After watching Carlos Alcaraz's stunning defeat of Stefanos Tsitsipas Friday, 20-year-olds Jannik Sinner and Jenson Brooksby will have their sights set on joining the teen in the second week of the US Open when they suit up for battle at Flushing Meadows Saturday.
Sinner, who at 10th in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin is driving towards the Nitto ATP Finals on home soil in Italy, will take on French showman Gael Monfils, 15 years his senior. Brooksby, who has emerged as one of the United States' brightest new talents, tackles the breakout star of the first part of 2021, Russian Aslan Karatsev.
Sinner, the 13th seed, takes a 1-1 ATP Head2Head record with 17th seed Monfils into their third-round meeting, which is fourth match on Louis Armstrong Stadium. After blasting 106 winners in his first two matches this week, the 2019 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion may need to find a different path to victory against Monfils, who will likely entrench himself deep behind the baseline and test Sinner's patience and shot selection.
Sinner is looking to reach the second week of a major for the second time this season, following his run to the Roland Garros fourth round. Monfils, who has six times been to the second week at Flushing Meadows, including in 2016 when he reached the semi-finals, last reached the fourth round at a major at the 2020 Australian Open.
When California-native Brooksby won through Roland Garros qualifying in late May to play Karatsev in the first round, he had just one tour-level win to his name. In contrast, the Russian was 21-8 on the season, with a run to the semi-finals of the Australian Open and his first ATP Tour title in Dubai under his belt.
Brooksby suffered a straight-sets defeat but now has the momentum on his side, having won 10 of his past 13 tour-level matches while Karatsev had just two match wins since Paris coming into the US Open.
Both players are coming off gritty second-round wins. Karatsev rallied from two sets down to beat Australian Jordan Thompson; Brooksby toughed out a 6-7(7), 7-6(10), 7-5, 6-2 victory over fellow American Taylor Fritz after four hours and six minutes.
“It was really important mentally, [it means] you’re getting tougher,” Karatsev said after his win. “Especially when I had the last losses in the Grand Slams – Roland Garros, Wimbledon – and the US tournaments, so I think it’s really important to my confidence."
Brooksby also spoke of the confidence gained by pulling out a tight win over Fritz. "After a tough first set I was a little more down on myself and was able to switch it around and stay focused on what’s in my control,” Brooksby said. “It definitely showed in being able to turn that around today, so I’m happy with my growth mentally.”
At the top end of town, No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic and fourth seed Alexander Zverev will look to take another step towards a possible semi-final showdown when they start heavy favourites in their third-round matches.
Djokovic, looking to become the first male player since Rod Laver in 1969 to complete the Grand Slam, takes a commanding 16-match winning streak into his clash with Kei Nishikori. But one of Nishikori’s two career wins over Djokovic came in 2014 at the US Open during his charge to the final.
Zverev, who has not faced a break point in his opening two wins and is riding a 13-match winning streak dating back to his title run at the Tokyo Olympics, will be heavily favoured to beat World No. 184 American Jack Sock, who has just six wins on the season. But the American has worked hard to rebuild his career and won’t go down without a fight. The 28-year-old also holds a 2-1 ATP Head2Head lead over the German and won their last meeting at the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals.
Seventh seed Denis Shapovalov, who this week has broken out of his post-Wimbledon funk, faces his toughest test of the tournament to date against dangerous South African Lloyd Harris. The World No. 46 upset the Canadian in a third-set tie-break earlier this year in their only meeting and is high on confidence after ousting Olympic silver medallist Karen Khachanov in the first round.
19 1-18 2015 wimby vs Paire Inspired shotmaking at net and back of the court rifled .
Sinner, who at 10th in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin is driving towards the Nitto ATP Finals on home soil in Italy, will take on French showman Gael Monfils, 15 years his senior. Brooksby, who has emerged as one of the United States' brightest new talents, tackles the breakout star of the first part of 2021, Russian Aslan Karatsev.
Sinner, the 13th seed, takes a 1-1 ATP Head2Head record with 17th seed Monfils into their third-round meeting, which is fourth match on Louis Armstrong Stadium. After blasting 106 winners in his first two matches this week, the 2019 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion may need to find a different path to victory against Monfils, who will likely entrench himself deep behind the baseline and test Sinner's patience and shot selection.
Sinner is looking to reach the second week of a major for the second time this season, following his run to the Roland Garros fourth round. Monfils, who has six times been to the second week at Flushing Meadows, including in 2016 when he reached the semi-finals, last reached the fourth round at a major at the 2020 Australian Open.
When California-native Brooksby won through Roland Garros qualifying in late May to play Karatsev in the first round, he had just one tour-level win to his name. In contrast, the Russian was 21-8 on the season, with a run to the semi-finals of the Australian Open and his first ATP Tour title in Dubai under his belt.
Brooksby suffered a straight-sets defeat but now has the momentum on his side, having won 10 of his past 13 tour-level matches while Karatsev had just two match wins since Paris coming into the US Open.
Both players are coming off gritty second-round wins. Karatsev rallied from two sets down to beat Australian Jordan Thompson; Brooksby toughed out a 6-7(7), 7-6(10), 7-5, 6-2 victory over fellow American Taylor Fritz after four hours and six minutes.
“It was really important mentally, [it means] you’re getting tougher,” Karatsev said after his win. “Especially when I had the last losses in the Grand Slams – Roland Garros, Wimbledon – and the US tournaments, so I think it’s really important to my confidence."
Brooksby also spoke of the confidence gained by pulling out a tight win over Fritz. "After a tough first set I was a little more down on myself and was able to switch it around and stay focused on what’s in my control,” Brooksby said. “It definitely showed in being able to turn that around today, so I’m happy with my growth mentally.”
At the top end of town, No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic and fourth seed Alexander Zverev will look to take another step towards a possible semi-final showdown when they start heavy favourites in their third-round matches.
Djokovic, looking to become the first male player since Rod Laver in 1969 to complete the Grand Slam, takes a commanding 16-match winning streak into his clash with Kei Nishikori. But one of Nishikori’s two career wins over Djokovic came in 2014 at the US Open during his charge to the final.
Zverev, who has not faced a break point in his opening two wins and is riding a 13-match winning streak dating back to his title run at the Tokyo Olympics, will be heavily favoured to beat World No. 184 American Jack Sock, who has just six wins on the season. But the American has worked hard to rebuild his career and won’t go down without a fight. The 28-year-old also holds a 2-1 ATP Head2Head lead over the German and won their last meeting at the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals.
Seventh seed Denis Shapovalov, who this week has broken out of his post-Wimbledon funk, faces his toughest test of the tournament to date against dangerous South African Lloyd Harris. The World No. 46 upset the Canadian in a third-set tie-break earlier this year in their only meeting and is high on confidence after ousting Olympic silver medallist Karen Khachanov in the first round.
19 1-18 2015 wimby vs Paire Inspired shotmaking at net and back of the court rifled .