Nakashima pounds Fritz, Bejlek beats Keys in Cincinnati upsets

What the report says

Brandon Nakashima and Czech teenager Sara Bejlek delivered the headline upsets at the Cincinnati Open on Friday, advancing to the semifinals in the ATP-WTA event. Al Jazeera, citing AFP, reported that Nakashima defeated sixth seed Taylor Fritz in three sets, while Bejlek followed up her earlier win over top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka with a quarterfinal victory over Madison Keys. The tournament is taking place in Cincinnati as players build toward the US Open, which begins in a little more than a week.

Nakashima’s win was especially notable because he overcame Fritz’s 22 aces and a third-set deficit before closing out the match with a forehand winner. His run now includes a Washington semifinal, a final in Montreal and his best Cincinnati showing to date. He will meet Frances Tiafoe in an all-American semifinal after Tiafoe beat Lorenzo Musetti in straight sets.

On the women’s side, Bejlek rallied from a slow start against Keys and recovered after the American forced a deciding tiebreak. The 20-year-old, who won her first WTA title in Abu Dhabi earlier this year, will next face fourth-seeded Coco Gauff. Gauff reached the last four with a dominant win over Marta Kostyuk, continuing a strong run in which she has been limiting service breaks and gaining momentum ahead of the season’s final major.