Auger-Aliassime upsets world No. 3 Zverev to reach U.S. Open 4th round; Shapovalov eliminated
Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal promised fans he was “getting closer” after a recent rash of disappointing showings.
After taking down the world’s third-ranked Alexander Zverev of Germany in Saturday’s third round of the U.S. Open, he wagged his finger at Louis Armstrong Stadium to indicate he’s not going anywhere but up at the Grand Slam in the Big Apple.
“This one feels very good,” the 25-year-old smiling Canadian said moments after the milestone victory, which marked the first time he had beaten a player ranked in the top five at a major.
“I’ve worked very hard to get here, but the job is still not done. But this one feels so great.”
Auger-Aliassime defeated Zverev 4-6, 7-6 (7), 6-4, 6-4 in three hours, 49 minutes to move on to the fourth round and a Monday date with Andrey Rublev of Russia.
Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime defeats world No. 3 Alexander Zverev of Germany 4-6, 7-6 (7), 6-4, 6-4 for his first-ever victory over a top-5 player at a Grand Slam. Auger-Aliassime will face No. 15 seed Andrey Rublev of Russia in the fourth round.
Auger-Aliassime dominated on winners with 50 compared to Zverev’s 29. The Canadian had more unforced errors (35-31) and double faults (8-5), and fewer aces (12-10).
But the tide in the match changed in the third set and by the time the players reached the fourth set Zverev appeared to run out of ways to solve his 25th-seeded rival.
Auger-Aliassime won 78 per cent of his first and second serves. He won three of six break points and 14 per cent of the return games.
Shapovalov falls to Sinner
Earlier Saturday, Canadian Denis Shapovalov was ousted from the U.S. Open following a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 third-round loss to top-ranked Jannik Sinner of Italy.
The Richmond Hill, Ont., native leapt out to a 5-2 lead until Sinner stormed back to knot things up at 5-5 before the 27th-seeded Shapovalov took the opening set.
In the second set, Shapovalov held a 3-2 edge before Sinner won four of the next five games to even up the match at one set apiece.
Shapovalov again jumped out to an early lead, this time 3-0, in the third set. However, Sinner went on to win the next six games to put the Canadian on his heels.
In the fourth and final set, it was Sinner who grabbed some early momentum, taking a 4-1 lead to eventually close out the match.
Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., was defeated 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 Saturday in the fourth round of play at the U.S. Open.
Shapovalov had 15 aces to nine double faults and converted three of his six breakpoint opportunities. However, he had 47 unforced errors to Sinner’s 36.
Sinner, meanwhile, had just two aces and five double faults while breaking on six of 13 chances.
In women’s doubles action, Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., alongside American tennis legend Venus Williams, marched through to the third round with a 7-6 (1), 6-1 win over Japan’s Eri Hozumi and Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri.
Fernandez and Williams broke on four of their seven chances, won 79 per cent of their first-serve points and fired 29 winners to their opponents’ 19.
The duo will next face the winner between Great Britain’s Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal and Shuai Zhang and Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Swiatek prevails
In other results Saturday, Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek clawed her way back from 5-1 down in the opening set against Anna Kalinskaya before grinding out a 7-6(2) 6-4 victory.
“I’m happy that I came back and kept … figuring out and problem-solving,” Swiatek said. “For sure, it wasn’t an easy match.”
The Pole was far from her sharpest in a scrappy, error-strewn contest. Nine breaks and 67 unforced errors by both players combined painted the picture of a match won through sheer bloody-mindedness, rather than sublime shot-making.
Yet Swiatek steadied herself at the key moments, saving four set points in the first set and breaking late in the second to notch her 20th major match win of the season and draw level with defending champion and world number one Aryna Sabalenka.
Her reward is a last-16 meeting with 13th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Earlier, Brazilian 18th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, last year’s quarter-finalist, hammered former world number three Maria Sakkari 6-1 6-2 on Louis Armstrong Stadium to set up a clash with Wimbledon runner-up Amanda Anisimova.
Osaka advances to face Gauff
The extended Labour Day weekend’s most intriguing battle of wills is yet to come, as Naomi Osaka and Coco Gauff set up a fourth-round showdown that will dominate the headlines on Monday.
Four-time major champion Osaka overcame a mid-match wobble to overpower 15th seed Daria Kasatkina 6-0 4-6 6-3, while last year’s champion Gauff dismissed Poland’s Magdalena Frech 6-3 6-1 in her most convincing performance of the week.
Organizers could not have scripted it better for U.S. fans: a showdown between two charismatic former champions six years after their memorable first meeting at Flushing Meadows.
In 2019, defending champion Osaka routed a tearful 15-year-old Gauff 6-3 6-0, then comforted her opponent and urged her to address fans in the stadium, a display of sportsmanship that delighted the crowd.
“It would be a cool kind of deja vu type of situation, but hopefully it will be a different result,” Gauff said.
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