US Open Day 6 Preview: Alcaraz & Brooksby Clash In New York

Carlos Alcaraz’s popcorn clash against Jenson Brooksby headlines the third-round action on Day Six at the US Open, where Spaniard Rafael Nadal and a host of #NextGenATP stars are also in action.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to watch on Saturday in New York.

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1) Alcaraz & Brooksby Showdown: Alcaraz was outside the Top 50 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings when he enjoyed his breakthrough run to the quarter-finals at the US Open last year. Fast forward 12 months and the third-seeded Spaniard is the World No. 4 with title ambitions in New York.

On Saturday, the 19-year-old will face his biggest test yet when he takes on 21-year-old Jenson Brooksby in the third round on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The American has cruised past Serbian Dusan Lajovic and Cincinnati champion Borna Coric in straight sets and will look to use his momentum to upset Alcaraz and claim his second Top 5 win.

Brooksby, who reached his third tour-level final in Atlanta in July, would equal his best result at the hard-court major with victory. The World No. 43, who, like Alcaraz, is regarded as one of the biggest prospects on Tour, soared to the fourth round last year, eventually falling to Novak Djokovic in four sets.

In what is set to be an entertaining first meeting between them, Alcaraz will need to be at his best if he is going to maintain the quest for his first Grand Slam trophy, fifth tour-level title of the season and Tour-leading 47th win of 2022.

2) Nadal Continues March Towards No. 23: Nadal walked off court following his four-set second-round win against Fabio Fognini with tape on his nose after he was left bloodied by his racquet during their encounter on Arthur Ashe.

Having survived that scare and the challenge of Fognini, the 36-year-old Spaniard will look to continue his charge towards a record-extending 23rd major title when he collides with Richard Gasquet on Arthur Ashe. Nadal, who became the first player to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals this week, holds a dominant 17-0 record against the Frenchman.

3) #NextGenATP Stars Aiming To Impress: The #NextGenATP stars will be out in force on Saturday as they aim to take vital steps forward in their quest to qualify for the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals.

Brandon Nakashima, who is making his first appearance in the third round, will take on 11th seed Jannik Sinner in an all-NextGenATP clash, while 20-year-old Italian Lorenzo Musetti faces Hubert Hurkacz's conqueror Ilya Ivashka. Musetti advanced in five sets in his first round against David Goffin before he defeated Dutchman Gijs Brouwer in four. The 19-year-old Dane Holger Rune, currently fourth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan, plays seventh seed Cameron Norrie.

4) Rublev & Schwartzman Ready For Tests: Ninth seed Andrey Rublev and 14th seed Diego Schwartzman will need to be at their best if they are to overcome Denis Shapovalov and Frances Tiafoe, respectively.

Rublev, who reached the quarter-finals in 2020, holds a 2-2 ATP Head2Head series record against Canadian Shapovalov, who has won both their meetings on outdoor hard courts. Two-time quarter-finalist Schwartzman leads American Tiafoe 2-1, but lost their previous meeting in Vienna last year.

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5) Kokkinakis & Kyrgios In Doubles Action: Australian Open champions Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios will look to entertain and improve to 16-3 on the season as a team when they take on Andre Goransson and Yoshihito Nishioka in the second round of the doubles.

Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski became the first team to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals following their first-round win in Flushing Meadows. The second seeds will play Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow.