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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Niall McVeigh (now) and Katy Murrells (earlier)

US Open 2024 day four: Evans, Draper and Swiatek win, Boulter out – as it happened

United States Dan Evans US Open Daniel Evans Jannik Sinner Alex de Minaur Iga Swiatek Jack Draper Jasmine Paolini Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
Dan Evans has followed up his marathon win over Karen Khachanov with a three-set victory over Mariano Navone.
Dan Evans has followed up his marathon win over Karen Khachanov with a three-set victory over Mariano Navone. Photograph: Al Bello/Getty Images

Match reports

Before we go, a quick peek at the evening games: Naomi Osaka is in a spot of bother, losing the first set to Karolina Muchova 6-3 in a high-calibre meeting of unseeded players. Much more straightforward for Daniil Medvedev: he leads Fabian Maroszan 6-3, 2-0. But with the afternoon session ending, it’s time for us to sign off.

A word from Dan Evans: “I was just really tired since the match, so I didn’t hit yesterday and just recovered really well. The game plan was not very physical, it helped that I had to do [keep points short]. It really focused me. I felt a bit of extra pressure to win; to win that match [against Khachanov] and then lose the next … it wouldn’t have felt right.”

Dan Evans beats Mariano Navone 6-4, 6-3, 6-3

Evans races to 40-0 and three match points, but the first one was saved by a deep return – and Evans feels a bit of cramp in his thigh afterwards. Best get this done, then – and when Navone fires long, it’s all over. Evans exchanges high fives with fans in the front row, and looks tired but absolutely delighted. He’ll face Alex De Minaur next.

Evans bounced back in some style, reeling off a string of topspin-laden passing shots to break back again. Navone now holds to keep the match alive, but Evans will serve for the match after a modest 2hr 30mins …

Hmm. With the match having almost slipped away from him, Navone suddenly looks the more spritely and gets the break back, trailing 3-2. We’ll continue coverage until the end of this set; elsewhere, Daniil Medvedev has raced to a 5-1 lead over Marozsan, while Osaka and Muchova are on serve, Osaka leading 3-2.

Dan Evans is keen to keep the accelerator down, taking a 3-0 lead and threatening the double break – but Navone digs in to get on the board in the third set. Alex de Minaur is next up for the winner here, so Evans will want to get through this in straight sets.

They may not be the biggest names in the draw, but Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova might just be the longest names. It’s Pavlyuchenkova who has emerged from their three-set battle with victory; next for her, it’s Iga Swiatek.

Elsewhere, Canadian qualifier Gabriel Diallo has caused an upset, seeing off No 24 seed Arthur Fils in four sets. He faces No 14 seed Tommy Paul in the third round.

Thanks Katy. The evening matches are about to get started – Naomi Osaka v Karolina Muchova, and Fabian Marozsan v Daniil Medvedev – but marathon man Dan Evans is still out there. This doesn’t look like going the distance, though; Evans breaks early to lead Navone by two sets and a break.

Evans is channelling his inner Djokovic, engaging in a touch of a rope-a-dope with Navone. Having looked on his knees a few games ago, he’s broken, backed that up with a hold to love, and now has a set point on Navone’s serve at 30-40. A gruelling rally plays out, and somehow Evans chases everything down and takes it! He leads 6-4, 6-3 and is puffing at the changeover, barely able to breathe.

Diallo, meanwhile, has finished the job, reaching the third round at a slam for the first time in his young career, defeating Fils, another rising star, 6-4 in the fourth.

And with that, it’s time to hand you over to Niall for the third set of Evans v Navone …

Updated

Paul will face the winner of Arthur Fils v Gabriel Diallo, the 6ft 8in Canadian qualifier, who’s serving for that match at 7-5, 6-7 (3), 6-4, 5-4.

Updated

That’s the second retirement of the day after Pliskova’s, while Rybakina withdrew from her match without hitting a ball.

Hands are being prematurely shaken on Grandstand, where Max Purcell has surprisingly retired against Tommy Paul, with Paul leading 7-5, 6-0, 1-0. There’s no explanation yet of what was troubling Purcell; there were no signs of him struggling physically before he called time on the match.

The night session will be upon us in less than 10 minutes’ time, with Naomi Osaka facing Karolina Muchova, before Carlos Alcaraz v Botic van de Zandschulp. Cue some footage of Osaka warming up backstage, in an evening version of that outfit she wore the other day. This one is a black and white, instead of green and white.

