"Taylor Townsend is a nightmare" - Andy Roddick on why 'unpredictable' American is a big threat to Gauff, Sabalenka & others still alive at US Open

Taylor Townsend sailed through the first three rounds of the US Open, clinching dominant straight set wins over Antonia Ruzic, Jelena Ostapenko and Mirra Andreeva, to book a spot in the top 16. Former ATP star Andy Roddick showered the American with praise as she continues to deliver 'unpredictable' performances in this edition of the New York Slam.

This is the second time Townsend has qualified for the fourth round of the tournament since her debut in 2014 against Serena Williams, where she lost in the first round. Her last appearance in the fourth round of the US Open was in 2019.

Townsend, who is currently No. 1 in the WTA doubles rankings, can pose a threat to serial winners like Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff or Iga Swiatek, due to her 'unpredictable' playing style. Roddick, on his show, The Served Podcast, explained why she would be a difficult matchup against top players, saying,

"The leftiness, the ability to take the ball early, the ability to come in. It's just not a game style that you see that often. When she is playing well, she is a nightmare for the top players because she is so unpredictable."

The 2003 US Open champion also brought up how Townsend kept her composure during her recent on-court feud with Jelena Ostapenko and continued:

"Her skill set is not the big strong hit-the-ball-hard-through-the-court that we see a lot of the time on the women's tour. It is spins, it is off-pace serves, it is coming in, it is the threat of mixing up paces...Props for her focus in the fallout of Ostapenko, when the last thing anyone was talking about was the actual tennis. Way to Taylor Townsend." (2:00 onwards)

Taylor Townsend was defeated by Bianca Andreescu in the fourth round at the 2019 US Open.

---

"It's bigger than me" - Taylor Townsend on qualifying to R4 at the US Open

Taylor Townsend claimed one of the most remarkable wins of her career, ousting Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-2 in the third round in New York. However, she declared that the win was a message to silence the negativity, hitting back at the comments Jelena Ostapenko made on Wednesday.

During the post-match interview on Friday, Townsend said to the Arthur Ashe crowd:

"I want to say thank you to everyone who supported me over these last 48 hours. It's bigger than me. It's about the message, it's about the representation, it's about being bold and being able to show up as yourself and I did that tonight."

Townsend will be taking on Barbora Krejcikova in her fourth-round match on Saturday.