When Ethan Quinn was three years old, his parents handed him a tennis racquet and tied a ball to a string, hanging it from their patio.

“I just remember hitting the ball and feeling the ball. If I missed it would hit me in the face. That’s about as much as I can remember about it,” Quinn told ATPTour.com. “I think it’s just the thing that grasped my attention the most. I was never a kid who played video games or anything like that.”

For hours, the Californian would stand, swinging at the ball over and over before his parents would took him inside. Just before Ethan’s fifth birthday, his family moved to a new house. Hitting the ball hanging from the patio is the only memory he has of their old home.

That young boy, who simply enjoyed swinging his racquet is now one of the brightest young talents in American tennis. On Monday, the 2023 NCAA men’s singles champion will make his main draw debut at the US Open against Spaniard Bernabe Zapata Miralles.

To understand the 19-year-old’s rise is to look back at his roots in Fresno, California. The new home his family moved to was two blocks from Fig Garden Swim & Racquet Club.

“As a five-year-old kid, you were just like, ‘Oh my god, I can easily go walk that or ride my bike there,’” Quinn said. “I would do that as much as I could.”

Quinn played soccer until sixth grade, basketball from fifth until eighth grade, and skied when he was younger. But tennis was always the sport for him.

“I was good at soccer until fourth grade, and then everyone caught up to my size. And I was just like, ‘Well, this isn’t fun. I’m not faster or bigger than anyone or have good ball skills,’” Quinn recalled. “So I think I just had the most talent at tennis. I just enjoyed being out there at the tennis club. It was so close to my house that it was like a home away from home actually, just being so close.”

While the club was a quick walk from home, Quinn’s parents had heard of an academy with top-level players run by Brad Stine, who had coached former World No. 1 Jim Courier. It was not in the nicest facility, though. In fact, it was moreso known for its gym.

“To be honest with you, I think one of the things that was great about the academy, especially for the elite training group, was that we trained at a s***hole,” Stine said. “We used to tell the guys all the time, ‘You’re never going to play any tournaments at some place worse than where we trained. It’s always going to be an upgrade, it’s just going to feel nice. If you can train and work hard and do your best and become a better player, practising and playing on these courts in this environment, going to tournaments is going to be like a luxury for you.’”

There were several players in the elite training programme who went on to enjoy distinguished college tennis careers, including Billy Griffith of the University of California, Cameron Klinger of Vanderbilt University and Logan Staggs of UCLA. Quinn was younger than the group and was forced to earn his place in the elite training group.

“Ethan obviously stood out just from the standpoint of his technique, and also his commitment,” Stine said. “He was basically a gym rat back at that time. He loved to come and he would do his session, which was our afterschool programme for local kids, because a lot of my kids were not necessarily from the area. We had a local programme also.

“And basically, when he kind of outgrew that group, from the standpoint of his ball-striking capabilities and everything, is when we moved him up. That was kind of a big deal for him to be able to be part of that group.”

Stine was adamant that the older, stronger players should not lower their level to accommodate younger players. Instead, Quinn and another kid his age were made to rise to the level of their opponents and scramble to make extra balls back into play to continue points. Age was not an excuse.

Stine ran the academy for three years before working for the USTA and then returning to the ATP Tour to coach Kevin Anderson and his current charge, Tommy Paul. The American has become a mentor to Quinn, who earned his place as one of the best juniors in the country and as a top-ranked prospect enrolled at the University of Georgia.

This past season, his redshirt freshman year, he overcame early struggles, losing nine of his first 12 completed matches of 2023. From then on, Quinn completely turned his season around. In the NCAA men’s singles event, he saved match point in the first round against Luc Fomba of Texas Christian University and saved four match points in the final against the University of Michigan’s Ondrej Styler.

The victory earned him a wild card into the US Open. Shortly thereafter, he spoke on the phone with Stine, who urged him to turn professional.

“Definitely I was a little bit intimidated. I never had the plan of really leaving early. I always wanted to get my degree, win an NCAA Championship, which I guess I did individually. I wanted to win a team one, but life works wonders in mysterious ways,” Quinn said. “So I was presented the opportunity. Brad immediately after winning NCAAs, me and him chatted on the phone. He was like, ‘I really think for you as a tennis player and where you want to go, I think it would be best to turn pro.’”

