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It was fifth time lucky for Li Tu on Tuesday night in the Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Facing Carlos Alcaraz, the Australian had let slip four set points that would have levelled his first-round US Open clash against the Spaniard after two sets. However, at the fifth time of asking, Tu made no such mistake and he lifted his hand to his ear as the arena exploded, celebrating the fact that they were witnessing an intense battle, which was now tied thanks to the heroics of the No. 186 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

“It’s something I’ve often said I have to improve on; ‘disconnections’,” Alcaraz reflected later. “I went out for the match really focused and up for it, knowing what I had to do at all times. Of course, his game helped everything go smoothly because he made a lot of errors, I think he was a little nervous. Then, in the second set, he upped his level and I made a lot of unnecessary mistakes. I’ve seen the stats... I went from two in the first set to 18 in the second. That’s a big change and that’s why the set got away from me.

“These are things I have to improve, avoiding those kinds of disconnections. I can’t allow myself to make so many errors without knowing why. In general, I’m happy with my level and the way I hit the ball and moved. I felt good, apart from those small things I have to improve on.”

In any case, the win has allowed Alcaraz to break a new barrier; he now has 60 major wins under his belt. Only John McEnroe, by one match, required fewer encounters to reach the mark.

Serbian Novak Djokovic advanced to the US Open third round Wednesday when his countryman Laslo Djere retired early in the third set. The second seed led 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 before the retirement under the roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium.

“It’s not what we want. It’s not what the crowd wants, to see a walkover,” Djokovic said. “But he obviously had an injury that took him out of the Tour for some time and he is struggling to come back physically to this level. He’s such a good player, especially in these conditions. It should’ve been his second set, honestly. It was 4-2, 15/40.

“Overall, it was a big fight. Over two hours for two sets. I served awful. So playing without the serve, you have to grind, you have to run. So I guess I had to rely on my baseline game.”

Djere held two break points at 4-2 in the second set that would have allowed him to serve for the set had he converted. The 29-year-old did not win another game. He called a medical timeout before serving at 4-5 and received treatment in the abdominal area.

Djokovic made just 47 per cent of his first serves, the same percentage he recorded in the first round against Radu Albot. After sealing the opening set by breaking Djere to love at 5-4, Djokovic called the physio and took a tablet, though he did not call a medical timeout. Both players were visibly gasping for air at times following lengthy rallies in the humid conditions.

Taylor Fritz produced a dominant performance Wednesday at the US Open, where the 12th seed downed 2019 semi-finalist Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 7-6(1), 6-1 to reach the third round.

The American No. 1 earned an early break against the 6’5” Italian and rarely looked back. Fritz raced through his service games and dropped just four points behind his hefty first delivery — and as many behind his second serve.

Fritz played tight to the baseline on return, countering the usual monstrous serving of Berrettini with early, compact cuts at the ball. Across two hours and nine minutes, Fritz committed 18 unforced errors.

"I came in really focused. I felt like I was just locked in every point, something I was kind of upset with myself about my first-round match," Fritz said. "I was just ready to go. Matteo is an extremely good player, a super tough second round. So I came in extra locked in."

Following his second-round victory, Fritz became the fourth man to record 40 match wins this season behind Alexander Zverev (54), Jannik Sinner (49) and Casper Ruud (46). Carlos Alcaraz will join that group with a win Thursday. The California native Fritz remained perfect against Berrettini, improving to 4-0 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

Three years ago, Botic van de Zandschulp faced Carlos Alcaraz for the first time in the first round of the Australian Open. Both players were qualifiers, new on the scene, and their clash was on an outer court at Melbourne Park. Van de Zandschulp was No. 151 in the PIF ATP Rankings and Alcaraz, then 17, was not much higher at No. 141.

“What I was most impressed about was how he started. He was fully pumped, aggressive in a good way. That took me a little bit off actually, I had never played him,” van de Zandschulp told ATPTour.com. “Of course I’d seen him play and you hear all the talk about him. But that’s what I was most impressed about: the ferocity he was playing with, how he was hitting, the power he had. That was insane.”

Alcaraz won the match 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 and they will meet again at a major on Thursday in the second round of the US Open. This time, the Spaniard will walk on court a four-time Grand Slam champion.

“It’s always nice to compare yourself to players like Alcaraz, Djokovic, Sinner. I played Sinner for example twice this year. First time, it’s nice. Second time in the first round, you think, ‘Man, maybe a little better later in the tournament?’” van de Zandschulp said. “But it’s always interesting to play these guys because I think after the match, you always know where you have to get better — which kind of situations, what kind of shots. I think you can learn a lot from those matches.”

Watch Alcaraz-van de Zandschulp 2022 Basel Highlights:

Lorenzo Musetti reversed his fortunes in a flash Wednesday at the US Open.

After facing two match points at 4-5 in the fifth set of his match against Miomir Kecmanovic, the Italian rallied for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 victory and with it a place in the third round at Flushing Meadows.

