Rafael Nadal 'thought he broke his nose' in freak US Open accident that left him bleeding

RAFAEL NADAL'S US Open clash with Fabio Fognini was held up while the all-time great received treatment for hitting himself in the face with his racquet.

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Ruud Denies Gallant Paul In Five Sets

Fifth seed Casper Ruud held his nerve in a five-set battle against home favourite Tommy Paul Friday, punching his ticket into the fourth round of the US Open after claiming a 7-6(3), 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-0 victory.

Ruud, 10-2 in his past 12 matches, is the first Norwegian man to reach the round of 16 at Flushing Meadows and is one of four players (Medvedev, Nadal, Alcaraz) who can claim the World No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Ranking on 12 September.

“We both were playing well,” Ruud said. “Whenever someone broke, the other guy seemed to break back right away, so it was tough to get the lead and keep going with it. We were always close on the scoreline. It seemed like the only time I could break him was when I was broken first, so that’s not a good sign, but in the fifth set I played some of my best tennis this year and the best tennis I’ve played this tournament.”

Needing four hours, 23 minutes to outlast the American, Ruud emerged as the fresher of the two, as Paul was playing his third consecutive five-set match (d. Zapata Miralles, Korda).

“It’s not everyday you surpass playing four hours on court, but that’s what we train for, we work hard for it,” Ruud said. “I will try to be fresh for Sunday.”

A crucial tipping point in the match came in the third set, when the Norwegian fended off three consecutive set points with Paul serving at 6/5, 40/0 to take a two-sets-to-one lead. Ruud took the third set in a tie-break and despite dropping the fourth, used his fresher legs to pull away in the decider..

Paul, who reached the 2015 US Open boys’ singles final (l. Fritz), frequently worked his forward, winning 38/62 net points. Ruud had the edge in longer baseline exchanges, making 32 fewer unforced errors than Paul’s 82.

Ruud, 23, is having the best season of his career. In June, he reached his maiden Grand Slam final at Roland Garros before falling short to Rafa Nadal. Now with a chance to claim the No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, this season’s success has been somewhat unexpected for the Oslo native.

“It’s a little surprising, honestly,” Ruud said. “I didn’t think I was going to be in this situation when we started this year. I don’t feel any pressure, I used it as motivation today to think that maybe this is the only chance in my career to win the tournament and become No. 1.”

Ruud, who improves to 41-15 this season, will meet Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the fourth round Sunday.

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'Proud' Andy Murray explains Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal difference after US Open loss

ANDY MURRAY was dumped out of the US Open by the big-hitting Matteo Berrettini

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Berrettini Powers Past Murray At US Open

A pumped-up Matteo Berrettini made a statement of intent Friday at the US Open, where he held his nerve to battle past former World No. 1 and 2012 champion Andy Murray 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(1), 6-3.

The Italian produced a dominant serving display to lay the foundations for his three-hour, 46-minute victory. He struck his aggressive forehand through the court to force Murray back and recovered from a mid-match dip, rallying from a break down in the fourth set to reach the fourth round in New York for a fourth consecutive year.

“You learn from the past and learn from mistakes," Berrettini said when reflecting on the match in his on-court interview. "I wasn’t aggressive enough with the break points [in the third set] but that is tennis. I think Andy played a really good set in order to not get broken, but I was feeling better. I had more chances and I thought the same thing in the fourth set. I had my chance and I took it.”

[ATP APP]

Berrettini now leads Murray 3-1 in their ATP Head2Head series, having defeated the Scot in the Stuttgart final in June. The 13th seed, who reached the semi-finals in Flushing Meadows in 2019, holds a 15-4 record at the hard-court Grand Slam. The 26-year-old will look to taste more success when he next faces Alejandro Davidovich Fokina after the Spaniard defeated Colombian qualifier Daniel Elahi Galan 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.

Berrettini suffered first-round exits in Montreal and Cincinnati last month, but he has found his range in New York. The Italian moved past Nicolas Jarry and Hugo Grenier in his opening two matches and is currently up to No. 13 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin as he looks to finish the season strongly and qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals on home soil in November.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

In front of a lively crowd on Arthur Ashe Stadium, Berrettini fired 18 aces and dictated play with his forehand. He gained the first blow in a series of lung-busting rallies and while he was unable to convert any of the eight break point chances he had in the third set, the Italian eventually wore down a resilient Murray in the fourth set to triumph.

“It is normal to get tight. That is what I told myself when I played here against Gael [Monfils], I double faulted on match point. It is normal. We care about this,” Berrettini said. “I told myself next time was going to be more brave in a way and that is what I tried to do in the fourth.”

Murray was aiming to reach the fourth round in New York for the first time since 2016, the season he ended as the year-end No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

The Scot defeated Francisco Cerundolo and Emilio Nava in his opening two matches and has climbed to No. 43 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. The 46-time tour-level titlist Murray was unable to consistently find his first serve against Berrettini, though, as he looked to capture his third Top 20 win of the season. Following his defeat, Murray's five-year wait to reach the fourth round at a major goes on.

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Andy Murray overpowered by Matteo Berrettini as battling Brit crashes out of the US Open

ANDY MURRAY'S US Open campaign has come to an end in the third round.

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Andy Murray's US Open clash with Matteo Berrettini suspended due to 'medical emergency'

ANDY MURRAY was two sets down against Matteo Berrettini when the match was suspended.

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ATP50: Birth Of The ATP

It was 50 years ago that the ATP was formed at the US Open in 1972, little more than four years after tennis entered the Open Era. Much has changed during the past five centuries, including the move of the American major from the grass of Forest Hills to the hard courts of Flushing Meadows and its cavernous Arthur Ashe Stadium, named after one of the ATP's most influential pioneers.

As part of ATP’s anniversary celebrations, ATPTour.com has identified 50 game-changing moments of the past 50 years, beginning with the formation of the ATP at Forest Hills, and collated them in an immersive feature.

Here’s how it all began…

[ATP APP]

The Association of Tennis Professionals was formed when around 70 players convened under the centre court stands of West Side Tennis Club at Forest Hills, in September 1972 at the US Open. With the inspirational Jack Kramer at the helm, the former player and pro tour promoter accepted the role of chief executive officer on one condition: no pay.

Arthur Ashe, Cliff Drysdale, Donald Dell and Jim McManus had started to lobby players to each pay a $100 joining fee in early August. In a management (tournaments, circuits, promoters) versus labour (players) struggle, there was no one representing labour.

Kramer and Dell flew tirelessly around the world trying to professionalise the game, having devised the original format for a points-linked Grand Prix. It became the basis of the ATP Tour we know today. The original 1972 ATP Board was Ashe, John Barrett, Bob Briner, Mark Cox, Pierre Darmon, Dell, Drysdale, Ismail El Shafei, Jaime Fillol, Kramer, McManus, Nikki Pilic and Stan Smith. By 1973, Ashe, as acting treasurer, imposed that 20 per cent of all prize money went into funding ATP.

From classic matches to legendary players, relive all 50 game-changing moments.

Read more special features in our ATP50 series.

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