Kohlschreiber set for Federer challenge after simple win
September 2, 2017
Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber breezed past John Millman to join compatriot Mischa Zverev in the last 16 on Saturday. The 33-year-old has never been further at the US Open but will face a tough challenge next.
Advertisement
Kohlschreiber fell a break behind early in the opener but roared back to win 7-5 6-2 6-4. His reward for a comprehensive victory is somewhat dubious, he'll play the resurgent Roger Federernext, after the Swiss great beat Feliciano Lopez in straight sets. Federer's great rival rafael Nadal also made the last 16 with a 4 set win over Argentinian Leonardo Mayer.
It is the fourth time that Kohlschreiber, ranked 37 in the world, has reached the fourth round stage at Flushing Meadows since 2012.
"This is my favorite tournament," the Davis Cup veteran said after his win. "It's always a great atmosphere and now it's my goal to get to the quarterfinals."
Thiem looking to break cycle
Alexandr Dolgopolov is into the fourth round of the tournament for the first time in six years after he hammered Viktor Troicki 6-1, 6-0, 6-4 in a match that lasted just 1 hour, 22 minutes.
The Ukranian, who is at the center of match fixing allegations following a loss at a tournament earlier this month, looks set to meet Rafael Nadal in the next round.
Sixth-seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem was another man to enjoy a straight sets win, with his 7-5 6-3 6-4 victory over Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, booking him a fourth-round spot.
The 23-year-old has reached the fourth round in his last five grand slams, starting with the 2016 US Open, but has progressed past that stage only once, reaching the semi-finals of the French Open.
One man who won't be going any further is Italian Fabio Fognini. He was kicked out of the tournament for making foul-mouthed, misogynistic comments to a female umpire in his first-round match. He's now been banned from competing in the doubles tournament too.
Pliskova progress
In the womens draw, world number one Karolina Pliskova advanced by rallying to defeat China's 27th-seeded Zhang Shuai 3-6, 7-5, 6-4.
"I was match point down and I thought I haven't tried many forehand winners down the line. That's what I did. I may not have got another chance," said the 25-year-old. "She got tight at the end of the second set, so I just waited for my chances."
The top-seeded Czech, who rescued a match point in the 10th game of the second set, will next face either American Jen Brady or Romania's Monica Niculescu.
US Open: The big one in the Big Apple
"If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere," as Frank Sinatra once put it. This statement could just as easily be applied to the loudest, most demanding tennis tournament in the world, the US Open.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Samad
The sky is the limit
Nowak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka battled it out on in the men's final on Center Court in 2016. This photo gives you a rough impression of the view you would have had if you had managed to get yourself a ticket for a seat in the nosebleeds. Wawrinka would go on to win this duel.
Image: Getty Images/A. Bello
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe used a wooden racket when he played in the Forest Hills stadium in Queens, New York in 1965. In 1978, the tournament moved to its larger site at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows. The main court, which holds more than 22,000 spectators, is named after Athur Ashe.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo
Pete could do with a bucket...
The matches can be long and the weather is usually hot and humid. This can take a toll on the players. In 1996, a few minutes after this picture was shot, the great Pete Sampras actually threw up on the court during his match against Alex Corretja. We could have shown you that, but you didn’t really want to see it, did you?
Image: Getty Images/S. Botterill
Quiet please!
If you are looking for a quiet game of tennis, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center is not the place for you! It happens to be located close to LaGuardia Airport. If you don’t like the noise you can complain, but making yourself heard could pose a problem...
Image: imago/UPI Photo
When Serena was still a bad girl
"Foot fault," cried the woman on the chair during this 2009 match. Serena Williams was having nothing of it and did her best to make this clear. The line judge jumped out of her chair and…
Image: Getty Images/J. Finney
"I didn't say that!"
…ran to the net and told the match referee, who called the head referee. He ordered Williams’ semifinal match against Kim Clijsters abandoned and awarded it to the Belgian. It was widely reported that Williams had threatened to shove a tennis ball down the line judge’s throat, something that the American denied having said.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/T.A. Clary
Cramp-plagued Marcos Baghdatis
IN 2006, Marcos Baghdatis struggled through a his match against Andre Agassi. Plagued by cramps, he struggled to complete its. Baghdatis is still on the tour, Agassi, of course, retired years ago.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/D. Emmert
Andre's second-last match
The match, in which Baghdatis wound up unable to run around the court was the second last in the career of Andre Agassi in New York. The crowd gave both men a standing ovation after Agassi won 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 7-5. In his 2010 autobiography "Open," Agassi described his pain both on and off the tennis court.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/D. Emmert
Stefanie Graf's backhand
Stefanie Graf rarely made mistakes with her backhand but her forehand was even better. In 1988 she faced Argentina’s Gabriela Sabatini in the US Open final and won 6-3, 3-6, and 6-1. Sabatini went on to have her own line of perfume, but Graf became a legend, helping, along with Boris Becker, to spark a tennis boom in Germany.
Image: Getty Images
A happy Angie Kerber
It would take until 2016 for another German to win at Flushing Meadows. This photo is from September 11, 2016, a day after Angelique Kerber had beaten Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic in the final. Since then, things haven't gone her way. Kerber lost her No. 1 spot in the women's rankings - despite the absence of Serena Williams.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Cj Gunther
Can't forget Jimmy
How could we forget this guy? He was in his prime when US men’s tennis was still powerful and nobody had heard of John McEnroe yet. Jimmy Connors, in this picture no longer using his old metal racket, won the US Open five times. His two-handed backhanders changed the men’s game.
Image: Getty Images/V
Boris won here too...
Here’s another guy we can’t forget. This is Boris Becker after beating Ivan Lendl 7-6, 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 in the 1989 final. The often ill-tempered Lendl went on to become a cool golfer and even cooler coach. Becker is still his happy-go-lucky self. Last year he was appointed the "head of men’s tennis" by the German Tennis Association (DTB).
Image: Imago/Norbert Schmidt
Legendary support
Alexander Zverev (above left) is still looking for his first Grand Slam and he has enlisted former Grand Slam winner Ivan Lendl (right) to help him refine his game. The men's No. 4 failed to make it past the second round in his two previous appearances at the US Open. The 21-year-old German is hoping that Lendl's tactical knowledge will help carry him much deeper in 2018.