Thwack. Crack. Pop. Bweh.

Those sounds often make up the soundtrack of Andrey Rublev’s matches. The 25-year-old is one of the biggest ball-strikers in the sport, putting everything he has into nearly every shot. His powerful game has led to a lot of success, including 14 ATP Tour singles titles, a career-high No. 5 Pepperstone ATP Ranking, 22 Top 10 wins and three appearances in the Nitto ATP Finals.

When you think of watching Rublev play tennis, you think of intensity, for better or worse. When things are going well, the three-time US Open quarter-finalist overwhelms opponents with his fierce offensive game. Rublev wears his heart on his sleeve and in difficult moments, he is never afraid to show his emotions on court, sometimes agonising over his performance.

But in recent years, fans have come to know a different side of Rublev — call it a softer side. In social media videos, he often breaks out into fits of laughter, jokes with colleagues and shows sensitivity, whether to fans or otherwise. On an ATP Tour YouTube video titled “Andrey Rublev reacts to your YouTube comments 🥰”, the top comments are:

Petition for ATP Tour to do more of this!!

ANDREY CONTENT IS WHAT WE THE PEOPLE WANT.

The video gets ten times better with him in it.

Andrey is the most adorable and honest person that needs to be protected at all costs.

Among the fans, Rublev has become not just a favourite, but a beacon of light. It is difficult to speak with him or watch a fun video of his without cracking a smile. But the quickest way to make Rublev blush is to remind him of his ever-growing fanbase.

“I would say obviously it’s something special that you cannot get somewhere or buy somewhere because of feelings. Of course in those moments you feel special. I don’t know. Even myself, I want to say big thanks to these [people] who are writing these things,” Rublev said at Indian Wells earlier this year. “Maybe with this stuff, you feel a bit more responsibility that you need to always improve in a better way.”

Rublev is much quicker to be self-deprecating than he is to give himself credit. He openly dislikes saying positive things about himself.

“Yeah, yeah. I have this problem,” Rublev said Thursday evening, cracking a smile. “I don’t know. Maybe some complexes, I don’t know why.”

His actions speak louder than words, though. Whether around his practices, walking around the grounds or after matches, Rublev signs as many autographs and takes as many selfies as possible to make the fans happy. To him, it is an easy way to make people feel validated in their decision to spend their hard-earned money and valuable time to watch tennis. It is a humble attitude for a player who has plenty to do, from working on his game to off-court commitments.

But according to Rublev, he was not always embarrassed to say nice things about himself or listen to others do the same.

“When I was younger I think I was the opposite. Too much, a bit cocky when I was quite young, and then I realised how stupid I was,” Rublev said. “When I was a kid I was playing really well and I was winning a lot of tournaments. I was thinking maybe I was cool or whatever or everything will be like this in life. I don’t know, a typical kid with not really much brains and then with some things I realised that I was just stupid and that’s it.

“Then I turned out completely the opposite way.”

Rublev explained that he was still a good friend when he was younger and was “very loyal” to those around him. But there were some immaturities that he took time to get over. But he was made to grow up quickly as he embarked on his professional career and had already become close to the person he is now by his late teens. At the age of 19, Rublev made the US Open quarter-finals, at the time the youngest man to accomplish the feat since Andy Roddick in 2001.

“I remember that was a miracle, just out of nowhere. No one expected and it was obviously like a miracle because game-wise, body-wise, I was not ready,” Rublev said. “I was just lucky that I was playing some great tennis every day and I was shooting the ball and most of the time everything was going in and I was able to do the quarters.

“I realised it was a miracle because obviously I beat players like Grigor, Goffin. Grigor, he just won that year Cincinnati. Goffin was a Top 10 player. And obviously, if I would play them again, the feeling was they were much better players. It was just they never played me. They didn’t know who I was.”

Following his initial breakthrough, Rublev did not directly soar to the top, struggling through a period of injuries. But since cracking the Top 10 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on 12 October 2020, he has spent just three weeks outside of it.

“Inside the feeling is completely opposite,” Rublev said. “In the end, you said now this number and I feel ‘Wow, that’s great.’ So maybe there’s something that I’m doing well, but I don’t know, I don’t want to focus on this. I was focussing on the things that I need to improve so I want to keep focussing on them.”

A three-time US Open quarter-finalist and eight-time major quarter-finalist, Rublev is trying to make his biggest breakthrough yet at a Grand Slam tournament. Earlier this year in Monte-Carlo, he claimed his maiden ATP Masters 1000 trophy.

The locker room would be pleased to see Rublev enjoy success. Frances Tiafoe, another 25-year-old who has gotten on well with his colleague since the juniors, had only positive things to say about this year’s eighth seed.

“He’s a super solid dude, man. Nicest dude. If you see him after practices and after matches win or lose, signing autographs forever. The dude is solid man and he’s a pro’s pro,” Tiafoe said. “He’s super professional, gets the most out of his game, has been in the Top 10 for years. I like him a lot, man.

