Sibling battle

After both won Wednesday, sisters Venus and Serena Williams will meet in the third round of the U.S. Open on Friday. It will be their 30th tour-level matchup, and their earliest at a Grand Slam event in 20 years.

NEW YORK — Get ready for the latest Grand Slam installment of Williams vs. Williams. One big difference this time: The superstar siblings will be meeting in the third round at the U.S. Open, their earliest showdown at a major tournament in 20 years.

Serena Williams set up the highly anticipated matchup at Flushing Meadows by hitting 13 aces and overwhelming 101st-ranked

Carina Witthoeft of Germany 6-2, 6-2 in a little more than an hour in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday night. Hours earlier, across the way at Louis Armstrong Stadium, Venus Williams did her part with another straight-set victory, eliminating 40th-ranked Camila

Giorgi of Italy 6-4, 7-5. When they play Friday, it will be their 30th tour-level encounter. It’s also the soonest the sisters have played each other at any Grand Slam since their very first tour match, all the way back at the 1998 Australian Open. Venus won that one.

Serena leads the series 17-12, including 10-5 at majors.

Seeded women who advanced on another day with the temperature topping 95 degrees included No. 7 Elina Svitolina, No. 8 Karolina Pliskova, No. 15 Elise Mertens, No. 19 Anastasija Sevastova and No. 23 Barbora Strycova, all in straight sets. Past men’s champions Juan Martin del Potro and Stan Wawrinka won, as did 2017 runner-up Kevin Anderson and No. 11 seed John Isner.