Quinn began his journey on the ATP Tour in Newport, where he claimed his first tour-level win. He still has been taking classes online and is keen to earn his degree.

“I’ll have a life after tennis once my career is over,” Quinn said. “So I find it very, very important for me to get that… I feel like having that accomplishment is very special.”

For now, Quinn will focus on his opportunity at the US Open, where he will play 26-year-old Zapata Miralles, who is competing in his 10th major main draw.

“We talked about from a very early age with Ethan that he was to never use age as an excuse. His age, being younger, or playing someone else older,” Stine said. “Obviously he played up a lot when he was younger. So I was like, ‘You can’t use it as an excuse that you lost to someone because they’re older than you. You’re a tennis player, and they’re a tennis player, and your goal is to find a way to beat them.’”

Quinn will try to do just that Monday with a potential showdown with 23-time major winner Novak Djokovic looming in the second round.

ATPTour.com looks at five ATP Challenger Tour players to keep your eyes on during the US Open.

Alex Michelsen
The 18-year-old American won his first Challenger title last month in Chicago and has since continued his surge. The following week, Michelsen was a finalist at the ATP 250 event in Newport despite competing in just his second tour-level tournament.

Michelsen was committed to play college tennis at the University of Georgia this upcoming year, but the World No. 133 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings announced his decision to forgo his college eligibility and turn pro in early August. The California native will bring his rock-solid backhand to his major main-draw debut in Flushing Meadows, where he opens against Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

Jakub Mensik
In May, the big-serving Mensik won the ATP Challenger Tour event in Prague, where he became the youngest Czech Challenger champion in history (since 1978). The 2022 Australian Open boys’ singles finalist was ranked outside the Top 800 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings last August and has since risen to No. 191.

The 17-year-old is the second-youngest player in the US Open main draw, behind American Learner Tien. Mensik, who will meet Frenchman Gregoire Barrere in the first round, advanced through qualifying to make his first major main draw.

Dominic Stricker
The #NextGenATP Swiss has tallied an 18-9 match at the Challenger level this year, with titles coming in Rovereto and Prague. At No. 113 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, Stricker will be hopeful for a strong run in New York to push him closer to his Top 100 debut.

Stricker, 21, made his first major main-draw appearance this year at Roland Garros before qualifying for Wimbledon. The lefty’s aggressive style of play will next be on display at the American Slam, where he advanced through qualifying, in which he saved a match point in the second round to stay alive. Stricker will open against Cincinnati quarter-finalist Alexei Popyrin.

Yosuke Watanuki
Despite playing just six Challenger events in 2023, Watanuki has reached the semi-finals at three. The Japanese star, who first cracked the Top 100 on 31 July, earned the highest-ranked win of his career earlier this month when he upset then-World No. 12 Felix Auger-Aliassime in Washington, D.C. Watanuki, who is coached by his brother Keisuke, is making his US Open main-draw debut.

His first-round match against Frenchman Adrian Mannarino will be a contrast of styles. While the Frenchman is known for his flat groundstrokes and craftiness, Watanuki will grab fan’s attention with his easy firepower and quick speed.

Sebastian Ofner
Nobody boasts more Challenger match wins in 2023 than Ofner (35-12). The Austrian has reached at least the final in six Challenger events this season, including a title run on home soil in Salzburg last month.

The 27-year-old enjoyed a surprise run at Roland Garros, where he reached the fourth round as a qualifier, leading to his Top 100 debut. Playing the US Open main draw for the first time, the World No. 58 will start against Portugal’s Nuno Borges.

The youngest player in the US Open field is 17-year-old Learner Tien from Irvine, California. The only other player his age in the tournament is Jakub Mensik, who turns 18 on 1 September.

Tien will try to secure his first tour-level victory when he faces 2022 semi-finalist Frances Tiafoe on Monday inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. Before the match, ATPTour.com looks at five things to know about the Tien.

Learner First Held A Racquet Before Turning Two
Tien’s parents, Khuong Tien and Huyen Tien, played tennis recreationally. Naturally, they passed the sport onto their son from a young age. In fact, Tien first held a racquet at the age of one and a half.

A lefty, he would play with his family at community courts in Irvine, California. His father was his primary coach until he was brought into the USTA Player Development programme at 10 or 11 years old.

The Californian First Played The US Open Aged 16
One year ago, Tien competed in the US Open as a 16-year-old, pushing Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic to four sets. He earned his wild card into the draw by winning the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championships, becoming the event’s youngest champion since Donald Young in 2005.

