Maria Sharapova defeats Patty Schnyder at US Open

Maria Sharapova headlined the night session on Louis Armstrong at the US Open and battled to a 6-2 7-6 victory over 39-year-old qualifier Patty Schnyder.

Schnyder reached a career-high ranking of seven in 2007 and initially retired in 2011 before returning to the tour four years later following the birth of daughter Kim.

Her victory in the final round of qualifying made her the oldest player to take that route into a grand slam in the Open era, with this her first appearance on one of tennis' biggest stages since her retirement.

Schnyder's stay in New York was shaping up to very brief when Sharapova moved into a 5-1 lead in the second set but the five-time Grand Slam champion began to rush and back came the veteran, who finally hit her first winner of the match in the eighth game.

Schnyder threatened to take the match to a decider when she forced a tie-break but Sharapova finally made it over the line on her fourth match point. She will face Romania's Sorana Cirstea in the second round.

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Tennis is back on Sky Sports screens with the Laver Cup in September while we will also have coverage of the ATP Finals in November with every match live on Sky Sports. But first, we will be across the final major of the year in New York as the US Open right through to the final with live blogs, reports, features and reaction.