Maria Timofeeva vs Elise Mertens • US Open 2026

The second round pits Maria Timofeeva, ranked 86th in the world, against Elise Mertens, the 23rd seed and world No. 20. Timofeeva arrives on a four-match winning streak, while Mertens won her only previous match at the 2026 US Open. A place in the third round is at stake.

Mertens leads 1-0 in their head-to-head, after her win on grass at Wimbledon in July, but their record on hard courts remains blank. The Belgian, however, boasts a solid 206-128 record on this surface, compared to 8-9 for Timofeeva in main-draw play.

Serving and break chances will be worth watching: in the first round, Timofeeva converted 6 of 10 break points, against 2 of 7 for Mertens.

In their last meeting, on July 2, 2026 at Wimbledon, Elise Mertens beat Maria Timofeeva 26 63 60. Played on grass, the match lasted 120 minutes. Maria Timofeeva had taken the first set, before Elise Mertens turned things around by winning the next two, the last of them without conceding a single game.