Alexander Zverev acknowledged a run of poor form after a surprise third-round defeat at the 2025 US Open, a loss that carried an unwanted historical footnote. The world No 3 fell 6-4, 6-7(7), 4-6, 4-6 to 27th-ranked Felix Auger-Aliassime in Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Zverev arrived in New York following back-to-back semi-final appearances at Masters events in Toronto and Cincinnati. He had won his opening matches at Flushing Meadows against Alejandro Tabilo and Jacob Fearnley without dropping a set and held a 6-1 head-to-head lead over Auger-Aliassime prior to the meeting. Despite those markers, the 25-year-old Canadian outplayed the three-time major finalist after Zverev squandered a chance to lead two sets to none.

The defeat made Zverev the first ATP player ranked in the top three to lose in the first week at two successive majors since Rafael Nadal in 2005; Zverev had been beaten in the opening round at Wimbledon last month.

In a press conference with German media, Zverev was blunt about his recent performances and the way he had played in New York. “I think I’ve played badly here for the last two years,” declared the 28-year-old. “Last year, I won my matches, but the matches I won were laborious, they weren’t really pretty, they were won more through hard work than good tennis.

“And as soon as I played against a good player, I think last year it was Taylor in the quarter-finals, this year it was Felix in the third round, I immediately lost the match. To sum it up, I played too passively, but I played too passively because I simply had nothing in my racket, really nothing at all. I have no feel for my forehand, no feel for my backhand, and then I tried to be aggressive a few times and the ball flew somewhere and then that’s just how it is.”

Zverev also confirmed an ongoing back issue that he had mentioned earlier in the tournament but rejected it as the primary cause of the defeat. “Yes, I think the back, well, the back does have something to do with the serve, but I think in general everyone served much softer than they normally do here,” Zverev said. “I think it has something to do with the balls, but that’s not the reason why I lost. I lost because I really played badly, and that’s just the way it is. Yes, the back pain won’t go away until I get an injection. I’ll be getting that at some point. But again, that’s not the reason.”

Novak Djokovic’s plans for retirement have been a recurring subject through much of 2025. Former world No 1 Jim Courier offered a reason why the Serbian may not finish this year, suggesting a final trip to Australia could change his timeline.

Djokovic, 38, has limited his schedule this season, skipping most ATP Tour events and concentrating on Grand Slams. That selective approach delivered strong results: the most successful male player of all-time reached the semi-finals of the first three majors this season despite a lack of match practice. Djokovic has been open about his motivation, saying his career extension is driven by one objective: “to win a 25th Grand Slam title and claim the record for the most major title wins.” He added, “Biological age is not something that I guess you can reverse,” said Djokovic. “I still feel like I have a game left in me, you know to play at the highest level.

“As I said before several times, as long as I have that feeling of really that that level is still alive, I feel like I want to keep going and I want to keep pushing myself to see whether I can have a shot at another Slam.

“I’m asking myself questions, of course, more nowadays than I have ever before in terms of, how long do I want to keep going at this level? How do I want to approach my schedule to kind of extend my career?”

“I might get a little bit more philosophical again when I finish the tournament, but I’ll try to focus on the next challenge here.”

Courier, watching Djokovic beat Jan-Lennard Struff to reach the US Open quarter-finals, pointed to the Australian Open episode last January as a possible reason to continue. He said: “My personal feeling, and it’s not rooted in any facts, just feelings,” said Courier. “My feeling is that Djokovic had such a bad taste in his mouth leaving his most successful tournament when he had to stop playing because he was seriously injured in the semi-finals.

“He played a competitive set against (Alexander) Zverev, lost it and then shook hands. Then he, the ten-time champion, was booed off court and it was Zverev who had to defend his honour in a post-match interview. It was not well done by the crowd.

“So my view is he would want to go back and play Australia at least one more time and get a proper send off. That’s what I want for him. I don’t know if that’s what he wants.

“Can you imagine (Roger) Federer playing at Wimbledon, he had to default and the fans boo him? Can you imagine? The same with (Rafa) Nadal at Roland Garros. “Ten times that Djokovic has won that tournament in Australia. No one is even close. It was wild.”

If Djokovic lifts a 25th major at the US Open final, an immediate retirement announcement would not surprise many. If he loses — whether in the quarter-final to Taylor Fritz, a potential semi against Carlos Alcaraz, or a final with Jannik Sinner — the debate over his next step will only intensify.

Carlos Alcaraz has moved ahead of Jannik Sinner in the ATP Live Rankings as the US Open advances, while a number of players have gained or lost ground following results through the fourth round. Sinner remains No 1 in the official ATP Rankings, but the Live Rankings reflect points dropping from corresponding events 12 months earlier. The Italian lost 2,000 points after being crowned 2024 champion in New York, while Alcaraz lost only 50 points after a second-round exit last year. That swing leaves Alcaraz ahead and able to stay there if he outperforms Sinner at Flushing Meadows.

Current ATP top 10 (Before US Open):
1. Jannik Sinner – 11,480
2. Carlos Alcaraz – 9,590
3. Alexander Zverev – 6,230
4. Taylor Fritz – 5,575
5. Jack Draper – 4,440
6. Ben Shelton – 4,280
7. Novak Djokovic – 4,130
8. Alex de Minaur – 3,545
9. Karen Khachanov – 3,240
10. Lorenzo Musetti – 3,205

Alcaraz has already reached the quarter-final after defeating Arthur Rinderknech in straight sets in the fourth round, and he is yet to drop a set in the tournament. Sinner still has a last-16 match to play. World No 3 Alexander Zverev has exited the US Open and faces a potential slip in the Live Rankings; Taylor Fritz and Novak Djokovic would have to win the title to pass him.

Fritz and Djokovic meet in the quarter-final, with the winner to play either Alcaraz or Jiri Lehecka. Fritz was in danger of losing the American No 1 ranking to Ben Shelton after the tournament, but the sixth seed’s third-round retirement put an end to that battle. Fritz’s record against Djokovic stands at 0-10.

Djokovic began this sequence at No 7 and has climbed two places to No 5. A related Live projection lists:
1. Carlos Alcaraz – 9,940
2. Jannik Sinner – 9,680
3. Alexander Zverev – 5,930
4. Taylor Fritz – 4,675
5. Novak Djokovic – 4,430

Elsewhere, Jiri Lehecka has reached his first US Open quarter-final and is up six places to No 15, three spots ahead of Alexander Bublik who is up six. Felix Auger-Aliassime is projected to rise seven places to No 20 after defeating Zverev. Adrian Mannarino is +22 to No 55, Arthur Rinderknech is two spots below him after jumping 25 places, and Kamil Majchrzak becomes the new Polish No 1 at No 62 (+14). Jan Lennard Struff is up 46 places to No 98. Leandro Riedi is the biggest mover at +271 to No 164 with a career best of 117. Daniil Medvedev is down four places to No 17. Frances Tiafoe is projected to drop 12 places to No 29 and Jordan Thompson is set to slip 19 spots to No 57. Holger Rune (11) and Casper Ruud (12) retain their positions while Stefanos Tsitsipas is up one to No 27.