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In hot and humid conditions, Alexander Zverev poured cold water on Alexandre Muller’s upset hopes on Wednesday at the US Open, where the German prevailed 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-1 to reach the third round.

Zverev looked drained by the heat at times and changed his shirt after winning a tight second set. However, the fourth seed dug deep and was dominant in the closing stages to seal his spot in the third round after two hours and 29 minutes in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.

"I thought he played some amazing tennis. Especially at the end of the second set, I thought he was the better player than me. But I found a way and of course I am happy to be done in three sets," said Zverev, who has earned a Tour-leading 54 wins this year. "To have some rest as it is very hot and tough conditions."

Zverev’s best result in New York came in 2020, when he fell in a fifth-set tie-break to Dominic Thiem in the championship match. Chasing his first major, the No. 4 player in the PIF ATP Rankings will next play Tomas Martin Etcheverry after the Argentine clawed past countryman Francisco Cerundolo 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 in four hours and two minutes.

Zverev, who fired 43 winners against Muller, knows that a deep run at the hard-court major can further increase his strong position in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. The 22-time ATP Tour champion is currently third behind Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz in his bid to secure a spot at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals.

Paula Badosa will look to bring the best out of her partner Stefanos Tsitsipas when the pair joins forces in mixed doubles at the US Open this week.

Ahead of their opening match in New York, the WTA star gave a message of support to her boyfriend Tsitsipas, who suffered a first-round loss in singles against Thanasi Kokkinakis on Tuesday.

“We’re looking forward to it, it’s really nice to share the court together,” Badosa said after reaching the third round in the women’s singles Wednesday. “We spend time off court, but also on court. It’s really special in a Slam. It’s like a dream come true.

“Big shout out to him. He’s going through tough moments – but he’s a champion and he will always be a champion.”

Tsitsipas will hope to discover his form in the mixed doubles after a testing month, which saw him also split with coach and father Apostolos Tsitsipas following his early exit in Montreal.

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Marin Cilic will play his first match in more than six months Wednesday at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Manacor, Spain.

The Croatian, who underwent knee surgery in May, faces Spaniard Alberto Barroso Campos in the opening round of the Rafa Nadal Open by Movistar, held at the Academy of 22-time major champion Nadal. The match is scheduled not before 6:30 p.m. local time. Fans can tune into Challenger TV to stream all ATP Challenger Tour matches live and on demand at no cost.

Watch Marin Cilic vs. Alberto Barroso Campos:

This fortnight marks the 10-year anniversary of Cilic’s US Open title run. The former World No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings has enjoyed a standout career, claiming 20 tour-level titles and 582 match wins.

The 35-year-old has competed in just three tournaments this year. He also represented his home country in February’s Davis Cup action. Wednesday will mark Cilic’s first ATP Challenger Tour match since March 2012.

French wild card Alexandre Muller will try to earn a big upset on Wednesday when he plays fourth seed Alexander Zverev in the second round of the US Open.

Before the match, ATPTour.com caught up with Muller to get to know him better off the court.

If you could have dinner with any three people, who would they be and why?
I think Roger [Federer], because for me, it's easier because he speaks French [laughs]. I would like to enjoy the dinner so someone who speaks French, my language, it's easier for me.

It's difficult. I think people from sports, so we choose maybe Tiger Woods, because I like golf, and Michael Jordan.

Do you play a lot of golf?
I like to play golf when I have some days off, yes. [I like] the feeling when you hit the ball clean. That's happened not very often, but when I do it, I enjoy it. [I play with] my coach, who loves golf, and I played golf two weeks ago in Cary with Lucas Pouille. My coach won, Lucas was second and I was third. Not such a good result, but we played in Pinehurst. Very nice golf course.

On 16 August, three days before qualifying at the US Open began, Mitchell Krueger stood on a nearly empty set of practice courts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center with his 15-month-old daughter Camille. The biggest tennis-only stadium in the world, Arthur Ashe Stadium, was just metres away. International superstars like 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic, World No. 1 Jannik Sinner and four-time Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz were yet to arrive and take over those courts.

