The Arthur Ashe Stadium served as host to a dominant display by world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, who charged past Australian Alexei Popyrin with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 win in barely over two hours, advancing to the third round at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
“The first-round matches are always different than the further you go on, so I’m very happy that I managed these matches as good as I could,” the four-time major winner outlined after the match.
On Tuesday, Sinner launched his campaign with a solid 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 triumph over Czech Vit Kopriva after one hour and 38 minutes.
In his seventh appearance at the US Open, the first with the title and the year-end No. 1 on the line, the top seed extended his winning streak to 23 matches in majors staged on hard courts, in blistering form, yet to drop a set this season at Flushing Meadows.
Next, the Italian No. 1 will face off against 27th seed Denis Shapovalov, who earlier rallied to overcome Frenchman Valentin Royer in four sets after a grueling three-hour, 36-minute encounter.
The Wimbledon champion broke early in the first set, charging to produce a fitting outcome, wrapping up proceedings 6-3 in just 43 minutes.
Popyrin, who shocked 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic at last year’s US Open, got outplayed by the 24-year-old in New York, missing out on the few chances he had in the second set.
Sinner did not stay as sharp on serve as usual, and as the second set wore on, the Sydney native briefly found his rhythm behind his booming service; however, his momentum was short-lived as his rival saved all three break-point opportunities he faced throughout the set.
“Today I felt like we both didn’t serve great, but I was returning very well, especially on the second serve,” asserted the 20-time ATP titlist.
“I’m very happy about today. Obviously, I’m aiming to improve the serve, but the rest I feel quite comfortable.”
The Italian player neutralized the former Canada Open winner’s groundstrokes, breaking his adversary twice, before earning a two-set advantage.
Striking the ball cleanly, the San Candido native played with aggression from the baseline, breaking twice before pocketing the set 6-2, punching his ticket to the third round.
Overall, he hit 26 winners against 20 unforced errors compared to Popyrin, 22 and 20, respectively.
In addition, he fended off all five break points he faced, winning 51 percent of his receiving points.
Elsewhere, 10th seed Lorenzo Musetti eased past former world No. 7 David Goffin, winning the match 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 with a scintillating performance to secure his spot in the Slam third round for the third time in his career.
Courtside, the 23-year-old commented: “I played a really intense match. With David, you can never have drops. Today, I think it was a pretty solid performance from my side. So, I’m really happy.”
Previously, Sinner’s compatriot earned a hard-fought 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Meanwhile, Court 17 staged a five-setter showpiece, featuring young Italian and 26th seed Flavio Cobolli against American Jenson Brooksby, competing at his home Grand Slam for the first time since 2022.
The breathtaking four-hour, 32-minute contest saw a world-class tennis display, with the finest of margins separating the players, which led to a 10-point match tiebreaker decider.
Ultimately, Cobolli, 23, came out on top with a 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(3) win, nailed in the deciding tiebreak.
Musetti and Cobolli will play for a place in the round of 16, an all-Italian eye-catching clash not to be missed.