WHAT HAPPENED: Two of the most athletic players in tennis treated Arthur Ashe Stadium to a dazzling display of shot-making in an entertaining fourth-round showdown at the 2024 US Open. Home favorite Tommy Paul, roared on by a raucous American crowd, gave top-seeded Jannik Sinner all he could handle for two sets before the Italian created some late separation in a 7-6(3), 7-6(5), 6-1 victory Monday night.
Some fans in the partisan crowd may have been disappointed with the result, but all in attendance were thrilled with the two-hour, 42-minute show. Both the drama and the ball-striking peaked on a lung-busting 18-ball rally in the crucial second-set tiebreak, with Sinner thumping a backhand passing shot after a mad scramble to level the breaker at 4-4.
Even the biggest Paul backers couldn't help but applaud that effort. After two big serves, Sinner secured a two-set lead with two aggressive swings while returning on set point. Three games after that, the Italian had one foot in the quarterfinals with a 3-0 third-set lead. He would wrap up the final frame in a tidy 39 minutes after titanic tussles of an hour or more in the first two sets.
"It's a huge honor to play on this court here. The evening session is always very, very nice. Thanks everyone for the support, it's amazing," Sinner said.
Paul started the stronger of the two, breaking twice to take an early 4-1 lead. But Sinner won four straight games to pull ahead, and then rattled off four straight points to close out the opening tiebreak from 3-3.
"For sure mentally I didn't start very well. I was a double break down in the first set. I tried to stay there mentally and for sure this today was one of the keys to win this match," Sinner reflected, noting that windy conditions kept both players from consistently playing their best. "There are some ups and downs obviously in best of five, it's normal to have. But finding my rhythm in the end of the match hopefully helps for the next match."
WHAT IT MEANS: Sinner is now the only man this year to reach the quarterfinals at all four Grand Slams. The 23-year-old won his maiden major title at the Australian Open before reaching the Roland Garros semis and the Wimbledon quarters.
Now on an eight-match winning streak dating back to the start of his Cincinnati title run, Sinner has matched his best result at the US Open: a quarterfinal showing in 2022. That year, his run was ended by eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz in a historic, five-set thriller that ended at a record-late 2:50 a.m.
Another epic could be in store when Sinner takes on 2021 US Open champ and two-time runner-up Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals. Medvedev leads that rivalry, 7-5, with the pair splitting two Grand Slam meetings at the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year.
"Tough match. It's going to be a lot of rallies, so hopefully I'll be ready physically. It's going to be a physical match, also a mental match," Sinner said. "I won in Australia, he then won in Wimbledon. That was five sets. So hopefully it's going to be a good match. We'll try to do our best on court, hopefully you guys enjoy the next one and then we'll see how it goes."
Medvedev won his first six meetings against Sinner before the Italian claimed five straight, a streak that ended with Medvedev's victory the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
MATCH POINT: Sinner is the eighth male player to reach all four major quarterfinals in the same season since 2000. He joins an illustrious list that also includes Novak Djokovic (8 times), Roger Federer (8), Rafael Nadal (5), Andy Murray (4), David Ferrer (2), Stan Wawrinka (1) and Andre Agassi (1).