Tien repeated the feat this year to earn another US Open wild card. Ironically, he defeated Trevor Svajda in the final. Svajda’s older brother, Zachary Svajda, was the most recent two-time champion at the event.

“Winning the Boy’s 18s National Hard Courts back-to-back years at the age of 16 and 17 have been major stepping stones in my career so far,” Tien said.

 

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Tien Has Enjoyed Major Success
While he is set to compete in a major as a professional for the first time, Tien has enjoyed success at Grand Slam tournaments as a junior. Less than three months ago, he advanced to the semi-finals of the Roland Garros boys’ singles event after making the final of the Australian Open Boys’ Singles tournament earlier in the year.

Ironically, the only major at which Tien did not reach at least the quarter-finals was the US Open, where he lost in the first round last year. Tien reached a career-high World No. 4 in the juniors.

He Played A Semester Of College Tennis
Despite only being 17, Tien played a semester of college tennis at the University of Southern California this spring before turning professional. He also began high school early, aged 11-and-a-half.

“To my brothers, thank you for taking me in as the naive kid I was and opening my eyes to see that there was a part of tennis so much bigger than just myself,” Tien wrote after deciding to turn professional. “Above all else, thank you for the lifelong memories and friendships. You guys will always have my support, and I look forward to seeing you all crush it next year.”

Learner’s Favourites Off Court Are…
When not playing tennis, Tien enjoys watching movies and playing video games. His favourite movie is Gladiator and television show is Breaking Bad.

The lefty’s guilty pleasure is candy and favourite school subject is English. The American said his best quality is his composure and his worst quality is his indecisiveness.

Before Christopher Eubanks became the world-beating player fans grew to know during the grass-court season, the American was known for his magnetic personality.

Earlier this year at the Dallas Open, the tournament’s social media team asked WTA stars Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys about their countryman.

“Oh Lord,” Stephens said. “Don’t even get me started on that giraffe. We love Chris. We love Daddy Longlegs.”

Eubanks was the centre of attention in the locker room long before he was under the spotlight on court. The 27-year-old is longtime friends with the likes of Stephens, Keys, Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka. The WTA stars have been thrilled to see Eubanks’ rise.

“It’s been great,” Stephens told ATPTour.com. “Obviously I love Chris and I’ve known him for so long and I think being able to see someone who works so hard like Chris, [who is] what you would call a student of the game — he eats, breathes, and sleeps tennis — to see him be able to do well and have the results that every tennis player dreams of is pretty incredible. And I think we all are just so happy for him.”

Eubanks this year has been widely recognised for his on-court success, having enjoyed a dream run to his first ATP Tour title in Mallorca and reached his first major quarter-final at Wimbledon. Ahead of the US Open, Eubanks appeared on three major national morning shows in New York and received a behind-the-scenes tour of Broadway show Hamilton, where he met Lin-Manuel Miranda.

However, Eubanks is still known by his friends for his personality off the court. His Pepperstone ATP Ranking might be different thanks to his results, but his bubbly, friendly spirit remains exactly the same.

“He’s literally one of the nicest people in the world. So obviously, to have him week in and week out on the Tour and being able to see him and just have good vibes all around,” Stephens said. “I think he is a person [where] you can feel when that they’re a good person. He’s always been good energy, good vibes. And he’s always super nice to be around.”

Frances Tiafoe and Christopher Eubanks” />
^{Frances Tiafoe and Christopher Eubanks train together in Cincinnati. Photo: ATP.}
One of Eubanks’ closest friends on the ATP Tour is Frances Tiafoe. Throughout the North American hard-court summer, they have been joking with one another like normal.

“It’s great. It’s great seeing him getting notoriety for it,” Tiafoe said. “I want to see him do well, continue to do well. He’s a great friend of mine and I’m happy to see him doing so well.”

Keys often trained with Eubanks in Orlando as the former Georgia Tech star worked his way towards the top of the sport. She had a front-row seat to witness Eubanks’ work ethic and has been happy to see those efforts pay off.

“I think Chris is just a really nice guy. I sometimes like to call him the mayor,” Keys said. “He talks to everyone and he knows everyone and he’s just a really easy, lovable guy. And I think that shows because I don’t think you could find anyone that would have anything bad to say [about him].” 

Eubanks earned direct entry into the US Open for the first time and will be seeded at a major for the first time as the 28th seed. The American will begin his tournament Monday against Soonwoo Kwon.

When Novak Djokovic fulfilled his US Open media responsibilities on Friday, one of his stops was with the tournament’s social media team, which asked him to share a few words about his first-round opponent, Alexandre Muller.

“He’s good looking,” Djokovic said, cracking a laugh. “But that’s not enough.”

“I think it’s true,” Muller quipped to ATPTour.com the next day. “I think he doesn’t know me. But maybe he saw some pictures and he thought I was beautiful.”

Muller is far more than that, though. The 26-year-old is enjoying the best season of his career and serving as an inspiration to plenty of people of all ages throughout the world. At the age of 14, the Frenchman was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease.

“I was just a little bit sick. I went to the doctor, and he gave me some medicine,” Muller recalled. “I was quite young — 14 years old is young — so I kept it to myself for one year. But it was like an inflammation. So after one year, the inflammation was so big and I couldn’t move anymore. I lost maybe 10 kilos.

“When I came back to my parents for the weekend, during the night, they heard the toilet like 50 times. So they said, ‘Okay, there is something wrong.’ So I went to the hospital, I did all the exams and everything and they said okay, it’s Crohn’s disease.”

It was a devastating blow for someone who was entering a key moment in his tennis journey. Muller began playing tennis at the age of six, when his family moved to Meyrargues, a small village in France. There was an old hard court at the home they moved to and Muller’s father, Stefan, refurbished it. Nobody in the family had a history in the sport, but Stefan and Alexandre would play at home.

“At the beginning, I was crying because I was losing with my dad,” Muller said. “But after one or two years he was crying.”

Too good for his father, Muller began playing at a local club and quickly showed potential. Having also played football from a young age, he was told it was necessary to focus on tennis in order to train more. The Frenchman moved to a bigger club in Aix en Provence.

But by his early teens, Crohn’s disease was taking its toll on the Frenchman. His future in tennis seemed in doubt.

“It was not easy because the doctor told me if I wanted to be in good shape, I needed to stop tennis and sports in general. Not [playing] the sport, but when you’re a professional tennis player, you practise every day, so it’s very hard. I needed to stop it,” Muller said. “I stopped training for maybe two months, I took a lot of cortisone. It’s the process with this disease. So now I’m trying to manage it.

“I need to do an injection to myself every two weeks, all my life. So it’s not that easy, but I’m trying to manage it.”

Muller explained that it is still “not so easy” even though he is a world-class athlete. “Sometimes I’m feeling quite bad,” he said.

But in 2023, Muller has proven he belongs at the upper levels of the ATP Tour. He began the season at No. 160 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and has consistently risen, climbing as high as No. 76 last month.

Muller reached the quarter-finals in Doha, where he upset Botic van de Zandschulp and pushed former World No. 1 Andy Murray to three sets. In Marrakech, he upset Richard Gasquet and Lorenzo Musetti en route to his first ATP Tour final and his first step into the world’s Top 100.

“I thought before it was very important for me. But at the moment when I won the matches, it was in Marrakech the semi-final. I was looking at the live rankings and said, ‘Okay, now I’m Top 100,’” Muller said. “But you always want more. When I was 400, I wanted to be in qualies in the Grand Slams. I was qualies in the Grand Slams and then I wanted to be in the main draw. I’m main draw, so now I want to be Top 50.

“You always want more, so I was happy for sure. But I hope it’s not the end of my story in tennis.”

The 2023 season has been a dream-like chapter in his tennis story. At Roland Garros, Muller played Jannik Sinner on Court Philippe-Chatrier. A month later, he faced eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz on Centre Court at Wimbledon. On Monday evening, Muller will try to stun 23-time major winner Novak Djokovic in the first round of the US Open inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

“I think the most important thing is that I need to enjoy the moment, because I don’t know what’s going to be my career,” Muller said. “But I’m going to play on centre court, night session, Arthur Ashe. I need to enjoy it, play my tennis, we’ll see what happens.”

 

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Muller has seen Djokovic around at tournaments, but has never spoken to him or trained with the Serbian. But the 26-year-old is very familiar with the three-time US Open champion’s game.

“I think if he doesn’t want to miss the ball, he cannot miss. That’s the thing. But yeah, he’s the man who got the most titles at ATP [Masters] 1000s, Grand Slams,” Muller said. “For the moment he is the biggest player in tennis history if you watch the career. Everybody knows the game of Djokovic. He’s very solid, returns amazing. Moving amazing. So a lot of amazing things. Difficult to say something bad about his game. But I will try my best.”

Just more than a decade ago, a doctor told Muller he needed to stop playing serious tennis. This year he is playing on some of the biggest stages in international sport against the best players on the ATP Tour.

On Saturday morning, he walked onto the court inside Arthur Ashe Stadium for the first time for a practice session with countryman Arthur Fils. Soon when he makes the same walk for his match, 23,000 screaming fans will be watching.

“Life is crazy sometimes. I think it’s very important because I received some messages from [some people] because in France a lot of people know that I have Crohn’s disease and on this planet, on earth, there are a lot of people with this disease,” Muller said. “If I have something to tell everybody… trust yourself, and you can do some beautiful things, even with diseases or something like this. Just try to manage this and you will see beautiful things happen.”

Winning the title in just your third ATP Challenger Tour event of the year?

No problem for Ecuador’s Alvaro Guillen Meza, who was crowned champion Saturday at the Lima Challenger, where he defeated Jamaica’s Blaise Bicknell 7-6(3), 6-1 in the final. The 20-year-old, who is one of four Challenger titlists this week, is the youngest champion from Ecuador since Giovanni Lapentti in 2003.

Competing in his eighth Challenger tournament, Guillen Meza’s ability to hold his nerve in pressure moments throughout the week helped him lift the trophy. He fended off 10 of 16 break points faced in the second round to upset fifth seed Gustavo Heide and against the 21-year-old Bicknell, Guillen Meza saved all three break points faced.

“I had to stay focussed all week and I managed to win. The truth was [I was] quite calm, I don’t know why,” Guillen Meza said in Spanish. “It is a very special day for me and I am very happy.”

Now at a career-high No. 384 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Guillen Meza is the first NextGenATP Challenger winner from South America in 2023 and the first Ecuadorian champion this year. He is the second-lowest ranked champion of the season, only behind then-unranked Kei Nishikori, who won the Palmas del Mar Challenger in June.

In other Challenger Tour action, Spaniard Carlos Taberner collected his sixth title at that level when he downed countryman Oriol Roca Batalla 6-4, 6-4 in the Schwaben Open final in Augsburg, Germany.

Carlos Taberner wins the Challenger 50 event in Augsburg, Germany.” />
^{Carlos Taberner wins the Challenger 50 event in Augsburg, Germany. Credit: Andreas Schebesta/Schwaben Open}

Saturday marked the 26-year-old’s Taberner first Challenger title since March 2022. Last year, Taberner reached a career-high No. 85.

A pivotal moment for Taberner came against Oliver Crawford in the second round, when the Valencia native rallied from 0-4 in the final set to stay alive.

“It’s amazing because to win titles is very, very difficult in tennis because every week, only one guy wins the title,” Taberner said. “It’s a very good feeling for me because not only was it a year-and-a-half since I last won a title, but also that long since I made the semi-finals. So I’m very happy for this week and I just want to enjoy it.”

Frenchman Arthur Weber became the fourth-oldest player to win his maiden Challenger crown at the Hengqin International Tennis Challenger. The 31-year-old survived two deciding-set matches to close the week, defeating Chinese Taipei’s Jason Jung 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 in the final.

At a career-high No. 307 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Weber is the oldest player to win a Challenger title in his debut. The lefty came into Zhuhai having won two ITF World Tennis Tour trophies this season.
 Arthur Weber is crowned champion at the Zhuhai Challenger.” />
^{Arthur Weber is crowned champion at the Zhuhai Challenger. Credit: Hengqin International Tennis Challenger}

Weber is the 15th different Frenchman to add to his home country’s season-leading 20 Challenger titles, within three of tying Argentina’s record from last year.

The Challenger 50 event in Zhuhai marked the first tournament at that level held in China since October 2019. 

German Rudolf Molleker did not drop a set all week to be crowned champion at the IBG Prague Open by Moneta Money Bank. The fourth seed cruised past 17-year-old Frenchman Gabriel Debru 6-2, 6-2 in the final to win his first Challenger title since May 2018.

