Stefanos Tsitsipas bowed out of the 2025 US Open in a dramatic second-round match, losing 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7 to world No 56 Daniel Altmaier in a contest that lasted four hours and 26 minutes on Thursday. The defeat ended Tsitsipas’ run at Flushing Meadows and followed a heated exchange at the net.

After Altmaier saved a match point in the fifth set and completed his comeback, Tsitsipas confronted his opponent at the handshake over an underarm serve, telling Altmaier: “Next time, don’t wonder why I hit you, ok? No, I’m just saying, if you serve underarm… if you serve underarm,” Altmaier appeared surprised and walked away while Tsitsipas remained visibly frustrated.

Former world No 1 Justine Henin criticised Tsitsipas’ conduct and suggested it reflected a deeper problem. “Altmaier has every right to serve under the arm. I don’t think he would have reacted like that a year or two ago,” she said. “There’s a bit of an ego issue: ‘I don’t get served under the arm.’ That says a lot about everything he’s been going through for a while. It feels a bit like being in kindergarten, almost.”

Altmaier addressed the incident in his press conference and acknowledged the emotions that can follow a long match. “I know that sometimes in the heat of the moment, you can say stuff you don’t normally would like to say.

“You regret afterwards. So I think we all know about these discussions at the net; I’m not a fan of it.

“Even if I would have lost, I would not enter discussions because it’s just, like, the heat of the moment.

“You need to cool down; let’s see if he reacts to it or sticks to his opinion. Which is fine for me. I know what I did and that’s it. It’s part of the game.”

Tsitsipas, a former world No 3 now ranked 28th, holds a 20-17 (54%) record in 2025. The 27-year-old has struggled for consistency and has not won consecutive matches since the Barcelona Open in April. The best result of his season was claiming the Dubai Championships in February/March.

Taylor Fritz acknowledged the scale of the task ahead as he prepares to face Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals of the 2025 US Open. Fritz enters the match having lost all 10 previous meetings with Djokovic, results that came between 2019 and 2024. This will be their fourth encounter at a Grand Slam; Djokovic beat Fritz at the Australian Open in 2024 and 2021 and at the US Open in 2023.

Their most recent meeting came at the Shanghai Masters in October last year, where Djokovic prevailed 6-4, 7-6(6) after saving a set point in a decisive second set.

Fritz reached the Flushing Meadows quarter-finals by defeating Emilio Nava, Lloyd Harris, Jerome Kym and Tomas Machac. Djokovic advanced by beating Learner Tien, Zachary Svajda, Cameron Norrie and Jan-Lennard Struff.

After his 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 fourth-round victory over Machac, Fritz put the head-to-head record into context. “I think the thing is, it’s spanned over so many years,” the world No 4 said.

“I think the first, probably like seven or eight times I played him, I wasn’t just a good enough player to have that much of a chance, unless I have like the best day ever and he has a bad day.

“Only the last couple times we’ve played I think I’ve been this, just better player that can, I’d say compete and have chances and last time we played, Shanghai, I had looks, I had set points in the second set, I really probably should have won the second, taken it to a third set.

“But yeah, think what makes it tough is he serves well, he serves aggressive on second serves. It’s tough to take advantage of his serve for how well he also returns and just is from the baseline, he backs it up incredibly well with the serve, so it’s tough to sometimes get on him the way that he’s I guess getting on you with the return.”

The 27-year-old also reflected on how to overturn a one-sided head-to-head. “I think the way to turn around is just to become a better player,” Fritz assessed.

“I think that Coco would probably say the same thing. I think she would probably tell me that she was just better at tennis when she started reversing the head-to-head.

“And for me, in my head I’m not thinking about all the losses I had to Novak when I was like… five years ago. I was nowhere near the level of player that I am now.

“What I’m thinking about, fresh in my mind is when we played at World Tour Finals (2022), that one, and the one in Shanghai last year. In those ones, I served for the set in the World Tour Finals, I had set point serving in Shanghai.

“I know that in the most recent matches we’ve had, there’s been looks and I just haven’t been able to make it happen in the important moments of those matches.

“And that’s what makes the best guys the best guys, is they’re not going to give it to you in those moments. You have to go and take it.”

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.