US open: Sinner, Swiatek advance; Alcaraz stunned

NEW YORK, August 30

Former champion Carlos Alcaraz was dumped out of the US Open in a stunning straight-sets defeat by world number 74 Botic van de Zandschulp on Thursday, while top seeds Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek moved on to the third round with little fuss.

Spanish third seed Alcaraz was fully expected to extend his 15-match winning streak at the Grand Slams but the Wimbledon and French Open champion got off to a horrible start and never recovered, going down 6-1 7-5 6-4 in the second round.

Van de Zandschulp, the first Dutchman to defeat a player in the top three at a major since Richard Krajicek beat Pete Sampras in the 1996 Wimbledon quarters, will next play Britain’s Jack Draper.

“It was a fight against myself, you know, in my mind during the match. In tennis you are playing against someone that wants the same as you,” said Alcaraz.

“Today I was playing against the opponent, and I was playing against myself.” There was far less drama earlier in the day at Arthur Ashe Stadium, where Poland’s Swiatek swatted aside Japanese qualifier Ena Shibahara 6-0 6-1 in a little over an hour. She plays unseeded Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova next.

Australian Open winner Sinner was similarly untroubled in dispatching American Alex Michelsen 6-4 6-0 6-2, taking just 99 minutes to complete his ATP Tour-leading 30th hardcourt win of the year.

The Italian, who will play Australian Chris O’Connell next, has been dogged by controversy at Flushing Meadows after it was revealed days before the tournament he escaped a ban and was cleared of wrongdoing despite failing two drug tests this year.

He said he tested positive for a banned substance after his physio applied an over-the-counter spray to a cut on his own hand before carrying out treatments in March. Sinner fired both his physio and trainer last week. “Not easy, obviously, to find now in the middle of the season, you know, the physical trainer and the physio,” said Sinner. “We try our best to find the best people, and then we see.”

Bopanna-Ebden move to Round 2

Rohan Bopanna and his Australian partner Matthew Ebden moved into the second round of the US Open men’s doubles competition with a win over Netherland’s Sander Arends and Robin Haase. Bopanna and Ebden sailed past their Dutch opponents 6-3, 7-5 in a 64-minute opening round contest on Thursday night. Last edition’s runner up, the Indo-Australian pair has arrived to the final Grand Slam of the season on the back of three consecutive losses but the duo backed itself and got the job done