Hopes and dreams are on the line at Flushing Meadows, as Carlos Alcaraz bids to hold tightly to his status as the world No.1 player in men’s tennis; something which could all change this evening.
The Spanish wonderkid is poised to surrender the spot to his main rival Novak Djokovic, who returns to action tonight against Alexandre Muller.
Coco Gauff wins three-set thriller
After an early scare Coco Gauff has progressed to the second-round of the US Open after a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, win over Laura Siegemund.
The match lasted 2:51, with Siegemund doing her best to slow down play and frustrate Gauff.
However, frustration grew inside the stadium as fans were keen to see Gauff progress and also Novak Djokovic come out.
The Serbian will now take to the court three hours later than scheduled.
Stefanos Tsitsipas wins in straight sets
Stefanos Tsitsipas eased past Milos Raonic to win 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.
The Greek international found things very routine against his opponent, a veteran in the sport.
His compatriot in the women’s draw struggled though, as Maria Sakkari crashed out in the first round.
Sakkari has now hinted she could take a break from the sport, after struggling in the past two years.
Coco Gauff loses first set
There could be a very early upset on the cards as No. 6 seed Coco Gauff has lost the first set against Laura Siegemund.
Gauff is seen as the future of women’s tennis for the USA, and recently won her first title.
Siegemund is ranked 111 in the world, but looking comfortable.
Novak Djokovic won’t play until this game is decided.
Christopher Eubanks makes perfect start
Tennis fans from all over the world have taken an interest in Christopher Eubanks, after he started outide of the top 100 at the start of the year.
Eubanks is the 28th seed in the competition after reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, and defeated Soon woo Kwon in four sets to make a great start to the US Open.
The tall American warmed hearts with his emotional speeches when climbing the ranks this year, and now he’s looking to make his home nation proud.
Top rated USA men’s players through, others exit
The home crowd roared when Tommy Paul, Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe all qualified for the second round.
20-year-old Ben Shelton also made it through, but J.J. Wolf, Emilio Nava, Learner Tien, Brandon Nakashima, Zachary Svajda, Steve Johnson, Sebastian Korda and Ethan Quinn were all eliminated.
The last American men’s champion at the US Open was Andy Roddick in 2003, and there’s hope that an upset can be caused, although it looks like a Novak Djokovic v Carlos Alcaraz final is destined to occur.
Another upset sees Rune take dig at organisers
The US Open has seen some upsets so far on day one but arguably the biggest has been the defeat of fourth seed Holger Rune.
The 20-year-old crashed out as Roberto Carballes Baena came through 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-2. And it came after Rune complained about being scheduled on Court 5 for his opening match – tweeting a map of the tournament grounds so people could “find” the smaller show court.
After his loss, the world No 4 said he spoke to the organisers about the court schedule but disagreed with the “card” they played when it came to American stars.
Read the full story HERE.
Cannabis causes chaos on Court 17
Maria Sakkari confirmed that she could smell cannabis from a nearby park during her first-round defeat to Rebeka Masarova.
During the match, she approached the umpire and said: “That smell, oh my God. I think it’s from the park because we were practising here yesterday, it was the same.”
Later on, she explained that the smell had infact been cannabis.
Read the full story HERE.
Laura Siegemund mocked for being slow
Coco Gauff has taken aim at Laura Siegemund for her tactics during the first-round of the US Open, calling her “slow” when reflecting on the win.
Siegemund’s approach led to boos and frustration inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, and Gauff said exactly what everyone was thinking.
Read the full story HERE
Sakkari in tears after upset loss
Maria Sakkari suffered her third-consecutive defeat in the first round of a Grand Slam.
The world No 8 crashed out 6-4 6-4 to Rebeka Masarova on Monday, having also lost her opening matches at Wimbledon and the French Open.
Sakkari broke down in tears during her post-match press conference, hinting at a break from tennis.
Read the full story HERE.
Thiem responds to X-rated Bublik rant
Dominic Thiem has had his say after fans caught Alexander Bublik ranting to his team in Russian as he lost to the world No 81 in the first round.
The match was Thiem’s first win at a Grand Slam since January 2021 – before he picked up a wrist injury that derailed his career.
Bublik didn’t sound pleased that he gave away another win to a player coming back from injury as Thiem was asked to respond to his rival’s comments.
Read the full story HERE.
A great start for the Brits as Miyazaki wins!
Lily Miyazaki won her first match at Grand Slam level after coming through qualifying to reach the main draw of the US Open.
The British No 7 beat Margarita Bertova 6-3 6-3 to advance to the second round, where she faces Olympic champion Belinda Bencic.
Read the full story HERE.
Swiatek reacts to first-round win
Iga Swiatek got her title defence off to a successful start on Monday. The world No 1 needed just 58 minutes to defeat Rebecca Peterson 6-0 6-1.
Speaking after the match, the Pole said it was easier to ease into her first match at the US Open this year, having previously struggled with distractions.