But Krueger has made his own mark at the season’s final major. The 30-year-old qualifier on Monday defeated French qualifier Hugo Grenier 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 to reach the second round at Flushing Meadows.

It is the American’s 30th major — combining qualifying attempts and main draw appearances — and just the second time he has advanced to the second round of the main draw.

“The first emotion was definitely relief. It was a tough, long battle. It was pushing almost four hours, [we were] having a lot of long rallies, long points, and I definitely had to earn it,” Krueger told ATPTour.com. “But relief was definitely the first emotion. It’s obviously a massive achievement, because it's only the second Slam match I've ever won. So to do it in New York after qualifying also was extra special for sure.”

This is also Krueger’s first appearance at a major as a father. One of his goals this year was to put less pressure on himself tennis-wise, and looking after Camille has helped provide perspective.

Carlos Alcaraz was speeding towards a runaway opening-round win at the US Open Tuesday night before needing to recalibrate after hitting a second-set speedbump against Australian Li Tu.

The 21-year-old extended his major match-winning streak to 15 after a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 win against the World No. 186 qualifier. Alcaraz aims to become the third man in the Open Era to win Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open in the same year. Rod Laver (1969) and Rafael Nadal (2010) accomplished the feat.

“First of all, I'm really happy to get through and [have] a chance to be better in the next round,” Alcaraz said in his post-match press conference. “Obviously, I felt well on court. I think I hit the ball well. I moved well.

“[There are] a few things that I have to improve if I want to keep going in the draw, but obviously I have to give credit to him as well. He played really good tennis and surprised me a little bit in the second set. I leave the court happy with my performance."

Wearing a sleeveless shirt as part of an all-black kit, the 2022 champion Alcaraz raced to a set and a break lead under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium. Tu, who was competing in his first match against a Top 50 opponent, settled in from a nervy start and began pressuring Alcaraz’s second serve with early returns.

More than 15 years of matches between Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Francisco Cerundolo have often tested their close off-court relationship to the limit, but it remains intact. In fact, they were almost never friends at all. The first time they were on opposite sides of the net at an under-10s tournament in Carilo, Argentina, the loser cried for three straight days.

“I still have that chip on my shoulder!” admits Etcheverry in a chat with ATPTour.com. “I remember it was a semi-final in Carilo. We were about nine, that’s when we met for the first time. The winner was guaranteed a beautiful trophy, the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, still today. And I was really upset because I lost to ‘Fran’ after having a match point.”

The frustration of losing that shiny golden cup stayed with him as he returned home to La Plata, and for the following few days. “I cried so much that my family was worried. At some point, my dad told me not to play tennis anymore because he was seeing me suffer so much,” adds Etcheverry.

At that time ‘Tomy’ and ‘Fran’ were by no means the players they are now, with their pure power, seeking to dominate every point. At the junior event in Carilo they were just knocking the ball around and they would hit it up in the air. Cerundolo, the oldest by a year, eventually won their match in a third set. “I remember Tomy left crying. That’s the emotions at that age,” says Cerundolo. “Then I remember thousands of matches against him.”

Their rivalry, which would grow rapidly after that fateful tie in Carilo, never affected the friendship they began to build at every tournament and every trip they made together. Any disagreements they had because of their competitiveness on court have always been quickly snuffed out.

Daniel Evans defeated Karen Khachanov in the longest match in US Open history on Tuesday in New York. The Briton rallied from 0-4 in the deciding set to eliminate the 23rd seed 6-7(6), 7-6(2), 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-4 in five hours and 35 minutes.

The previous record was held by Stefan Edberg and Michael Chang, whose 1992 semi-final lasted five hours and 26 minutes. Edberg won the match 6-7(3), 7-5, 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-4. 

"It was a long one. It was a long, long battle. I thought I played pretty well for the majority of the match. Obviously I was struggling physically, but so was he," Evans said. "It was sort of who could last the longest in the end."

For a moment, it seemed the clash would not make history. Khachanov surged to a 4-0 lead in the fifth set and earned four break points on Evans' serve, but was unable to convert.