Rudolf Molleker (middle) poses during the Prague Challenger trophy presentation.” />
^{Rudolf Molleker (middle) poses during the Prague Challenger trophy presentation. Credit: IBG Prague Open by Moneta Money Bank}

Jack Sock on Sunday announced on social media that the US Open will be his final tournament.

“To the 8 year old boy who immediately fell in low with the sport of tennis. I hope I made you proud,” Sock posted on Instagram. “It’s been 14 years of memories I will never forget. From winning four Grand Slams, Olympic Gold and Bronze, Top 10 rankings in singles and doubles and competing on the Davis Cup and Laver Cup teams, it’s been beyond what I could’ve ever dreamed. Without the help of so many people, none of that could’ve happened.”

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The American made his tour-level debut at the US Open in 2010 and went on to win four singles titles, including the ATP Masters 1000 crown in Paris in 2017. The 30-year-old also lifted 17 tour-level doubles trophies, winning the Nitto ATP Finals crown in 2018 with Mike Bryan.

Sock, who reached a career-high No. 8 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, will compete for the final time at the US Open, where he will play doubles alongside John Isner, who is also retiring following the hard-court major.

The final major of the season commences on Monday at the US Open, where top seed Carlos Alcaraz is the defending champion.

Novak Djokovic will aim to win a record-extending 24th Grand Slam title, while third seed Daniil Medvedev holds fond memories in New York, having lifted the trophy in 2021.

ATPTour.com looks at 10 things to watch at the hard-court major.

1) Defending Champion Alcaraz: Twelve months ago, Carlos Alcaraz enjoyed his breakthrough moment in New York, where he captured his maiden major title to climb to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time. The 20-year-old Spaniard returns to the hard-court Slam as the top seed and with two major titles, having defeated Novak Djokovic in an epic Wimbledon final in July.

Alcaraz, who opens against Dominik Koepfer, arrives in New York off the back of a run to the final in Cincinnati, where he lost to Djokovic in an epic three-set battle.

2) Djokovic Chasing 24th Major: After falling one match short of capturing a record-extending 24th Slam at Wimbledon, Djokovic will look to extend his major tally when he competes at the US Open. The Serbian, who will reclaim the No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Ranking if he wins his first-round match against Alexandre Muller, is a three-time titlist in New York (2011, ’15, ’18).

The 36-year-old reached the final in his previous appearance in 2021, when Daniil Medvedev stopped him from becoming the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to complete the Grand Slam, winning all four majors in the same season.

3) Former Titlist Medvedev: Third seed Medvedev holds fond memories in New York, having lifted his first major title at the event in 2021. The 27-year-old, who has captured five tour-level crowns this year, is chasing his second major and 19th hard-court title, starting against Attila Balazs. Medvedev went 3-2 at ATP Masters 100 tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati.

4) Sinner, Rune Threats: The 20-year-old Holger Rune and 22-year-old Jannik Sinner arrive in New York fourth and sixth, respectively, in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Rune reached the quarter-finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year, but will be eager to rediscover his best form, having lost in the second round in Toronto and Cincinnati.

Sinner is 41-12 on the season and arrives high in confidence after capturing his first ATP Masters 1000 crown in Toronto earlier this month. The Italian advanced to the quarter-finals at the US Open last season, losing to Alcaraz in one of the best matches of the year. Sinner is seeded to face the top seed at the same stage this fortnight.

With both chasing their first major title, fourth seed Rune opens against Roberto Carballes Baena, while sixth seed Sinner meets Yannick Hanfmann.

5) Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin Heats Up: As the third quarter of the season continues, the quest to compete at the Nitto ATP Finals continues. Alexander Zverev, who reached the final in New York in 2020, is in eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin (2,670 points), while ninth-placed Taylor Fritz (2,650 points) will look to banish memories of a first-round defeat at the major last year when he meets Steve Johnson.

Last year’s finalist Casper Ruud, who also advanced to the title match in Turin in 2022, is 10th (2,580 points) and plays American qualifier Emilio Nava first. The Norwegian could meet Rune in the quarter-finals. Australian Alex de Minaur is 11th (2,325 points) after reaching his first Masters 1000 final in Toronto. De Minaur is aiming to make his debut at the prestigious year-end event this season.

Twelve-placed Tommy Paul (2,255), who plays Italian qualifier Stefano Travaglia in the first round, reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open this year. With just 415 points between eighth-placed Zverev and 12th-placed Paul, the opportunity to climb in the Live Race To Turin is high in New York.

