Dominic Thiem, one of the hardest working players on the ATP World Tour, completed his rain-interrupted first-round encounter against wild card Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 in one hour and 49 minutes on Wednesday at the US Open. The pair’s first meeting restarted on Grandstand with Thiem leading 1-0 in the third set. The sixth-seeded Austrian won 10 straight games from a 0-1 deficit in the second set against his 18-year-old Australian opponent and will next face #NextGenATP American Taylor Fritz in the second round. It will be their first FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting. "Sets two and three were really decent, and the biggest thing I have to do now is probably to just continue like this, because the...
Even Roger Federer feels the pressure of playing under the lights on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The five-time US Open champion launched his campaign with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 win over #NextGenATP home hopeful Frances Tiafoe on Tuesday, rebounding after a shaky start in front of a packed crowd. It was the first time Federer had been taken to five sets in the opening round at Flushing Meadows since his debut against Peter Wessels in 2000. His 79th US Open match win ties him in second place with Andre Agassi, behind only Jimmy Connors on 98. “I think in many ways people were hoping for a good battle between the #NextGen and somebody established like myself,” Federer said. “In...
Rafael Nadal overcame a slow start to book his spot in the second round at the US Open, ousting Dusan Lajovic 7-6(6), 6-2, 6-2 in two hours and 17 minutes on Tuesday. With rain storms putting a damper on Day Two in Flushing Meadows, the top-seeded Spaniard prevailed under the closed roof as he kicked off his 13th appearance at the hard-court Grand Slam. Nadal fired 33 winners and five aces, claiming six of 11 break chances in total. He will face either American wild card Tommy Paul or Japan's Taro Daniel next. It was far from straightforward, but Nadal claimed the opening set 8/6 in a tie-break, before reeling of 12 of the next 16 games for an emphatic...
Sporting a 1970s throwback, Alexander Zverev ended his US Open shift victorious at 2:04 a.m. local time on Tuesday morning. The fourth seed, wearing a striped headband, pinstripe shirt and knee-high socks, admitted to staying up beyond his bed time following a 7-6(9), 7-5, 6-4 first-round win over qualifier Darian King on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The German will next face fellow #NextGenATP Borna Coric of Croatia, who is currently No. 3 in the Emirates ATP Race To London for one of the eight places at the Next Gen ATP Finals, to be held from 7-11 November in Milan. Zverev has already booked his place, having won five ATP World Tour titles this year – including two ATP World Tour Masters...
Four of the Top 5 Americans in the Emirates ATP Rankings were in action on opening day of the US Open, with John Isner, Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson all kicking off their campaigns with victories. Jack Sock succumbed to Jordan Thompson in five gripping sets on Louis Armstrong Stadium. Isner overcame Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 to improve to 11-1 in the first round at his home Grand Slam. Seeded 10th, the big-serving North Carolina native launched 59 winners, including 22 aces, to advance after two hours and 23 minutes. His return game was on song as well, saving six of seven break points faced. Isner enters New York following one of the best US Open Series campaigns...