Alison Riske reacts after beating Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic during the third round of the US Open Tennis Tournament in New York Saturday. — AP NEW YORK — Past Grand Slam champions Petra Kvitova and Svetlana Kuznetsova were ousted from the US Open in early upsets Saturday. Czech seventh seed Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon champion who was reportedly hospitalized Friday, made 27 unforced errors and seven double faults to lose in only 65 minutes, falling to 81st-ranked US wildcard Alison Riske 6-3, 6-0. “It's so awesome,” said Riske, who lost to Kvitova last week in New Haven in their only prior meeting. “That (result) really helped me to just focus and play my game.” It's also Riske's first trip to the last 16 at a Grand Slam, where she will face either 48th-ranked Slovak Daniela Hantuchova or 128th-ranked Israeli qualifier Julia Glushko, and ensures a first-ever jump into the world top 60. Russian 27th seed Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open champ who missed last year's US Open with a right knee injury, made 35 unforced errors in losing 7-5, 6-1 to Italy's 83rd-ranked Flavia Pennetta, who had lost their five prior career matchups. Pennetta, who also ousted Italian fourth seed Sara Errani, will next face Romania's Simona Halep. Halep breezed into the fourth round at a Grand Slam for the first time by ripping Russian 14th seed Maria Kirilenko 6-1, 6-0 in 51 minutes. Australian warhorse Lleyton Hewitt battled to a five-set win over Argentine sixth seed Juan Martin Del Potro Friday, relegating Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams to supporting roles. The 2001 champion defeated the 2009 winner, 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-1 in the tournament's biggest shock to date. Hewitt, 32 years old and down at 66 in the rankings after a lengthy battle with injuries, served up a trademark warrior-like performance that recalled his golden days when he was world number one and Wimbledon champion. It was his 32nd career five-set victory and gave him a third-round match-up with Russia's Evgeny Donskoy, the world number 102. “I was really pumped up after I won my first match because I knew I would have a chance to play on Arthur Ashe Stadium,” said Hewitt after his four-hour, three-minute win. Hewitt, playing in his 13th US Open after having made his debut in 1999, hit 42 winners, one more than del Potro, who committed 70 unforced errors, a bleak statistic which eased the impact of the Australian only converting eight of 18 break point chances. Hewitt's pyrotechnics overshadowed the progress into the third round of defending champion Murray and world No. 1 Djokovic, as well as women's champion Williams, who made the last 16. Murray, the third seed and Wimbledon champion, survived his first scare of the US Open, beating Argentina's world No. 81 Leonardo Mayer, 7-5, 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 and goes on to tackle Germany's Florian Mayer for a last-16 spot. Murray fired 28 winners while the Argentine hit 49 unforced errors. Djokovic, the 2011 champion, survived a first-set wobble before racing away with 12 of the last 14 games to defeat Germany's Benjamin Becker 7-6 (7/2), 6-2, 6-2 after saving two set points in the 10th game of the opener. Djokovic, bidding to reach the final for a fourth successive year, sent down 13 aces and 40 winners against the 32-year-old Becker. “Becker is a quality player and he should have won the first set. I was fortunate to come out of it, but after that I felt more comfortable on the court,” said Djokovic, who next plays Portugal's Joao Sousa. Czech fifth seed Tomas Berdych, who defeated Roger Federer on his way to the semi-finals last year, made the third round by seeing off America's Denis Kudla 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/3), 6-3. He next meets French 31st seed Julien Benneteau. In the women's event, four-time champion Williams eased past Russian-born Kazkhastan player Yaroslava Shvedova, 6-3, 6-1. Williams, who has dropped just eight games in three rounds, is chasing a 17th Grand Slam title and next plays compatriot Sloane Stephens, who beat her in the Australian Open quarterfinals in January. Radwanska now faces Ekaterina Makarova, the Russian 24th seed who clinched a 6-4, 7-5 win over German 16th seed Sabine Lisicki, the Wimbledon runner-up. Australian Open semifinalist Sloane Stephens, seeded 15th, beat fellow American Jamie Hampton 6-1, 6-3. — Agencies
