Carlos Alcaraz maintained his efficient march through the US Open draw, dispatching France’s Arthur Rinderknech 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-4 to make a fourth quarter-final in five New York appearances—still without dropping a set this fortnight.
The opener, tight despite low first-serve percentages on both sides and no break points, turned on a Rinderknech double fault that ceded momentum in the tie-break.
From there, Alcaraz dialed up the baseline weight and improvisational flair—36 winners to 11 unforced errors—including a cheeky around-the-back return that brought Arthur Ashe to its feet.
He broke midway through the second set with a smash and, after fending off two break points, closed it out before applying scoreboard pressure again late in the third.
Next is 20th seed Jiří Lehečka, who outlasted Adrian Mannarino in five after briefly wobbling in sets three and four.
In the night session, No 4 seed Taylor Fritz swept Tomáš Macháč 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 without facing a break point, booking a blockbuster with 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic.
The American, last year’s runner-up to Jannik Sinner in New York, called it his sharpest performance of the week and said he hopes a partisan crowd can be a “fourth gear” against the sport’s ultimate closer.
With Alcaraz clean through and Djokovic looming on the other half, the ingredients are there for a heavyweight finish—if the Spaniard can keep the errors lean and the fireworks measured when the rallies turn scrappy under the lights.
The opener, tight despite low first-serve percentages on both sides and no break points, turned on a Rinderknech double fault that ceded momentum in the tie-break.
From there, Alcaraz dialed up the baseline weight and improvisational flair—36 winners to 11 unforced errors—including a cheeky around-the-back return that brought Arthur Ashe to its feet.
He broke midway through the second set with a smash and, after fending off two break points, closed it out before applying scoreboard pressure again late in the third.
Next is 20th seed Jiří Lehečka, who outlasted Adrian Mannarino in five after briefly wobbling in sets three and four.
In the night session, No 4 seed Taylor Fritz swept Tomáš Macháč 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 without facing a break point, booking a blockbuster with 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic.
The American, last year’s runner-up to Jannik Sinner in New York, called it his sharpest performance of the week and said he hopes a partisan crowd can be a “fourth gear” against the sport’s ultimate closer.
With Alcaraz clean through and Djokovic looming on the other half, the ingredients are there for a heavyweight finish—if the Spaniard can keep the errors lean and the fireworks measured when the rallies turn scrappy under the lights.
