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.”

Taylor Townsend arrived at the US Open as a 29-year-old mother and the world No. 1 in doubles, and she left the grounds with a renewed sense of purpose after a stirring week in singles. Her fourth-round match against Barbora Krejcikova stretched three hours and six minutes and ended 1-6, 7-6 (13), 6-3. Townsend saved eight match points, seven of them in a sensational second-set tiebreaker, but Krejcikova produced critical shotmaking when it mattered most.

Townsend described the defeat plainly. “You know, it just stings, because I literally gave everything, and I gave everything. She came up with some really, really great tennis in moments where she was down, and I thought I had it.” She added with a rueful smile, “But, you know, it’s a part of sports. For me, honestly, [when] I was showering, I’m, like, ‘damn, when is the next time I’m going to play a singles match’?”

Despite the loss, Townsend made clear her work at Flushing Meadows continues. She and Katerina Siniakova enter the doubles draw as the top seed. “I’m going to do everything that I can to hoist the trophy here. . . This [loss] is just motivating me to keep doing the things that I know I can do to be a champion.”

The tournament also revived attention to an earlier controversy after Townsend beat Jelena Ostapenko in the second round. Ostapenko criticized Townsend for not making a customary gesture after a fortunate let cord. Townsend declined to escalate the exchange. “I mean, it’s sports,” she said, in the verbal equivalent of a shrug. “I feel like people have gotten a little bit soft. I’m not going to lie. It’s sports. People talk trash. You know, people say things. Whatever, people get mad. Everyone has a right to feel how they feel.”

Friends and peers noted her character. “At the end of this tournament I hope that people do a deep dive into her and get to know her [for] more than what was said in that previous match.” Townsend arrived in the event ranked No. 139 after a career that included a 2012 junior doubles title, a career-high singles No. 46 last August, and a strong doubles record since returning from maternity leave in April 2022.

Naomi Osaka has become as notable for a string of plush toys as for her tennis this week at the US Open. Seeded at a Grand Slam for the first time in more than three years, the former world No 1 and four-time major champion has reached the second week in New York for the first time since the 2021 Australian Open. Her on-court form and a growing Labubu collection have both attracted notice.

Labubus are plush monster toys with rabbit-like ears created by Kasing Lung in 2015. The figures first appeared in wider retail through Pop Mart in 2019 and their profile rose sharply after a 2024 sighting by a high-profile star in Southeast Asia. The toys became a mainstream pop culture craze in 2025.

Osaka appears to be the first player to embrace the trend publicly at a major. When she walked on for her opening-round match against Greet Minnen, a Labubu hung from her racket bag and prompted questions thereafter. “This is my Labubu. She’s named Billie Jean Bling, not Billie Jean King,” explained Osaka during her on-court interview.

For round two she returned with a purple Labubu called Arthur Flashe, a nod to Arthur Ashe, and beat Hailey Baptiste. After a three-set victory over 15th seed Daria Kasatkina, Osaka revealed the doll for that match was again inspired by Billie Jean King. She commented: “So, this is modelled after the real Billie Jean King, because I had a Billie Jean Bling. This is LaBillie Bu. We saw a comment that Billie Jean King wanted one, so we just made this one for her. I came out with it.”

Osaka faces Coco Gauff in the fourth round on Monday, and much of the attention will turn to which Labubu she brings next. For now the toys are a light-hearted, highly visible accessory alongside a return to meaningful Grand Slam progress.