Updated

Evans, leading 6-4, 2-2, appears to be struggling physically now. Which is no surprise at all after his marathon in the 30 degree heat two days ago. The temptation for Navone would be to just get the ball back into play, but that could hand the initiative back to Evans, and the Argentinian, to his credit, attacks to hold for 3-2.

Tommy Paul, having been pushed in the first set, is running away with it in the second, leading Max Purcell 7-5, 4-0. The 14th seed is the only American left in his half of the draw, but Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe are on the other side, as they seek to end their country’s 21-year men’s singles slam drought.

It’s not just the Australians who are having a good day, with the Italians also advancing en masse. After wins for Sinner, Paolini, Errani and Arnaldi, Flavio Cobolli has joined them in round three, with a come-from-behind 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-3 victory against Zizou Bergs. Meanwhile Bergs’s fellow Belgian Daveeed Goffin has reached the last 32 for the first time since 2020, beating France’s Adrian Mannarino 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (1).

A complete mis-hit gives Navone a break point in the second game of the second set, as a graphic appears on TV noting that Evans has still sliced 100% of his backhands in this match. I wonder if there’s a physical reason why he’s not hitting through on it – though apparently he was hitting plenty of topspin backhands when he was warming up. Navone rifles a forehand winner to claim the break for 2-0 – which stirs Evans into action. Finally he hits an attacking backhand on his way to getting to deuce on Navone’s serve … which after another deuce or two or three turns into Evans’s advantage. And there’s the break back! It’s Evans 6-4, 2-1 Navone.

There are two more Aussies in action right now. Max Purcell is level at five games all in the opening set against the American 14th seed Tommy Paul, while Tristan Schoolkate, having led the Czech Jakub Mensik by two sets to love, has conceded the third, 6-2.

Jannik Sinner is talking to Marion Bartoli on Sky. She asks him about the toll that his positive drugs tests have taken on him. “It’s easier because I know I didn’t do anything wrong,” he replies. Sinner advanced comfortably earlier, and will play one of Australia’s three winners so far today, Chris O’Connell, in the third round.

An errant backhand slice and it’s 15-30 on Evans’s serve. I understand his tactic here, but it would be good to see him throw in the odd attacking shot off that wing. He’s looking in good touch at the net, though, and a volley brings him to 30-all. And another gets him to 40-30, set point. Evans chooses an inopportune moment to serve his first double fault, and Navone finally comes up with a pass to turn set point into break point. But Evans wins the next three points to take the opening set 6-4! A fine effort after his draining duel on Tuesday.

A fourth break point comes and goes. Evans is huffing and puffing after bringing up a fifth. He hits five backhand slices in a row, still totally unwilling to unleash on that side, but eventually the ball goes to his forehand and he pulls the trigger! Finally he breaks and will serve for the first set at 5-4!

Evans, from 3-0 down, has come back at Navone for 4-4, and how he’d love to break the Argentinian here to get this first set completed ASAP. Evans is on his way to doing that when a deft volley gets him to 15-30, which is soon 15-40 when Navone throws in his 12th unforced error. Evans’s return is strong … but then he uncharacteristically dumps a sliced backhand into the net. Hopefully he won’t be left to regret that. But now there’s a netted forehand and it’s deuce, and then advantage Navone. Evans regroups to take the next two points, so here’s a third break point. But again Evans nets his backhand slice. I’m not sure he’s hit a single topspin shot on that side so far.

Updated

Fancy some extra reading? Sure you do!

The French phenom Arthur Fils has been one of the biggest risers in the rankings this season, and the 20-year-old has been rewarded with a seeding of 24 this fortnight. Now he’s showing the New Yorkers what all the hype is about.

The Evans serve is now up and running but he still trails by a break, 3-1. Navone’s tactic here must be to extend the rallies for as long as possible, and make Evans feel even more leggy, but Evans doesn’t let the Argentinian do that in game five as he breaks to 15 with some short points, though he does also get some help from Navone with a double fault. It’s Evans 2-3 Navone and they’re back on serve.

It’s 5.32pm in New York, with the day session finished on Arthur Ashe and Louis Armstrong, but we’ve still got six singles matches taking place. As well as Evans v Navone, it’s Arthur Fils 5-7, 7-6 (3) Gabriel Diallo, Elisabetta Cocciaretto 4-5 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Tristan Schoolkate 7-6 (4), 6-2 Jakub Mensik, Daveeeed Goffin 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-2 Adrian Mannarino and Flavio Cobolli 4-6, 6-3, 6-5 Zizou Bergs. Make that seven, because Tommy Paul will soon be under way against Max Purcell.