6) American Charge: Alongside Fritz and Paul, 10th seed Frances Tiafoe carries home hopes in the United States. The 25-year-old advanced to the last four in New York in 2022, defeating Rafael Nadal in the fourth round. There are 18 Americans in the draw. For John Isner, the major will be his final tour-level event. The 38-year-old, who announced this week he will retire after the US Open, reached the quarter-finals in 2011 and 2018.

7) #NextGenATP Stars In Action: Arthur Fils and Ben Shelton lead a group of five #NextGenATP contenders at this year’s US Open, where the young stars will aim to earn standout wins to boost their chances of qualifying for the Next Gen ATP Finals as Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, prepares to host the event for the first time.

Fils, fourth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Jeddah (908 points), makes his US Open debut against Tallon Griekspoor, while fifth-placed American Shelton (735 points) meets Pedro Cachin. Shelton is making his second appearance at the major.

Shelton’s countryman Alex Michelsen, seventh in the Live Race To Jeddah (447 points), meets Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Frenchman Luca Van Assche, currently sixth (587 points), plays 23rd seed Nicolas Jarry. Dominic Stricker, 10th (406 points), advanced through qualifying. The Swiss will play Alexei Popyrin on his main draw debut.

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8) Tsitsipas, Rublev Chasing Best Level: Stefanos Tsitsipas is making his sixth appearance in New York, with his best result being a third-round run in 2020 and 2021. The Greek captured his first tour-level title of the season in Los Cabos earlier this month, but went 1-2 at the Masters 1000 events in Toronto and Cincinnati. The seventh seed faces a tricky opening test in New York against former World No. 3 Milos Raonic.

Rublev enjoyed a strong opening to the season, clinching his first Masters 1000 title on clay in Monte-Carlo. After winning his second trophy of the year in Bastad in July, he failed to win consecutive matches at events in Hamburg, Toronto and Cincinnati. The 25-year-old will be looking to re-find his best level at the US Open, where he is a three-time quarter-finalist (2017, ’19, ’22).

9) Former Champions In Action: Andy Murray, Dominic Thiem and Stan Wawrinka all return to New York as former champions. Murray, 36, lifted the trophy in 2012, while former World No. 3 Wawrinka beat Djokovic in the 2016 final. Austrian Thiem clinched his only major at the event in 2020. All three will hope to roll back the years and enjoy deep runs this fortnight. Murray’s best result this season was a final run in Doha. Wawrinka reached the title match in Umag last month, and Thiem advanced to the final in Kitzbühel three weeks ago.

10) Ram/Salisbury Reigning Champs: Defending champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury arrive in New York seeking just their second title of the season (Lyon). The American-British tandem will face stiff competition from top seeds Wesley Koolhof/Neal Skupski and Ivan Dodig/Austin Krajicek. Singles star Stefanos Tsitsipas teams with brother Petros Tsitsipas.

Brazilian Felipe Meligeni Alves struggled sleeping Friday evening. The 25-year-old had too much adrenaline flowing through his veins after qualifying for the main draw of a major for the first time at the US Open.

“I woke up thinking about it. I couldn’t believe it,” Meligeni Alves told ATPTour.com. “I made it and I’m really happy.”

This was Meligeni Alves’ 11th attempt to qualify for a Grand Slam tournament. Earlier this year, he advanced to the final round of qualifying at Roland Garros and Wimbledon before falling short.

“Honestly, it was crazy for me,” Meligeni Alves said. “[This year] at Roland Garros, at Wimbledon, I lost in the last round of qualies. At Roland Garros, I had the match in my hands and it escaped but yeah, I’m just really happy. It just shows that we are in a good path. We’re doing great work with the team.

“I’ve been struggling a little bit after those defeats in the Grand Slams, and I’m just so happy I could play really good all the matches in the qualifying, the second match especially. Yesterday, I was playing really good. I got a little nervous at the end to close the match. But I’m just really happy that I made it.”

The Brazilian still felt the pressure of the moment. He led Federico Coria — who earlier this year was inside the Top 50 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings — 6-4, 5-4 and served for the match. The Argentine broke to love, completely shifting the momentum.

