Cilic, Ferrer advance as Serena steps onstage

Cilic, Ferrer advance as Serena steps onstage

NEW YORK - Serena Williams prepared to resume her chase of tennis history Wednesday at the US Open while defending champion Marin Cilic and seventh seed David Ferrer moved closer to a fourth-round meeting.

Marin Cilic of Croatia returns to Evgeny Donskoy of Russia during their US Open men's singles match in New York on September 2, 2015

Croatian ninth seed Cilic, trying to become the first repeat men's champion since Roger Federer ran off five in a row from 2004-2008, fired 19 aces and advanced to the third round by defeating 139th-ranked Russian qualifier Evgeny Donskoy 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

"This court is very special to me. It brings such positive memories," Cilic said.

"It's sort of unreal. I was working all my life to win a Grand Slam and now I'm working to defend one.

"I'm taking every day as a positive on the court and hoping I can go forward. I was serving pretty good today. I was pretty solid when it counted."

Spain's Ferrer, the 2013 French Open runner-up who missed the past 2 1/2 months with an elbow injury, downed 102nd-ranked Serb Filip Krajinovic 7-5, 7-5, 7-6 (7/4).

"I'm very happy I'm in the third round," said Ferrer. "It's a nice comeback playing on these courts. It's not easy. Conditions are very difficult with this humidity."

Ferrer next meets French 27th seed Jeremy Chardy next while Cilic plays either Bulgarian 17th seed Grigor Dimitrov or Kazakhstan's Mikhail Kukushkin.

But early matches were overshadowed by the extra attention surrounding the afternoon feature on Arthur Ashe Stadium as world number one Williams was set to face 110th-ranked Dutch qualifier Kiki Bertens.

Three-time defending champion Williams is trying to complete the first calendar Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988 and equal Graf's Open Era record of 22 Slam singles titles, two shy of Australian Margaret Court's all-time record.

Williams completed her second "Serena Slam" of four major wins in a row by winning the Wimbledon crown in July and the 33-year-old American can claim her Open Era-record seventh US Open title as well as extend her mark as the oldest woman Slam champion.

With three top-10 seeds on Serena's side of the draw losing their openers and third seed Maria Sharapova withdrawing due to injury, Williams could reach a Grand Slam singles final without facing a top-10 rival for the first time in her career.

Swiss teen Belinda Bencic, the highest seed remaining in Williams' half of the draw at 12, faces Japan's 88th-ranked Misaki Doi later.

Bencic, who defeated Williams in the Toronto semi-finals last month, could have a third-round meeting with Serena's older sister, Venus, who meets fellow American Irina Falconi later at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Either Bencic, 18, or Venus, 35, could meet Serena in the quarter-finals.

- Keys wants to face Serena -

Australian Open semi-finalist Madison Keys ripped 100th-ranked Czech Tereza Smitkova 6-1, 6-2.

The American 19th seed reached the US Open third round for the first time and hopes for a fourth-round date with Serena Williams, who ousted her in Australia.

"Fingers crossed it could happen. If it does happen I could come out and have some fun at my home Slam," Keys said.

"It's so special to get as far as I've ever been at this Open. I'm excited and I hope to keep it going."

Another seed in Williams's quarter fell as Russian 31st seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova lost 7-5, 6-4 to Estonian qualifier Anett Kontaveit.

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic, the reigning Wimbledon and Australian Open champion, tries to take another step toward his fifth US Open final in six tries later against Austrian Andreas Haider-Maurer.

Djokovic, whose lone US Open title came in 2011, is on a quarter-final collision course with 14-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal, the Spanish eighth seed who faces Argentina's Diego Schwartzman in a later match.

Nadal, who won the 2013 US Open but did not play last year due to a wrist injury, would face Italy's Fabio Fognini in the third round if he gets past the South American.

American Mardy Fish was sent into retirement by Spanish 18th seed Feliciano Lopez, who rallied to win 2-6, 6-3, 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 after three hours and 11 minutes. Fish was nagged by cramps at the end.

"He was a better player," Lopez said. "I think he really deserved the win today."

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