Updated

Evans is 2-0 down, but I wouldn’t say it’s been a particularly slow start by him, he did have a break point in the opening game, before being broken in the second after a 26-shot rally. He’ll want to keep the longer exchanges to a minimum today after playing the longest match in US Open history just 48 hours ago.

De Minaur wins against Virtanen 7-5, 6-1, 7-6 (3)

De Minaur is making short work of his third-set tie-break. He’s got five match points at 6-1. Virtanen is firing missiles at him on the second match point, and De Minaur’s net defence is eventually pierced. 6-3. But Virtanen then nets and the Australian is through to the last 32, where he’ll meet the winner of Evans v Navone. “I’m happy to keep going,” De Minaur says. “Every day I’m getting better,” he adds, referring to the hip injury he’s recovering from. “Let’s see if I can keep it going.” The Aussie fanatics cheer and De Minaur thanks them.

So it’s one Brit through and one Brit out so far today and here comes the third, as Dan Evans somehow finds the energy to walk on to court after his five hour 35 minute marathon on Tuesday. Now he’s got to find the energy to win three sets against Mariano Navone. The 23-year-old Argentinian clay-courter has little experience on hard courts, this is his first time playing in the second round in New York, so Evans will at least feel that even if he’s not at 100% (which he surely can’t be), he’ll still have a decent chance here.

I should add that the 10th seed is serving at 7-6, 6-1, 5-5. But let’s hear from Jack Draper, who’s speaking to Sky Sports. “I didn’t get enough court time the other day, but today I felt my tennis was in a good place,” he says. “My serve got me out of trouble and hopefully I can build on this performance. This is the grand slam I’ve had my best results at so far, I’m in the third round again, and there’s something about the conditions that really suit me.”

He’s then asked about the possibility of facing Alcaraz, whom he beat at Queen’s this summer. “I’ve played him a couple of times on a hard court too and that’s a different ball game,” Draper replies. “If I do play him I’ll be expecting a very different Carlos Alcaraz to the one at Queen’s.”

De Minaur!

Draper defeats Diaz Acosta 6-4, 6-2, 6-2

Draper secures his second break of the third set at the perfect time, as it leaves him serving for the match at 6-4, 6-2, 5-2. Diaz Acosta finishes with a little flourish, threading a winner down the line for 0-15 and, despite a double fault from Draper for 0-30, the Brit regains focus after giving himself a talking to. 30-all. 40-30. And Draper seals it with an ace! Business-like from Draper, who’s yet to drop a set. But there is some bad news: he’s likely to face Carlos Alcaraz in his next match. Alcaraz plays in the night session – and Naomi Osaka will be in action later too. It’s good to have her back.

Updated

Tomorrow’s order of play. I’m not sure why Shelton v Tiafoe isn’t the night match on Ashe, but it means the day ticket holders on the main court will be very happy indeed, especially with Gauff v Svitolina too.

Zizou Bergs needs to take a bow too after this point:

The Belgian’s still got work to do, though. He’s locked at one set all against Italy’s Flavio Cobolli.

Alex de Minaur is now well on his way to victory too, leading the Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen 7-5, 6-1, 3-2 – with the third set going on serve. His fellow Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis is out, though, crashing back down to earth after his first-round win over Stefanos Tsitsipas with a 6-4, 7-5, 7-5 defeat by the inspired Nuno Borges. This shot was ridiculous …

Draper has broken at 1-1 in each of the previous two sets, and he’s sensing blood once more at 15-40 on Diaz Acosta’s serve. A brilliant recovery shot down the line from the Briton and there’s the break. At 6-4, 6-2, 2-1, this is turning into what should be a fairly routine victory, after his assured performance in the first round, where he led Zhang Zhizhen 6-3, 6-0, 4-0 when his opponent retired with a knee injury. And Draper will be relieved to have put his recent controversy in Cincinnati behind him.

Updated

Thanks Niall. An accomplished win by Pegula in what could have been a far trickier match against her fellow American, who won the Australian Open four years ago and defeated Emma Raducanu in the first round on Tuesday. Victory too for Beatriz Haddad Maia, who’s created a little bit of history for Brazil with her 6-2, 6-1 win over Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo:

Updated

Jessica Pegula closes the match out with an ace, beating Sofia Kenin 7-6, 6-3. next, she will play namesake Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, who ousted Katie Boulter earlier on.