“I just tried to keep calm, to keep playing. I was a bit tired, especially mentally, but I just kept fighting. I was doing everything I could,” Meligeni Alves said. “At the end, I could play a really good level of tennis and it worked. At Roland Garros [in the final round of qualifying] I was up 6-2, 4-2 15/40 and [Timofey] Skatov was serving. I lost that game and I lost the second set and he started playing good and I lost.

“Of course, I was thinking about it in the match when I lost the second set. But the only way that I could go through that was to keep fighting, stop thinking about it.”

Meligeni Alves, who eventually triumphed 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 over Coria, is following in the footsteps of his uncle, Fernando Meligeni, who climbed as high as No. 25 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. The last major main draw Fernando competed in was at the 2003 Australian Open.

“I’m just so happy and grateful for what I did,” Meligeni Alves said. “It’s been a long time since a Meligeni was in the main draw, so it’s really special for me. I called everyone yesterday, they were really excited, really happy and I’m just looking forward to playing good in the main draw.

“[My uncle is] in Brazil. He called me yesterday, he was crying. He was really happy.”

Meligeni is not the only Brazilian who is happy. Former doubles World No. 1 Marcelo Melo was pleased with his countryman’s effort and shared a nice moment with Meligeni Alves and WTA star Beatriz Haddad Maia in the media garden Saturday.

“I think he deserves a lot to pass the qualies. I think it’s a recognition of all the practice he puts together. I know his uncle, Fernando, helps him a lot,” Melo said. “This is for sure very good for them and good for [Brazilian] tennis. I hope he continues deep in the draw.

“I think when you pass the qualies like this, you can unlock let’s say some barriers you put in your mind and what you can achieve. So like I said, he’s a very nice guy and it will be good. I hope he can go further and win some matches.”

Meligeni Alves, who competed for his country to begin the season at the United Cup, will make his major main draw debut on Tuesday against former World No. 4 Kei Nishikori, a 12-time ATP Tour titlist who made the US Open final in 2014 (l. To Marin Cilic).

“Yesterday and today is the time to celebrate a little bit because today I had a day off just to recover. But tomorrow we start again,” Meligeni Alves said. “It’s a new tournament I would say. So just keep doing the things that I always do, prepare myself to play at the limit. I’m ready for that.”

Thee-time major champion Andy Murray is set to make his 17th appearance at the US Open this week. The 36-year-old arrives at Flushing Meadows after suffering an abdominal strain that forced him to withdraw mid-tournament in Toronto. Murray, who will face Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the opening round, has seen positive signs in his health ahead of the season’s final major.

“The radiologist from back home looked at my scans and checked them, I had a small tear, which is healing and the last five or six days of practice have been really good,” Murray said in his pre-tournament press conference. “I’ve not had any issues serving. It’s just obviously been a bit [difficult], you don’t just take a week off from serving and then go full into it, you need to build up a little bit so it’s not been perfect in that sense, but my ab has been okay.”

The Scot has played some of his best tennis at the majors this year. In Melbourne, Murray won two epic five-setters in his opening two matches against 13th seed Matteo Berrettini and Thanasi Kokkinakis. At Wimbledon, he was up two-sets-to-one on fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas before the Greek mounted a comeback.

Despite competing with a metal hip, the 46-time tour-level titlist Murray is motivated to keep playing against the world’s best.

“Some people probably stop and feel like they’ve had enough whether that’s through performance or whether it is through their body hurting and aching and then maybe after an extended period of time away from the sport, they start to miss it again,” Murray said. “Maybe mentally some players just feel like they need a break away from the sport and then to refresh and maybe get another shot. Some people [stop because of] injury.

“I think everyone’s case is a bit different. For me, I came back to play because I felt like I still had more to give but also because physically, I was able to compete at the highest level. That’s why I’m still playing.”

Murray took no consolation from the Wimbledon defeat to then-World No. 5 Tsitsipas, labelling the loss as ‘very disappointing’. He revealed on Saturday that after that heartbreak at the All England Club, he went back to the drawing board and found ways he could still improve.

“I went away on holiday straight afterwards, went away for like six days and then after matches, especially Wimbledon or at majors, when everything is a greater disappointment and greater emotions at any time of the year… I [spoke] with my team about things that I really feel like I need to make a change to certain shots in my game if I wanted to win more of those matches and dictate more of those matches,” Murray said.

“My feeling was I wanted to put in some work technically to allow me to play the way that I want to and the way that my team wants me to.”