"I just carried on fine really. Yeah, just tried to scrape little by little. Each point I was obviously really struggling with my legs. On serve I was fine on return, so that gave me a bit of hope," Evans said. "I think when you're a kid, you're just told to fight until the end. I mean, that's sort of rule one. I've done that pretty consistently for my career. It sort of paid off a bit today."

Returning to the site where he won his maiden major trophy in 2021, Daniil Medvedev took the first step in regaining form Tuesday after early losses in Montreal and Cincinnati. The fifth seed kickstarted his US Open title quest by defeating Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.

“Second set, [Dusan] played an amazing level. I don’t think you can play better than he did. I actually played quite good and lost the set,” said Medvedev, who left the court after the second set to change clothes.“I was really tired at the end of the second set. And then I managed to put some extra pressure on him a little bit. I played aggressive, didn’t face a break point afterwards. Just played a tiny bit better.”

After dropping the second set, a dialled-in Medvedev quickly rebounded by breaking the Serbian to love in his opening service game. Medvedev then was nearly untouched on serve, facing just one break point across the third and fourth sets.

Holding the advantage in forehand-to-forehand rallies, the World No. 5’s brickwall consistency helped him win a lung-busting 32-shot rally to earn an early break in the fourth set. The 28-year-old also showed flashes of superb shotmaking, such as the opening set when he was nearly standing in the first row of the stands, yet ripped a return winner around the net while Lajovic attempted to rush forward.

AROUND THE NET POST?! ?

Who else but @DaniilMedwed ?@usopen | #USOpen pic.twitter.com/HoyJUgErLq

Jannik Sinner needed some time to settle into his latest US Open campaign on Tuesday afternoon in New York. Once the World No. 1 found his rhythm, however, he barely looked back en route to booking his second-round spot at the hard-court major.

Sinner overcame home favourite Mackenzie McDonald 2-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 inside Arthur Ashe Stadium to set a second-round clash with another American, Alex Michelsen. The Italian appeared in real trouble after a first set in which McDonald expertly redirected the ball from the baseline, but he proved too strong from then on and ultimately wrapped a two-hour, 23-minute triumph.

“I started not in the best way, for sure, but the first match in every tournament is not easy," said Sinner in his on-court interview. "You have to accept it. He played really, really well at the beginning and I tried to stay there mentally, tried to get into a rhythm. I did that at some point in the second set and then just tried to keep going, so I’m very happy to be in the next round. It’s the first time that I won here on this court after some attempts, so I’m very happy about this.”

Need for Speed ?️@janniksin recovers from a set down before stepping on the accelerator and booking his spot in the second round. @usopen | #USOpen pic.twitter.com/ZYccXgA7N4

Sinner dropped serve three times during a below-par first-set display, but he responded strongly by converting seven of 13 break points he earned across the second, third and fourth sets. The Italian is now 12-0 in opening rounds at tour-level events this year, and is 12-0 in Grand Slam first rounds dating back to Wimbledon 2021.

#NextGenATP Czech Jakub Mensik clinched a statement win on Tuesday at the US Open, where he upset World No. 19 Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 to record his third Top 20 win.

The 18-year-old earned a major breakthrough in New York last year when he reached the third round at Flushing Meadows on his Grand Slam debut. Twelve months on and at No. 65 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Mensik once again put on a show to dispatch Canadian Auger-Aliassime after two hours and four minutes and reach the second round.

Mensik won 89 per cent (40/45) of his first-serve points and fired 25 winners to level the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 1-1. He will next play Australian wild card Tristan Schoolkate or Japan’s Taro Daniel.

Mensik has enjoyed an impressive season, highlighted by his run to the final in Doha. The 18-year-old is fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah and aiming to make his debut at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in December.

Auger-Aliassime reached the semi-finals at the US Open in 2021. The Canadian’s best result this season was a run to the title match at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid.

Alexander Shevchenko forged a US Open breakthrough on Monday, when the 23-year-old downed Dominik Koepfer in straight sets for his first victory at the hard-court major. His reward? A showdown with home favourite and former semi-finalist Frances Tiafoe in New York.