Musetti has found the form of his career, reaching his first major semi-final at Wimbledon and claiming the bronze medal in men’s singles at the Paris Olympics. But the 18th seed flirted with an early exit in New York.

Kecmanovic held two match points on return but was never able to gain control of the point on either occasion. Musetti finished the match with 51 winners and he converted six of his 13 break points.

The 22-year-old will next take on Brandon Nakashima in a battle of Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF alumni. The American defeated Frenchman Arthur Cazaux 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

Ben Shelton made it six sets played, six sets won at this year’s US Open on Wednesday when he dispatched Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 to reach the third round.

The 21-year-old American earned a breakthrough run in New York last year when he became the youngest American man to reach the semis at the hard-court major since Michael Chang in 1992.

After defeating former champion Dominic Thiem in the first round, Shelton laid down an impressive marker against Bautista Agut to underline his hopes of another deep run on home soil. The No. 13 player in the PIF ATP Rankings struck 59 winners, including 17 aces to triumph after two hours and 10 minutes. He saved both break points he faced and let out a roar after sealing victory in front of a lively crowd on Grandstand.

"I thought I moved extremely well," Shelton said. "I served well and hit my forehand well and didn't get broken today and was clutch at the big moments when I needed to be. I am happy with where my game is at."

Shelton will next play countryman Frances Tiafoe. The 13th seed overcame Tiafoe in the quarter-finals last year to reach his first major semi-final at the US Open.

Last year Alex Michelsen sat in Learner Tien’s players’ box when his fellow #NextGenATP American played Frances Tiafoe in the first round of the US Open inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. It was a memorable experience for the Californian.

“The court is absolutely sick, probably the best court in the world,” Michelsen told ATPTour.com. “There is no tennis stadium that's bigger. I was just kind of looking up and looking at all those people. I was like, ‘Wow, that's pretty cool’. Obviously, in the back of my head, I was like, ‘I want to play here’.”

The 20-year-old will get his wish Thursday afternoon. Michelsen will face Jannik Sinner, the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, in the second round at Flushing Meadows inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

It will be a rematch of the pair’s recent Lexus ATP Head2Head showdown at the Cincinnati Open, where Sinner triumphed 6-4, 7-5 and eventually lifted the trophy.

“It was good. I feel like I had a lot of chances. I had eight break points I didn't get. And I feel like… that would be a little bit of a confidence booster for me, knowing that I had all these opportunities, and we're just going to see how it goes,” Michelsen said. “I'm going to go out there and I'm going to compete my hardest.

Andrey Rublev is one of the fiercest competitors on the ATP Tour and on Wednesday, the 26-year-old showed every bit of his fighting spirit by coming back from two-sets-to-love down at the US Open. The sixth seed overcame Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 after four hours and six minutes in gruelling New York conditions.

It was Rublev’s second victory from two-sets-to-love down, having done so in the first round of Roland Garros in 2020 against Sam Querrey.

The 16-time tour-level titlist shifted the momentum of the match by breaking Rinderknech to love in the Frenchman’s opening service game of the third set. In the decider, Rinderknech double faulted down break point at 2-2, deflating his hopes of earning the first Top 10 win of his career.

Rublev, No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings, held the advantage in extended rallies, including a 37-ball exchange in the second set that left Rinderknech lying on the floor, gasping for air as the crowd provided a standing ovation. Rublev improved to 3-0 against Rinderknech in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series. He beat the 29-year-old last year at Flushing Meadows and again four weeks ago in Washington.

Rublev will next face Jiri Lehecka, who needed a two-sets-to-love comeback of his own to advance. The Czech beat American qualifier Mitchell Krueger 6-7(5), 0-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5. From 6-5 in the opening set, the 32nd seed Lehecka dropped 11 consecutive games and found himself down a break at 0-3 in the third set. Lehecka finished with 67 winners, including 29 aces. Rublev and Lehecka have split their previous four encounters.

Eighth seeds Neal Skupski and Michael Venus overcame Hugo Gaston and Gregoire Jacq 6-3, 6-3 Wednesday to advance to the second round of the US Open.

The duo won 90 per cent of first-serve points to overcome the French team in 64 minutes. The eighth seeds are vying for their third title together this season after winning the cinch Championships and Rothesay International.

The pair will face Guido Andreozzi and N.Sriram Balaji in the next round. Andreozzi/Balaji overcame Marcus Daniell and Miguel Reyes-Varela in a tight 5-7, 6-1, 7-6(10) victory. Andreozzi and Balaji squandered three match points in the final-set tiebreak at 9/6 but remained composed enough close out the match in two hours, 36 minutes.

Fourth seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic progressed to the next round with a 6-3, 6-4 win over #NextGenATP Arthur Fils and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.

The No. 1 pair in the PIF ATP Rankings Doubles Race won 87 per cent of their first-serve points and capitalised on their two break point opportunities to see off the French duo. Victory ensured that they become the first doubles team to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals.

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.