Day two of the U.S. Open delivered the tournament’s first big stunner.
In a major upset, Renata Zarazúa of Mexico defeated No. 6 seed Madison Keys 6-7(10), 7-6(3), 7-5 in the first round on Tuesday afternoon at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Keys committed 89 unforced errors, including on the final two points of the match, along with 14 double faults.
“Coming into the match, I was almost crying because I was really nervous,” Zarazúa, the No. 82-ranked player in the world, said afterward in an on-court interview. “But I think the crowd made it so chill for me.”
After winning a back-and-forth first set, Keys led the second 3-0.
Keys lost the next five games in a row, then rebounded to go up 6-5 in the second set, putting her on the precipice of victory. But Zarazúa won the next two games to even the match, then won the third for the biggest victory of her career.
Keys is the third-highest-ranked American, behind only No. 3 Coco Gauff and No. 4 Jessica Pegula. This is the first time a Mexican woman has defeated a top-10 opponent at the Open.
“It’s a country that we don’t have many players, as you can see, but I had some Mexican [players] from doubles cheering for me,” Zarazúa said, adding, “Definitely, I could hear some Mexican cheering.”
Keys won the Australian Open in January for her first-ever Grand Slam title. She was the U.S. Open runner-up in 2017, when she lost in the final to another American, Sloane Stephens, in the final.
Monday marked Keys’ third first-round exit at Flushing Meadows and her first since 2021.
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