Jack Draper has closed out the second set to lead 6-4, 6-2, and the third set is on serve at 1-1. With that, time to hand you back to Katy …

Updated

Draper is close to wrapping up the second set, leading Diaz Acosta 6-4, 5-2. It’s also 5-2 to Jessica Pegula in the second set, while Sky have taken us out to Court Six, where Jamie Murray and John Peers were locked in a deciding tie-break in their men’s doubles first-round match – but they’ve just lost it, 13-11, to Andre Goransson and Sem Verbeek.

Updated

Sofia Kenin strikes back with an early break in the second set – but can’t back it up as Pegula hits straight back. Two-all in the second, and a frustrating day for Kenin after knocking Emma Raducanu out in the first round.

Adrian Mannarino (36 years old) leads David Goffin (33) after winning the first-set tie break between two wizened old stagers who are both significantly younger than me.

Pegula wins the tie-break, 7-4, with Kenin’s level dropping at the worst time after looking the better player for much of the third set. Alex de Minaur has now won seven games on the spin from 5-2 down, and leads Virtanen by a set and a break.

And Draper’s fightback to hold for the first set seems to have taken the wind out of his opponent. The Briton is now a double break up in the second, leading 6-4, 4-1.

Updated

Alex de Minaur has broken back against Virtanen, and is now serving at 5-4 down in the first set. His compatriot, Thanasi Kokkinakis, sent Stefanos Tsitsipas out in the first round but is two sets down to Portugal’s Nuno Borges in his second-round match.

On Louis Armstrong, American duo Sofia Kenin and Jessica Pegula are on a bit earlier than expected after Pliskova’s early retirement. Pegula has just served out to set up a first-set tie-break.

Jack Draper is serving for the set, but Diaz Acosta isn’t willing to hand it over – and punishes some weak first serves to bring up two break points. From 15-40 down, Draper gets his act together and seals the set with an ace out wide.

Swiatek beats Shibahara 6-0, 6-1

Utterly dominant from Iga Swiatek, who marches into the third round in just over an hour. She will face Elisabetta Cocciaretto or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova next.

Elena Rybakina withdraws from tournament

The fourth seed in the women’s draw, Elena Rybakina, has pulled out of the tournament before her second-round match with France’s Jessika Ponchet. No word on what the specific injury issue is yet, although Rybakina has barely played in the six weeks since losing in the Wimbledon semi-finals. She has also split with her long-time coach, and gave only a brief press conference after her first-round win here.

Thanks, Katy. Swiatek is on the cusp of victory, leading Shibahara 6-0, 5-1 and ready to serve it out. No double bagel, but a bagel and a breadstick is on the cards.

Right I’m off for some dinner, so here’s Niall McVeigh to guide you through the next stages of Draper’s match and beyond …

Draper backs up the break for 3-1. He then gets another sniff on Diaz Acosta’s serve when the Argentinian double faults for deuce, but he can’t capitalise. Draper’s first serve then misfires in the next game, and Diaz Acosta has his first break point. Draper is off the hook when Diaz Acosta goes long, and Draper doesn’t give his opponent another chance, holding from deuce. It’s 4-2 Draper.

Alex de Minaur’s started slowly against Finland’s Otto Virtanen, trailing 3-0. Thanasi Kokkinakis, after his huge win over Stefanos Tsitsipas in round one, is also behind, against Portugal’s Nuno Borges, having lost the first set 6-4.

The crowd makes the most noise it has all day on Arthur Ashe as Shibahara finally gets her name on the board against Swiatek. It’s a brief moment of celebration though because after Shibahara comes through that 13-minute service game, Swiatek swiftly holds for 6-0, 2-1.

Over on Court Five, Boulter’s defeat means that her fellow British No 1, Jack Draper, is next up, against Facundo Diaz Acosta, the 23-year-old Argentinian who’s playing in the second round of a slam for the first time in his career. Draper, seeded 25 in New York, underlines his status as the favourite in the match by breaking early, courtesy of a whipped forehand winner, for 2-1.

Shibahara, by the way, is a Californian who switched to representing Japan in 2019, and was forced to repay about $20,000 in funding to the USTA before she was allowed to change countries.

