The Belarusian faced fifth-seeded compatriot Aryna Sabalenka in what most expected to be a big-hitting battle, and they were not disappointed. Although Sabalenka is renown for her powerful groundstrokes, she was unable to overwhelm her older counterpart. Azarenka dictated play from the start and prevailed with a 6-1 6-3 victory.

Sabalenka's game-plan involved attempting to hit Azarenka off the court, employing power and depth. However, she was unable to maintain consistency, as a few errant shots led to her opponent racing to a 4-0 lead. The fifth seed managed to finally hold a game, but was broken at 1-5 when she served to stay in the first set.

Azarenka acquired a 3-0 lead to start the second set, although Sabalenka did break back to reduce the deficit. Nonetheless, the unseeded Azarenka obtained the crucial break at 4-2, and held serve to close out the match after 66 minutes. The two-time US Open finalist will face the winner between American wild card Sachia Vickery and Poland's Iga Swiatek.

Earlier in the day, Great Britain's Johanna Konta suffered an early round defeat at the hands of Sorana Cirstea. The Romanian pulled off a 2-6 7-6(5) 6-4 victory, stunning the ninth seed in just under three hours. Cirstea has never made it past the third round in New York, where she next faces Karolina Muchova. The Czech defeated Anna Kalinskaya 6-3 7-6(4), and is also hoping to advance to her first Round of 16 at Flushing Meadows.

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