Overview

• Williams and Fernandez defeated No. 12 seeds Ekaterina Alexandrova and Zhang Shuai 6-3, 6-4 in front of a capacity Louis Armstrong Stadium crowd.
• The wild-card pairing is 3-0 at the tournament without dropping a set, including an opening upset of No. 6 seeds Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez.
• Williams praised Fernandez as her best partner outside Serena, citing their shared determination and on-court mentality.
• Serena Williams posted a playful viral TikTok about the new pairing, and Venus publicly urged her sister to “show up” courtside for the next match.
• The duo could face top seeds Taylor Townsend and Kateřina Siniaková next, depending on the outcome of that third-round match.