“He’s always cracking jokes. He’s always fun. He wears his emotions on his sleeve and he’s just one of the genuine real dudes.”

As much as he is becoming known for his personality, Rublev is fully focussed on chasing his biggest goal: discovering his potential.

“This is what I’m looking for. For the moment I don’t know. I feel that still in everything there is a huge room [for improvement] and that’s it,” Rublev said. “I just want to see what is the limit.”

Taylor Fritz continued his bonecrushing run through the first week of the US Open Friday, gatecrashing the 18th birthday of Czech Jakub Mensik with a 6-1, 6-2, 6-0 win on Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Fritz has reached the last 16 at Flushing Meadows for the first time in eight appearances, dropping just 13 games en route. The World No. 9 will next play #NextGen ATP Swiss Dominic Stricker, who by contrast has played 14 sets to reach the second week of a major for the first time.

“It’s so important,” Fritz said of his comfortable passage to the fourth round. “My body is going to be feeling a lot better than someone who’s had a couple of five setters back-to-back, so it’s always something you’re looking for when you’re looking to make a deep run at a Slam, to get through these matches without too much fatigue.”

World No. 206 Mensik is fast developing into a heavy-hitting force, but it was an assertive Fritz who stamped his authority on the match from the outset by dictating with his serve and forehand and giving his young rival a lesson in focus and intensity.

Fritz won 30 of 33 points on his first serve, did not face a break point and clipped 25 winners to Mensik’s six. He has not dropped serve during the tournament.

Reflecting on his maiden run to the second week at Flushing Meadows, Fritz said, “It’s more of a relief than anything. I’ve been wanting this and expecting it for a while. It does feel really good to be in the second week for the first time and we’re looking for a lot more.

“It’s never easy playing these early-round matches when you’re the favourite and there’s more pressure on you and you’re expected to win. It feels great to play these three matches and get through them the way I’ve been getting through them. It gives me a lot of confidence moving forward.”

In the first round Fritz defeated countryman Steve Johnson 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 and also dropped just five games in the second round against Peru’s Juan Pablo Varillas, winning 6-1, 6-2, 6-2. He has faced (and saved) just three break points during the tournament.

Fritz and 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev own a Tour-leading 34 hard-court match wins on the season. The No. 1 American suffered a shock opening-round loss to countryman Brandon Holt last year at Flushing Meadows.

A US Open boys’ champion in 2015, Fritz is now 48-19 on the year with titles in Delray Beach and Atlanta and is in strong contention to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals for the second consecutive year. He sits eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin.

Last year’s semi-finalists Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer continued their US Open run on Friday when they defeated Matteo Arnaldi and Bart Stevens 6-2, 6-3.

The fourth seeds, who triumphed at Roland Garros together in 2022, dropped just one point on first serve to advance after 61 minutes. Arevalo and Rojer will next face Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara or Robert Galloway and Albano Olivetti in the third round.

Top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski overcame 2019 champions Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah 7-6(2), 1-6, 6-3 in two hours and 36 minutes. The Colombian duo Cabal and Farah were competing in their final major before retirement. They will finish their careers with a Davis Cup clash against Ukraine and an ATP Challenger Tour event in Bogota in September.

The Dutch-British team Koolhof and Skupski, who won the Wimbledon title in July, next play Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow. The Americans, who won their third tour-level title of the season together in Winston-Salem last week, defeated Ariel Behar and Adam Pavlasek 7-6(3), 6-4.

Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden downed Andrey Golubev and Roman Safiullin 6-3, 6-3, while Britons Julian Cash and Henry Patten beat Gregoire Barrere and Quentin Halys 7-6(3), 6-3. Sixth seeds Bopanna and Ebden play Cash and Patten in the third round.

The 2015 champions Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut defeated Jamie Murray and Michael Venus 6-4, 6-4. The French team will next meet Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos after the eighth seeds moved past Lloyd Harris and Miomir Kecmanovic 7-5, 6-4.

If you are left-handed, you best hope you don’t have to play Frances Tiafoe.

The 10th-seeded American extended his winning streak against lefties to 19 on Friday when he defeated Adrian Mannarino 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-6(6) in the US Open third round. The last time Tiafoe lost to a lefty was in 2021, when he fell to Liam Broady in Eastbourne.

A semi-finalist last year at Flushing Meadows, Tiafoe was dialled-in on serve, firing 15 aces, to move past the 22nd seed Mannarino. After dropping the opening set, the 25-year-old found greater consistency from the baseline and attacked Mannarino’s flat backhand to improve to 2-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with the Frenchman.

“I played a loose game early in the first set and then after that, I thought I was a better player even though I lost the set, had a tonne of break points. I was definitely finding my rhythm, so I just used that as confidence and kept going,” Tiafoe said. “I was super mad that I gave back a break in the fourth [set] and made it real complicated for myself in the end. But I got it done and feels good to be in the fourth round.”