The 26-year-old just can’t handle the pace and spin on Swiatek’s vicious forehand and now trails 6-0, 1-0, as she attempts to prevent a total whitewash. She plays perhaps her best point of the match to get to advantage on her own serve, but Swiatek just won’t let her breathe and it’s quickly deuce again. A huge cheer erupts when Shibahara hits her first ace for another game point, but again is pulled back to deuce. There have been six deuces in this game as the game clock ticks past 10 minutes …

Iga Swiatek is doing what Iga Swiatek does, dishing out a 6-0 set against the Japanese qualifier Ena Shibahara in just 22 minutes. The top seed has hit only two unforced errors so far. Elsewhere Ashlyn Krueger, who’d never even won a grand slam match before this tournament, is into round three after knocking out the French Open semi-finalist Mirra Andreeva 6-1, 6-4, but another American, Caroline Dolehide, has lost, 7-5, 7-5 against the Italian veteran Sara Errani.

It’s going very well for the Aussie men so far today. After Jordan Thompson’s eye-catching win over Hubert Hurkacz, Chris O’Connell has backed up his opening-round win over the 26th seed Nicolas Jarry by defeating the Italian Mattia Bellucci 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. It’s not all good news though: O’Connell will face Sinner in round three.

Boulter beaten 7-5, 7-5 by Bouzas Maneiro

And here’s another momentum shift. A 17-shot rally, the longest of the match, gives Bouzas Maneiro a break point … and Boulter then double faults. Ach. So Bouzas Maneiro will again step up to serve for a place in the third round … and the Spaniard makes it third time lucky for her and unlucky for the Brit, finally closing it out to 30 as Boulter balloons long.

There wasn’t much in it – Boulter won 74 points to Bouzas Maneiro’s 77, but Boulter just couldn’t find a consistent rhythm. The British No 1’s truncated build-up to the US Open after her participation at the Olympics may have played a part, but despite that, this is a match she’ll feel she should have won.

Updated

From one world No 1 to another on Arthur Ashe, where Jannik Sinner’s win means that Iga Swiatek has stepped on to court. The 2022 champion is the overwhelming favourite as she faces the Japanese qualifier Ena Shibahara.

So Boulter has reduced her arrears to 7-5, 5-4, but Bouzas Maneiro still has a second chance to serve for the match. The Spaniard is now the one who looks scrambled, and quickly drops 0-30 down. Which is soon 0-40, after an aggressive return from Boulter. And a misdirected backhand from Bouzas Maneiro and there’s another break for Boulter! From 5-2 down, Boulter is back to 5-5. Ah, you’ve got to love the sudden changes in momentum in tennis.

Updated

Boulter could be at the point of no return. Serving at 7-5, 4-2 down, she moves Bouzas Maneiro far out of the court … but the Spaniard gets the ball back and then slides Djokovic-style to her right to peel off a winner! 15-40, two break points that would leave Bouzas Maneiro serving for the match. Boulter scorches the sideline with a forehand winner to save the first break point but Bouzas Maneiro produces a forehand winner of her own on the second. Boulter trails 7-5, 5-2 … but then, with nothing to lose and Bouzas Maneiro tightening up with the finish line in sight, Boulter breaks to 15 and then holds to love! The comeback may be on!

Updated

A surprising scoreline on Grandstand, where Mirra Andreeva, the 17-year-old prodigy and 21st seed who reached the semi-finals at Roland Garros, has lost the first set 6-1 against the American Ashlyn Krueger.

It may be 10 degrees cooler than it was yesterday in New York but the heat is very much on Boulter, as she’s forced to save two break points when trailing 7-5, 3-1. She can’t afford to slide a double break down here. Boulter survives from there and holds, but is unable to put much pressure on Bouzas Maneiro’s serve, and the Spaniard moves to 4-2, just two more holds away from the match.

Paolini’s match against Pliskova lasted just six minutes.

Sinner speaks:

He’s a tough opponent, we played each other in Cincinnati, so I knew what to expect. I always love New York, it’s a very special place, every match is different, has its own story, so I’m very happy.

It has to be said Sinner had a lot of support from the crowd during the match, despite facing an American and despite the scrutiny he’s faced over the past week. He’ll be relieved to come through so comfortably after his tough opener on Tuesday.

Sinner defeats Michelsen 6-4, 6-0, 6-2

Boulter is reeling, as she’s broken to love, after a wayward backhand. “Her brain looks scrambled at the moment,” says Annabel Croft on comms. Someone who’s thinking much more clearly, despite his tumultuous build-up to the US Open, is Jannik Sinner, who’s put his foot on the accelerator after that stop-start first set and now leads the young American Alex Michelsen 6-4, 6-0, 5-2, with the world No 1 serving for the match. He has two match points at 40-15, and a serve-volley combo gets the job done.