An explosive baseliner who has risen as high as No. 45 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Shevchenko will be confident of springing an upset in Wednesday’s second-round clash. ATPTour.com caught up with the Kazakhstani for some quickfire questions on life off court and his career highlights so far.

If you could have dinner with any three people, who would they be and why?
First of all, Daniil Medvedev, because I’ve known him for a long time. We play a lot of games with each other, and we have a lot of good topics to speak about. Alexander Bublik, obviously my teammate for the national team and I get along very well with him. He is always joking around, so we would have a nice conversation. And Gael Monfils. He is my idol. I love the way he plays, love the way he acts, and he is just a great person.

Is there any particular match where you wish you could have been the guy who played it?
Nadal against Federer at Wimbledon 2008. I think this is the match. This is the best match in tennis history.

What's something cool you've done off the court because of being a tennis player?
I do a lot of stuff that I could do without being a tennis player, going to parties and stuff like that. But as a tennis player, I still didn't make it to this level where I can do things just because I'm a tennis player. I do a lot of stuff myself, just as a normal human being does.

Novak Djokovic was happy with his start at the US Open on Monday but is aware there is improvement to make. The defending champion was playing his first hard-court match since March in Indian Wells but looked comfortable in New York en route to a straight-sets win against Radu Albot.

“I think it was a solid start,” Djokovic said. "I struggled with my serve and the rhythm on certain shots. Overall from the back of the court I thought I played pretty well. It's always challenging to start, particularly when you haven't played on this surface for five, six months and coming off an Olympic gold and playing on clay. I haven't had any official matches before [the] US Open. So I'm expecting to be probably challenged a little bit more in the opening rounds.

“Hopefully I can play better each day. The good thing about Slams is you have a day between matches where you can train, where you can really work on things and perfect your game. That's what I need. That's what I feel like I need. So I'm going to hit the practice courts [on Tuesday] and work on things that haven't really worked during the match and keep striving to be better.”

The Serbian underwent knee surgery following Roland Garros in June but returned in time to reach the final of Wimbledon before he won Olympic gold in singles at the Paris Olympics. The 37-year-old, who is chasing a record-extending 25th major, confirmed he is feeling physically strong.

“The knee is fine really,” Djokovic said. “I haven't had any issues throughout the entire Olympic tournament and here first round.”

On 11 June, #NextGenATP American Learner Tien posted a series of photos on Instagram of himself competing with the caption, “all in due time”. The last slide of the post was a graphic of two men in a dirt tunnel with a pickaxe. One had turned around dejected due to the seemingly never-ending tunnel. The other was further behind, but eagerly swinging away. Unbeknownst to them, there were diamonds on the other side of the dirt in their way.

“If you work away, inevitably you'll break through. I think that’s was what I was thinking,” Tien told ATPTour.com. “Obviously, with the setback of the injury and coming back and just kind of plugging away in the Futures, I felt like just building on match after match, inevitably I'd be back just because I felt like I’d lost some time.”

The two-time USTA Boys’ 18s National Champion entered the season with high hopes, but only managed to play three tournaments before missing more than three months due to a seventh-rib fracture.

“I believe it was just an overuse thing. It wasn't any blunt force or anything like that. It could have been something on my serve, and I was just kind of irritating the spot,” Tien said. “I felt it more like a knot in my back before my rib started hurting, my lat and rib area. So I think just a lot of tension over time just caused it to break down.”

The injury was in an awkward spot for the 18-year-old, who was unable to do much of anything and limited the impact on his body.

Like slipping into a comfortable bath, Novak Djokovic eased into his title defence at the US Open Monday night, albeit with a few wrinkles to iron out in the coming rounds.

Returning to hard courts for the first time since Indian Wells in March and playing his first tournament since winning Olympic gold on clay in Paris three weeks ago, Djokovic didn’t bring his cleanest game to Arthur Ashe Stadium. The four-time champion threw in 10 double faults, put just 47 per cent of first serves into play and made 40 unforced errors.

