Follow live coverage of day five at the 2024 US Open
Day 5 of the U.S. Open begins the third round.
Americans Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe play the highlight match of the day on Arthur Ashe Stadium, with Coco Gauff,
Here’s what to watch on the three show courts and around the grounds:
Arthur Ashe
Start time: Noon ET, 9 a.m. PT
TV: ESPN, Tennis Channel
Elina Svitolina (27) vs. Coco Gauff (3)
Once Coco Gauff figured out that Tatjana Maria’s slice couldn’t hurt her, their second-round match was done. After looking streaky in winning first set, the American defending champion raced to victory, serving up a bagel 6-0 set in the second. Elina Svitolina will provide a more conventional and sterner test.
Ben Shelton (13) vs. Frances Tiafoe (20)
A rerun of the fourth round last year, in which Shelton announced himself as the hottest property in American’s men’s tennis — by beating the man who had been on fire before him. “That wasn’t something I was pleased about by any means,” Tiafoe said this week. Shelton said he lives for matches like this, in stadiums like this, even though the widespread expectation that this match would headline the night session proved to be misplaced.
Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe’s match is the biggest draw. (Sarah Stier / Getty Images)
Alexei Popyrin (28) vs. Novak Djokovic (2)
A rerun of two Grand Slam matches earlier this year. Both of them wins for Djokovic; both of them more testing than the scoreline would suggest. Popyrin, an Australian always blessed with a big first serve and devastating forehand, has added some solidity and craft to his tools in recent months, and he won the Canadian Open earlier this month. In so doing, he became the first Australian male player to win an ATP 1000 tennis tournament since Lleyton Hewitt in 2003. Djokovic has looked uncomfortable for much of the first two rounds, toiling past Laslo Djere in the second with the help of his opponent retiring due to injury. Popyrin will be more difficult still, but cooler conditions should help Djokovic.
Ekaterina Alexandrova (29) vs. Aryna Sabalenka (2)
Alexandrova showed commendable resolve to come through three sets against American 16 year old Iva Jovic, but Sabalenka has won 13 sets in a row and loves hard-court tennis. Were Alexandrova to win, it would be the biggest upset of the women’s draw by some distance.
GO DEEPER
How tears and a telephone in Toronto changed Aryna Sabalenka’s tennis life
Louis Armstrong
Start time: 11 a.m. ET, 8 a.m. PT
TV: ESPN, Tennis Channel
Elena-Gabriela Ruse (Q) vs. Paula Badosa (26)
Emma Navarro (13) vs. Marta Kostyuk (19)
Marta Kostyuk stayed cool in the heat and humidity Wednesday. On the face of it, beating Britain’s Harriet Dart in straight sets is a smooth win, but Kostyuk had to come through a 22-point tiebreak in the first set, having been down 5-3 in games before even getting to that point. Emma Navarro, who is looking to break into the WTA top 10, had an easier ride, dropping just two games against Arantxa Rus. If Kostyuk arrives at a good level, this is likely to go the distance; their previous meeting in Toronto finished 7-5, 7-5 in Navarro’s favor.
Marta Kostyuk used all manner of ice to cool off on Wednesday. (Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press)
Francisco Comesana vs. Taylor Fritz (12)
Madison Keys (14) vs. Elise Mertens (33)
Tomas Martin Etcheverry vs. Alexander Zverev (4)
Grandstand
Start time: 11 a.m. ET, 8 a.m. PT
TV: ESPN, Tennis Channel
Zheng Qinwen (7) vs. Jule Niemier
Victoria Azarenka (20) vs. Wang Yafan
Andrey Rublev (6) vs. Jiri Lehecka (32)
Casper Ruud (8) vs. Shang Juncheng
Casper Ruud is a three-time Grand Slam finalist who doesn’t get talked about as a major contender all that much. He doesn’t seem to mind that. Ruud has caught some fire in recent days, winning a thrilling point on defense en route to victory against Gael Monfils, and even finding time to drop Andy Murray a little bit of love. “A tribute point to Andy Murray,” was how he described this effort.
SIDE TO SIDE!
Casper Ruud, are you serious? 🏃♂️ pic.twitter.com/SdJHx68GJv
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 29, 2024
He faces Shang Juncheng, nickname Jerry, who has never been beyond the third round of a Grand Slam tournament. Will Ruud continue to renew his pedigree, or will Shang break new ground?
Stadium 17
Start time: 11 a.m. ET, 8 a.m. PT
TV: ESPN, Tennis Channel
Donna Vekic (24) vs. Peyton Stearns — not before 2 p.m. ET, 11 a.m. PT
Tallon Griekspoor vs. Grigor Dimitrov (9)
Brandon Nakashima vs. Lorenzo Musetti (18)
Don’t sleep on Brandon Nakashima, even though he tends to win matches by lulling opponents into thinking that they can sleep on him themselves. The American, who has topped serving performance stats at Wimbledon and now the U.S. Open, will be a tough test for Lorenzo Musetti, even as the Italian moves through the best season of his career. He thrives on natural surfaces and likes hard courts a little less, while Nakashima’s best win percentage is on the U.S. Open surface.
Brandon Nakashima has been impressive for the duration of the tournament. (Matt Rourke / Associated Press)
Required reading
(Top photo of Ben Shelton: Seth Wenig / Associated Press)