Updated

Thompson beats seventh seed Hurkacz

More joyful scenes on Court 17, where Jordan Thompson has claimed the biggest win of his grand slam career, taking down the seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz 7-6 (2), 6-1, 7-5. Thompson faces Arnaldi next, so has a real chance of reaching round four … where he could face a certain Alex de Minaur.

Updated

Sad scenes on Louis Armstrong, where Karolina Pliskova, the 2016 finalist and former world No 1, is hobbling off, having retired in the first game against Jasmine Paolini, the French Open and Wimbledon runner-up. Paolini will play Putintseva next.

What of Boulter, you say? Well since she traded breaks with Bouzas Maneiro, it’s been going with serve, but the British No 1 is in danger serving at 5-5, 30-all, and the alarm bells are then ringing at 30-40. Bouzas Maneiro seizes the break with a forehand winner – and then serves out the set to love. “Horrendous, horrendous,” Boulter said to her coach at one point. I don’t think it’s been horrendous – but after starting so strongly, but failing to secure the scoreline her early play deserved, she’s looked rather edgy and needs to regather her composure in the second set.

Updated

Sinner has served a New York bagel (surely the best kind) to Michelsen, and now leads 6-4, 6-0.

Updated

Also through: The Italian 30th seed Matteo Arnaldi, who’ll next face either Thompson or Hurkacz, who’s still digging deep, locked at 5-all in the third set, with Thompson leading 7-6 (2), 6-1.

Another result: Yulia Putintseva has claimed her first win in four attempts against Wang Xinyu, coming through a much harder second set to advance 6-1, 7-6 (4).

Tomas Machac won’t be too popular on Louis Armstrong, because the Czech has defeated the home hope and 16th seed Sebastian Korda in three impressive sets, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4. Korda had such a strong build-up to the US Open, winning the title in Washington and reaching the Canadian Open semis, but he goes no further than the second round here.

Hurkacz, despite the knee injury he suffered at Wimbledon and the calf problem he picked up in Cincinnati, is doing his best to force a fourth set against Thompson, and he’s got the crowd whooping and hollering after this point too.

Sinner has hit his stride. After struggling to pull away from Michelsen in the first set, he’s in command in the second, leading 6-4, 4-0.

Updated

But then out of nowhere Boulter is broken straight back, as her first serve deserts her, and she throws in a double fault too. She’ll be kicking herself, having looked so comfortable up until this point. It’s now 4-3 Boulter.

Boulter is rewarded for her endeavour. 3-2 up, she has two break points at 15-40. There are just too many unforced errors from her opponent at the moment. And here’s another, as Bouzas Maneiro blazes a backhand wide! Boulter is 4-2 ahead, a different story to her first-round match when she had to come from a set down, having had a very limited build-up to the US Open because of her participation at the Olympics.

Updated

Boulter is under way on Court Five. The British No 1, who’s seeded at the US Open for the first time, is up against Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, world ranked 74 but not to be taken lightly, having defeated the defending champion Marketa Vondrousova in the Wimbledon first round this summer. Boulter has done the early pushing and probing but her efforts are yet to be rewarded with a break; she leads 3-2 on serve.



Sinner has claimed what could prove to be a decisive break in the first set. The top seed now leads Michelsen 5-4. But he’ll now have to do something he’s not managed during this match so far, and that’s hold serve after breaking. Again it’s not the most assured of service games, but from 30-all he advances to set point at 40-30, and off a second serve secures the set 6-4 when Michelsen can’t direct his return back into play.

Updated

A second result of the day: Diana Shnaider, the Russian or rather neutral flag player, has beaten Denmark’s Clara Tauson, 6-4, 6-4. The 18th seed, who won Olympic silver in the women’s doubles alongside Mirra Andreeva, will face the winner of the match that now follows on Court Seven between the Italian veteran Sara Errani and the American Caroline Dolehide.

Korda’s had treatment on his right arm, which is covered in a black sleeve today, and the timeout has done the trick, because he’s 3-0 up in the third against Machac. But he’s got plenty of work still to do, trailing by two sets to love, 6-4, 6-2. Thompson, meanwhile, now has a two-sets lead, 7-6, 6-1 against an ailing Hurkacz.