Tiafoe failed to convert his first six break points of the match before earning an advantage in the sixth game of the second set. Competing this fortnight at a career-high World No. 10 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Tiafoe displayed impressive shotmaking and deft feel around the net to advance after two hours, 54 minutes. An entertaining fourth set featured four breaks of serve and both players eager to move forward and dictate points.

“He is so annoying to play,” Tiafoe said of Mannarino. “He’s just bunting the ball around, it’s so slow. You look at him like, ‘Man, what is he doing?’ But it is so effective, the ball stays so low. He makes you create and makes you want to feel like you have to overplay. He defends really well, so he is super tough and obviously has a great lefty serve. I’m happy the match is over and I won. He is super annoying to play.” 

Tiafoe, who is 13th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, is the first American since Andre Agassi (2002-05) to reach at least the fourth round in New York for four consecutive years. The three-time tour-level titlist will next have a first-time meeting with Australian Rinky Hijikata.

The Maryland native is the third American to reach the fourth round of their home Slam this week, joining 14th seed Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton. American No. 1 Taylor Fritz and wild card Michael Mmoh are also aiming to book their ticket to the round of 16.

Mannarino, 35, was aiming to reach the fourth round at a Slam for a fifth time. The World No. 35, who won the ATP 250 event in Newport in July, slipped to 0-21 against Top 10 players at majors.

Wild card Hijikata overcame Chinese star Zhang Zhizhen 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in a thrilling three-hour, 10-minute battle. The 22-year-old struck 54 winners to 36 unforced errors, advancing to his maiden major fourth round after a baseline slugfest in front of a raucous Court 17 crowd.

The 26-year-old Zhang, who was coming off back-to-back five-setters, including an upset against last year’s finalist Casper Ruud, needed six set points in the third set to extend the match. In the latter stages, the former University of North Carolina standout Hijikata appeared the fresher of the two as he stayed patient in rallies to pull away from Zhang.

The Sydney native is at a career-high No. 80 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, setting him up for his Top 100 debut following the season’s final major.

Jackson Withrow is into the third round of the men’s doubles event with partner Jackson Withrow. But no matter what happens on the court the rest of the fortnight, Withrow has already won.

On Monday, the former Texas A&M standout got engaged to his fiancée, Allie Sweeney. Fittingly, their story began at the US Open three years ago.

The 2020 tournament was played in a bubble because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Withrow met Sweeney when she was working at the player services desk.

“I wanted to focus on my tennis for a long time and had the goal coming here with a coach and ended up getting distracted a little bit by a girl at the player desk,” Withrow told ATPTour.com. “I was trying to figure out what her deal was… I got her number and ended up just texting a little bit here and there. But now that we’re here three years later, full circle, engaged this past Monday, it’s a pretty beautiful story.”

Jackson Withrow and Allie Sweeney” />
^{Photo Credit: Olivia Wenzel Photography}
Plans for Withrow’s engagement first began last November and in February, he asked Sweeney’s parents for their approval. But despite the urge to pop the question earlier, he held out until this week.

“I wanted New York to be special and New York’s always been a special place for me,” Withrow said. “It’s the first time I made a [major] quarter-final here with Jack [Sock] and this place has always felt like home. I wanted to bring that feeling towards us and what that meant for our relationship.

“It’s so tough, because you don’t want to be cliché and make it a tennis proposal. She played college tennis, and I wanted to at least make it separate from the tennis aspect. I wanted us to have our moment, but also for it to be a special place. New York is that special place for us.”

Withrow’s on-court success further complicated his plans. Lammons and Withrow won their third title of the season in Winston-Salem, so he arrived in New York relatively late. Monday, he finally got to the big moment.

“It was a funny story. I ended up blowing by the spot where I was supposed to do it. And the photographer texted me saying, ‘Oh, you missed it, come back.’ So now I was making this excuse to come back,” Withrow said. “Finally, the spot that we had this picture was on this rock right next to the water in Central Park and I originally missed the rock. I almost fell into the water. So I was like man, that would have made a pretty funny first start of how I was going to ask her to marry me.”

After the best possible start to the week, Lammons is excited to see what the rest of his US Open holds.

“I was joking about it yesterday with our families and stuff. I was like, ‘Man, if we were to go deep here, have a semis or even maybe hoist the trophy, I may have to put the engagement on the backburner as best moments of being in New York,’” Withrow joked. “But at the end of the day, I think there’s things that you get to appreciate and I’ve gotten to appreciate tennis more, because Allie has been such a big part of my tennis.

“I’ve never really dated a tennis girl. And I always kind of wanted to separate the two and now that she’s been involved with my tennis, she gets on court with me, she’s amazing with that stuff. I really trust her with my game and being able to kind of use her as a person that I kind of really trust. And she has been amazing.”

Lammons and Withrow will next play top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski. In the Winston-Salem final, the Americans defeated Skupski and Lloyd Glasspool. Although they have tried not to look at the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, they are currently in 10th place and making a push to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time.

“Now that we feel like we’ve been a staple on the tour this year and have our proven results, we feel confident,” Withrow said. “And we’re just trying to ride the wave a little bit.”