On Day 4 of the US Open, the remaining second-round men’s singles matches were completed. The day included several surprising results. Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz, world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, and 2021 US Open winner Daniil Medvedev played their second-round matches. This piece recaps who looked good, which players found things more complicated, and gives the best match of the day.
US Open Day 4 Men’s Recap
Who Looked good
Botic van de Zandschulp produced a career-best performance to stun Carlos Alcaraz 6-1 7-5 6-4 on Arthur Ashe Stadium. Although Alcaraz was not at his best, the Dutchman’s level was a stunning show of aggressive and fearless tennis, and the headlines should be about how well he played rather than the Spaniard’s struggles.
Daniil Medvedev avoided Alcaraz’s fate against the dangerous Fabian Marozsan on Day 4. He was patient in the rallies during his 6-3 6-2 7-6 win. The six-time Grand Slam finalist broke his opponent an impressive eight times throughout the contest.
The No. 10 seed, Alex de Minaur, was another straight-sets winner at the US Open. The Australian had a couple of tough sets against Otto Virtanen in his 7-5 6-1 7-6 triumph. De Minaur played the pivotal points better than Virtanen, which was the primary difference between the players.
Gabriel Diallo played an excellent match to shock the talented Frenchman Arthur Fils 7-5 6-7 6-4 6-4. The level was high during the match from start to finish, and Fils was knocked out despite playing a good match. His opponent was in inspired form.
Who Looked Bad
Hubert Hurkacz played a poor match by his standards during his surprising 7-6 6-1 7-5 loss to Jordan Thompson at the US Open. This year’s Atlanta Open runner-up deserves credit for his performance, but he did not to play overly well to topple the No. 7 seed. Hurkacz, usually one of the best servers in the game, was broken five times throughout the match.
Sebastian Korda was also the victim of an upset; by his high standards, he produced an abysmal level. Tomas Machac eased to a 6-4 6-2 6-4 win at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Korda claimed the Citi DC Open title a few weeks ago but has yet to play his best tennis at Grand Slams.
Alex Michelsen did not do himself justice against the Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner. The Italian never had to play anywhere near his best to beat the American, whose usually formidable serve repeatedly let him down during his 4-6 0-6 2-6 defeat.
Match of the Day
Jakub Mensik’s stunning comeback against Tristan Schoolkate was the best men’s match on Day 4 of the US Open. After several breaks of serve, a tiebreak decided the opening set, and Schoolkate won it to take the opening set 7-6. The Australian was on the brink of victory when he raced to a tw0-sets love lead by securing the second 6-2. However, after claiming the third set 6-2, Mensik saved two match points at 4-5 15-40 down in the fourth before leveling the match after winning the tiebreak 7-5.
A 10-point tiebreak was needed to decide the match after several outstanding shots from both men in the fifth set. Unfortunately for Schoolkate, his game crumbled somewhat, allowing Mensik to triumph 10-3 in the tiebreak and complete a 6-7 2-6 7-6 7-6 victory.
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
