Defending champion Alcaraz, who has only dropped one set on his journey into the last eight, produced a dominant display to overwhelm world No 61 Arnaldi, winning 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 in 1hr 57min. The 20-year-old Alcaraz is bidding to become the first man since Roger Federer in 2008 to successfully defend the US Open after winning the title for the first time last year.
The identity of the Spaniard’s quarter-final opponent will be confirmed later Monday, with Alcaraz due to face either Germany’s Alexander Zverev or Italy’s sixth seed Jannik Sinner in the last eight tomorrow.
A match with Sinner would be a repeat of last year’s quarter-final classic between the two men, which set a record as the latest ever finish for a US Open game after wrapping up at 2.50am. “I think the intensity from the beginning until the last ball, I played a really solid match, less mistakes,” Alcaraz said after brisk victory. “I’m really happy with the performance in general.”
Novak Djokovic continued his march towards a 24th Grand Slam crown on Sunday night. The 36-year-old took another confident step towards that objective , easing past Croatia’s Borna Gojo 6-2 7-5 6-4 to reach the Flushing Meadows quarter-finals for the 13th time.
In the women’s draw meanwhile, Pegula joined world number one Iga Swiatek – upset in the fourth round on Sunday – in heading for the tournament exit, losing in straight sets to compatriot and close friend Madison Keys. Pegula had gone into the US Open dreaming of a first ever Grand Slam, buoyed by victory in last month’s WTA 1000 Canadian Open in Montreal.
But the 29-year-old’s campaign came to an abrupt halt in front of a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium as 2017 US Open finalist Keys recorded a dominant 6-1, 6-3 win in just 61 minutes. Pegula was left with no answer as Keys unleashed a stream of 21 winners to her six.
Keys also punished her friend’s shaky serve, breaking her five times on her way to wrapping up a comfortable victory. “It’s always tough having to play a friend but we’ve been doing it our whole lives at this point,” Keys, 28, said. “When we get on the court it’s all business and when we get off the court we go back to being friends.”
The 17th-seeded Keys will now face Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic in the quarter-finals tomorrow. Ninth seed Vondrousova booked her place in the last eight with a battling win over unseeded American Peyton Stearns, coming from a set down to win 6-7 (3/7), 6-3, 6-2.
Vondrousova made history in July after becoming the first unseeded woman to win Wimbledon, her first Grand Slam title. The 24-year-old has never been past the fourth round at the US Open, and admitted after her win on Monday she had surprised herself by advancing to the last eight.
Two other women’s quarter-finalists were to be decided late last night, with second seed Aryna Sabalenka - destined to be the new women’s world number one after Swiatek’s exit on Sunday – facing Russia’s Daria Kasatkina.
Tunisia’s fifth-seeded Ons Jabeur was facing China’s Zheng Qinwen in the other women’s fourth round clash.
Swiatek stumped by ‘loss of
control’ in US Open exit
Meanwhile, Swiatek said she was at a loss to describe the way in which her US Open title defence was left in ruins on Sunday in a last-16 defeat to Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko. The Pole lost for the fourth time in as many meetings with the talented but inconsistent Ostapenko, who roared back to clinch a 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory after dominating the final two sets. “She plays well against me. I mean, I don’t have any comparison because she always did that,” said Swiatek.
“But I’m just surprised that my level changed so drastically because usually when I play bad, I play bad at the beginning, then I kind of catch up or just problem solve. This time it was totally the opposite. I don’t really know what happened with my game. I felt no control suddenly. I just have to watch and see ‘cause, yeah, I didn’t really know why I started making so many mistakes.”
The 22-year-old Swiatek will lose her status as world number one following the US Open, with Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus set to take over top spot. Swiatek had cruised into the fourth round in New York after not dropping a set in her first three matches, looking in prime form to defend the title she won last year.
But Sunday’s defeat will snap her 75-week reign at the summit. “Usually I’m not looking at numbers, but overall I love them. I would love to, like, extend this record a little bit longer,” said Swiatek, a five-time Grand Slam champion.
“This is something that when I was younger, I actually kind of wanted to break some record or have something. I already did that ‘cause I already won a Slam as a first Polish player. Obviously being No. 1 as the third player in history is great.
But for sure when it happens, when you lose it, there are some sad emotions. All these great players know it’s going to come back if you’re going to work hard, focus on the right things, just develop as a player.”
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