Sinner strikes for 4-3. But just like after he broke in the opening game, he’s immediately under pressure on serve at 0-30. Then 30-40, after an improvised crouching return from Michelsen helps set up a break point for the energetic American. Deuce, then another break point at Michelsen’s advantage. And Sinner biffs a backhand into the net and they’re all square once more! It’s 4-4.

Machac, rocking some very short shorts, is now two sets to the good against Sebastian Korda, 6-4, 6-2. And after those two opening breaks, Sinner v Michelsen has settled into a serving rhythm, with the pair level at 3-3.

Updated

Anna Kalinskaya is the first player of the day to put a W by their name. The 15th seed, who’s playing as a neutral athlete here, like her fellow Russians, has defeated Hungary’s Anna Bondar 6-2, 6-4, serving it out to love. The result means that it’ll be Brits all the way on Court Five from here on in, with Katie Boulter up first, followed by Jack Draper and then Dan Evans.

Hurkacz is throwing his racket around on Court 17 after missing by a mile. The seventh seed has not won a game in the second set and trails Thompson 7-6, 3-0.

Michelsen, I should have said, gave Sinner a scare at Cincinnati this month and the 20-year-old is relishing the chance to test the Italian with a home crowd behind him. “I’m going to go out there and I’m going to compete my hardest,” Michelsen said before the match. “I’m going to be the underdog and I love being the underdog so it’ll be fun either way.”

Jannik Sinner is under way on Arthur Ashe, and the world No 1 has broken the young American Alex Michelsen in the opening game, in sharp contrast to his slow and uncertain start in round one, when he trailed by a set and a break. Jim Courier is asked on Sky Sports how much Sinner’s positive drugs tests may have affected him in that opening match. “We’re just speculating but by looking at the first set and a half he looked like he needed to get his feet underneath him,” Courier says, just as Sinner is stung by an immediate break back by Michelsen.

Updated

Tomas Machac is another player who’s turned things around. From 4-2 down in the opening set against Sebastian Korda, he’s now 6-4, 2-1 ahead, so has won six of the past seven games against the American.

They’re into a tie-break on Court 17. And Hurkacz does love a tie-break. It’s his 50th of the year. But Thompson, with arm sleeves on both arms and a neon yellow cap as bright as the balls, is now proving irrepressible. The Aussie, having trailed 4-1 in the set, brings up four set points at 6-2 and Hurkacz gives it away with a double fault!

Kalinskaya’s being made to work a bit harder by Bondar in set two. The longest rally of the match, 17 shots, and Kalinskaya is taken to deuce. Make that break point. For the first time today the 15th seed is looking a little anxious. She flumps a forehand into the net and Bondar breaks back for 2-2 in the second set. Meanwhile Yulia Putintseva has the first set in the bag, 6-1, against Wang Xinyu.

Hurkacz is serving for the first set at 5-3 but Thompson has other ideas. The Australian, who at the age of 30 is playing some of the best tennis of his career, carves out two break points at 15-40 and then, on the back foot and on the run, produces a passing winner to break back! Two holds follow so Thompson will serve at 6-5 down to force a tie-break.

There were also some strong – and important – words from Caroline Garcia yesterday about the damaging abuse players are receiving on social media when they lose and how “unhealthy betting” is fuelling the hate. It was good to see Garcia receiving support from the locker room, including Iga Swiatek and Madison Keys, who both thanked her for speaking up. The American Jessica Pegula – somewhat depressingly – said: “The constant death threats and family threats are normal now, win or lose.”

If you missed any of yesterday’s results, by the way, you can catch up here:

Tomas Machac has broken back against Sebastian Korda. The Czech is now serving at 4-3 down. And the first set of the day has – unsurprisingly – gone to Anna Kalinskaya, 6-2 against Anna Bondar.

Hubie Hurkacz isn’t messing around either. The Pole, who injured his knee diving for a ball during his second-round loss at Wimbledon, has done something of a Djokovic by returning from surgery so quickly, and he’s 5-2 up here against Jordan Thompson, who’s being watched by the Australian Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt. Hurkacz did face a break-back point in the previous game – but reeled off the next three points to hold.

It’s been a flying start, meanwhile, from Sinner’s girlfriend, Anna Kalinskaya, who could be a player to watch this fortnight. She’s in a fairly favourable section of the draw, but in the fourth round may meet Elena Rybakina, who beat her at the same stage at Wimbledon last month. Kalinskaya leads Hungary’s Anna Bondar 5-1 – and with that match taking place on Court Five, it could mean Britain’s Katie Boulter is in action sooner than expected. Kalinskaya is playing doubles here with Boulter, by the way.