“I remember when I played my first matches in US Open, I always felt like there is so much going on around, and it was a little bit tougher to focus,” she explained.
“But this year I didn’t feel it, because I practiced couple of times on the centre court. Even, you know, with all the kids around, because I think the entry was free and so many people came to watch our practices. It was amazing and I got used to the noise and everything.”
Alcaraz request denied for Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the new home of the US Open this year in the UK, with the tournament returning to the channel for the first time since 2016.
Recently retired star Feliciano Lopez is one of the names involved in the coverage from the ground in Flushing Meadows.
And the former world No 12 revealed that he had to turn down a request from the reigning champion as Alcaraz prepares to play his first-round match against Dominik Koepfer on Tuesday night.
Read the full story HERE.
Bublik smashes racket and makes threat
Alexander Bublik aired his frustrations as he crashed out in the first round to Dominic Thiem.
After going two sets down, the 25th seed received a code violation when he smashed his racket. And when he was broken in the first game of the third set, Bublik addressed his team in Russian and said he didn’t want to come back to the US Open.
Thiem went on to win 6-3 6-2 6-4, his first Grand Slam victory since January 2021.
Read the full story HERE.
We have our first winners!
Karolina Muchova became the first player in the main draw to win a match at this year’s US Open.
The 10th seed needed just 65 minutes to defeat wildcard Storm Hunter 6-4 6-0.
Victoria Azarenka is also through to the second round after defeating Fiona Ferro 6-1 6-2. And Daria Saville beat junior tennis star Clervie Ngounoue 6-0 6-2 in the American’s main draw debut.
‘Disrespectful’ Djoko poster causing a stir
The US Open has been accused of pushing an ‘agenda’ against Novak Djokovic after fans were left outraged by a promotional poster for the event.
After a turbulent few years with the US Open organisers, including his controversial ban from the tournament due to Covid-19 regulations and his unvaccinated status, it’s fair to say Djokovic does not have the most comfortable of relations.
Now, however, fans believe he is being rather publicly – and specifically – disrespected.
FULL STORY HERE.
VAR makes its tennis bow
The technology takeover is very much upon us, as VAR-based software lands in tennis for the US Open.
Technology very similar to that now widely used in football is to be implemented, which is almost certainly set to cause controversy aplenty.
Players will have three challenges each set to dispute controversial decisions such as double bounces or hindrance calls. The umpire can then review the decision on a tablet at the chair while fans can also judge on the big on-court screens.
The new football-style technology – in addition to the electronic line-calling in New York – will only be available this year on specific courts.
Russian makes anti-US swipe
Russian tennis star Tatiana Prozorova has caused controversy on social media after liking several anti-American videos ahead of playing at this week’s play.
Calls for Russian players to be banned have been loudly repeated in Ukrainian circles and Prozorova has fuelled the debate after her social media activity was highlighted on Sunday evening.
A Ukrainian tennis platform on X compiled some of the videos, the first of which shows Vladimir Putin changing the American flag to a Russian one while making faces.
FULL STORY HERE.
Tatiana Prozorova has been called out for her social media activity ahead of the US Open
Double retirement looming
It’s almost time to say farewell to some big names.
American tennis fans will have to hold back the tears after iconic star Jack Sock has confirmed the current major “will be the final event of my career”.
His announcement comes just a few days after John Isner revealed that he will hang up his racket after the action subsides at Flushing Meadows.
And, for the picture-perfect farewell, the duo will team up in the men’s doubles in New York.
Here come the heavier balls
This may be a bit of a controversial one, but a lesser known yet pretty major alteration has happened with the balls at this year’s US Open.
The event is no longer the only Major to have different balls in the for the two singles competitions with the women now using the heavier Wilson balls used by the men.
Emma Raducanu benefitted from the lighter balls when winning the title in 2021, but now the playing field is somewhat considerably more level.
British No.7 Lily Miyazaki said: “From this year, we’re both using the extra duty balls, which are a bit heavier. It suits some players and for me it’s worked so I’m happy.
“We used them in college and it has helped me whereas obviously up until last year with the regular duty balls, I wasn’t able to really control it or feel the ball really well.”
Djokovic circling like a shark
The irrepressible force that is Novak Djokovic is lurking beneath Carlos Alcaraz everywhere he goes.
The Spanish sensation is seen as the rightful heir to tennis greatness, but Djokovic remains intent on reeling him in and denying him at shot at the big time for a little while longer.
Djokovic returns to action today against Alexandre Muller, with an expected win set to place him immediately back to the top spot as the top ranked tennis star on the planet.
Djokovic is guaranteed to go back to top spot with a victory over Muller, which many anticipate will be rather routine.
Elsewhere, change is aplenty as we see the first signs of new rulings coming into play in across the tennis landscape.
The controversial introduction of a VAR-like system, similar to the format used in football, is dividing opinion among the players. The new football-style technology – in addition to the electronic line-calling in New York – will only be available this year on the five biggest courts at Flushing Meadows.
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