Ukraine’s Daria Snigur won her first Tour-level match with an opening round triumph against Romania’s Simona Halep at the US Open on Monday.

Twenty-year-old Snigur, a former Junior Wimbledon champion and a 2022 Grand Slam Player Grant recipient, has been making steady progress in her transition from junior to professional tennis player but she seized the moment at Flushing Meadows to make the biggest leap so far.

Struck by the emotion of the victory, Snigur was almost lost for words in her post-match interview on court but she managed to say: “I’m very happy – no comments for me because I think it’s impossible. Thanks to Simona for this great match – it was a very great experience for me. Impossible to win. I want to say thanks to all the fans. I’m very, very, very nervous, but I try to do my best.

“This match, for Ukraine, for my family, for all the fans who supported me, I want to say thank you to all.”

Snigur, whose biggest title on the ITF World Tennis Tour came at W100 Dubai at the end of last year, has been building momentum this year without breaking through at WTA level.

But, having qualified for her first major at this year’s US Open, the Ukrainian made her mark in a topsy-turvy encounter against former world No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion Halep.

Snigur took the opening set 6-2 before Halep looked to be wrestling control back in her favour with a 6-0 second set. And despite saying that she was full of nerves throughout the match, Snigur looked to be calm and composed as she broke in the eighth game of the decider to move 5-3 up, before closing out the match 6-2 0-6 6-4 in one hour and 40 minutes.

She will play Canada’s Rebecca Marino in the second round on Wednesday.

In other news, Serena Williams prolonged her singles career with victory over Danka Kovinic and will face No. 2 seed Anett Kontaveit in the next round, while Great Britain’s Harriet Dart upset 10th seed Daria Kasatkina for the biggest win of her career.