Updated

I must admit I’ve not watched much of the tournament so far, as I was covering the Paralympics opening ceremony last night and was en vacances in France before that, so I’m looking forward to getting stuck into the tennis today, especially having a look at what kind of physical and mental shape Jannik Sinner is in after his positive drugs tests became public.

The players have made their way to their respective courts at Flushing Meadows, they’ve finished their warm-ups, and here are the early runners and riders: Sebastian Korda, the 16th seed and son of the 1998 Australian Open champ Petr, is up against the Czech Tomas Machac, who won Olympic mixed doubles gold in Paris; Yulia Putintseva, the 30th seed, is taking on China’s Wang Xinyu; it’s the battle of the two Annas between Kalinskaya, the 15th seed, and Bondar; while on Court 17 it’s Jordan Thompson, one of six Australian men in singles action today, against the Polish 7th seed Hubert Hurkacz.

Order of play (selected courts)

ARTHUR ASHE STADIUM (4pm UK/11am New York)
1-Jannik Sinner (Italy) v Alex Michelsen (U.S.)
1-Iga Swiatek (Poland) v Ena Shibahara (Japan)
ARTHUR ASHE STADIUM (midnight UK/7pm New York)
Naomi Osaka (Japan) v Karolina Muchova (Czech Republic)
3-Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) v Botic van De Zandschulp (Netherlands)

LOUIS ARMSTRONG STADIUM (4pm UK/11am New York)
Tomas Machac (Czech Republic) v 16-Sebastian Korda (U.S.)
Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) v 5-Jasmine Paolini (Italy)
Sofia Kenin (U.S.) v 6-Jessica Pegula (U.S.)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG STADIUM (midnight UK/7pm New York)
Fabian Marozsan (Hungary) v 5-Daniil Medvedev (Russia)
Caroline Wozniacki v Renata Zarazua (Mexico)

GRANDSTAND (4pm UK/11am New York)
30-Yulia Putintseva (Kazakhstan) v Wang Xinyu (China)
21-Mirra Andreeva v Ashlyn Krueger (US)
10-Alex de Minaur (Australia) v Otto Virtanen (Finland)

COURT FIVE (4pm UK/11am New York)
Anna Bondar (Hungary) v 15-Anna Kalinskaya
31-Katie Boulter (Great Britain) v Jessica Bouzas Maneiro (Spain)
Facundo Diaz Acosta (Argentina) v 25-Jack Draper (Great Britain)
Mariano Navone (Argentina) v Daniel Evans (Great Britain)

Tim Henman is on Sky Sports and says he’s been speaking to Dan Evans. Apparently Evans is in better shape than expected after his marathon on Tuesday, and spent yesterday having an ice bath, massage and doing some work on a stationary bike to relieve his achy legs.

The Brit is scheduled fourth on Court Five today, so at least that gives him a bit more recovery time. And he’ll be relieved that the extreme heat of yesterday has given way to much more player-friendly conditions, with a high of 25 degrees forecast. Frances Tiafoe said he brought 20 shirts and three pairs of shoes on to the court yesterday because he was sweating so much; I don’t think such drastic measures will be needed by anyone today.

Preamble

Hello! And welcome to our coverage of the US Open day four. So two days after Dan Evans somehow dragged himself over the line in the longest match in US Open history, he’s back for more, though he’ll be hoping he needs less than five hours and 35 minutes this time as he takes on Argentina’s Mariano Navone in the second round.

Evans is fourth on Court Five, where the British action is at today. Before him it’s Katie Boulter v Jessica Bouzas Maneiro – the Spaniard who took out the defending champion Marketa Vondrousova at Wimbledon this summer – and then Jack Draper, like Evans, faces an Argentine opponent in Facundo Díaz Acosta.

Over on Arthur Ashe in the day session it’s the top seeds Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek; on Louis Armstrong it’s Sebastian Korda, Jasmine Paolini and the all-American tussle between Emma Raducanu’s conqueror Sofia Kenin and Jessica Pegula; and we’ll also be keeping an eye on Elena Rybakina, Mirra Andreeva, Alex de Minaur, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Tommy Paul and Jordan Thompson v Hubert Hurkacz, among many, many others.

Play begins at: 11am New York time (4pm UK time), so no time to waste! Let’s get on with it.

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