But despite the stains on the stats sheet, Djokovic was always in full control of his first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Albot, closing out the 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 win in two hours and seven minutes, sending fans on their way just before midnight.

Joking before the match that he was seeking revenge on Albot, who has wins over his brothers Marko and Djordje, Djokovic captured a record 78th win by a male inside Ashe.

"I wanted to kick start the tournament in the right way and I think I did," Djokovic said on ESPN. "Some ups and downs which I think is normal, getting the rust off your shoulders coming off a different surface and the Olympic Games.

Less complaining, more winning. That has been the motto lately for #NextGenATP star Shang Juncheng and it has proven plenty successful.

The Chinese 19-year-old ticked off his latest first on Monday when he earned his maiden US Open win against 27th seed Alexander Bublik 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 in three hours and 34 minutes. Shang has now reached the second round of every major main draw (also the Australian Open and Wimbledon) he has played this season.

“Very happy and tired. Very tired. Interesting match against Alex. He has everything, he throws anything at you, some second-serve bombs, also drop shots, underarm serves, anything,” Shang said. “You really have to focus the whole match, and I'm glad I did all the way ‘til the end. It was just a good win, and hopefully I can continue.”

It has been the best season of Shang’s young career. The teen is currently third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, putting him in good position to qualify for the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF for the first time.

Results that stand out include his first two ATP Tour semi-finals in Hong Kong and Atlanta, a trip to the third round of the Australian Open and a quarter-final in Eastbourne. Entering 2024 he had not reached a tour-level quarter-final.

He may not be a home favourite nor a former champion, but Diego Schwartzman’s connection with the New York crowd has always run deep.

The former No. 8 in the PIF ATP Rankings completed the final match of his US Open career on Monday afternoon, when he fell to Gael Monfils in four sets on Grandstand. Just a few hours after another former Top 10 star in the PIF ATP Rankings, Dominic Thiem, also completed his final New York match in emotional circumstances, it was fan favourite Schwartzman’s turn to step up to the mic.

“It’s difficult to speak. I am a guy who cries a lot. Sorry,” said a tearful Schwartzman in a post-match interview as the crowd cheered him on. “I’m not supposed to cry now, I have to be strong.”

We're not crying, you're crying ?

❤️ @dieschwartzman @usopen | #USOpen pic.twitter.com/kNxajGLFvM

The two-time US Open quarter-finalist Schwartzman had already summoned one final hurrah in New York by coming through qualifying last week to secure his 11th consecutive main-draw appearance. Monfils proved too strong in Monday’s first-round clash, however, ultimately prevailing 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. Even in defeat, Schwartzman was happy to add some more cherished New York memories before bringing his career to a close.

Andy Murray has been immortalised at his original tennis club, with a 20-foot mural now adorning a once-barren wall at the Dunblane Sports Club in Scotland.

Dubbed the ‘People’s Tribute to Andy Murray’, the work shows the Scot’s trademark roaring celebration with the words: ‘Sir Andy. Warrior. Legend.’

The mural is an initiative developed by Tennis Channel, which has also produced a companion short film, and executed by Sift Creative and their global production team.

Distributed by Tennis Channel, the short film, The People’s Tribute – Sir Andy Murray, features inspirational tributes from fans and people close to Andy, capturing the former World No. 1’s impact on them, the sport and the country. It also features a timelapse of the creation of the mural.

The world’s top-ranked tennis players will arrive in December for the blockbuster United Cup, the innovative mixed team tennis event staged in Perth and Sydney.

From Friday 27 December to Sunday 5 January 2025, the world’s best men and women will compete side-by-side.

Eighteen countries featuring up to three men and up to three women will compete for a minimum US$10 million in prize money and 500 PIF ATP and WTA rankings points.

Perth will open the United Cup on Friday 27 December at RAC Arena, while the group stage in Sydney will begin on Saturday 28 December at Ken Rosewall Arena.

Group winners in each city will advance to the quarterfinals with one quarterfinal spot in each city awarded to the best runner up in that city.