with Johanna Larsson at the net (Getty Images)

Wang saved the first of five set points with a forehand cross-court winner, but Kvitova wasted the next three, double-faulting and then making two forehand errors. When Wang hit a backhand return wide on the fifth set point Kvitova’s roar was no doubt as much in relief as in celebration.

In the second set Kvitova never looked back after breaking serve in the opening game. Serving at 3-5, Wang saved a first match point when Kvitova missed a forehand but was unable to return a crunching backhand on the second.

“It was a really difficult match to play in this heat and these conditions,” Kvitova said afterwards. “There was a moment in the first set when I lost myself a little bit and she broke me, but I fought back and I thought I did pretty well.”

She added: “Hopefully the weather will get better in the next two days. I’m really happy that I managed to win.”

Kvitova’s victory was her 46^th win of the year, a total matched only by Simona Halep. The Czech now plays Aryna Sabalenka, who beat Vera Zvonareva 6-3, 7-6. The 20-year-old from Belarus has made huge strides this year, climbing 53 places to her present position at No 20 in the world rankings, and won the title in New Haven before arriving here.