ATP Tour

Cerundolo rallies to upset Fritz in five sets at US Open, Blockx shocks Cobolli

Francisco Cerundolo ended Taylor Fritz’s US Open title hopes on Saturday, when he rallied from two sets to love down for just the second time in his career to upset the ninth-seeded American.

After losing the first two sets, Cerundolo dug in on Arthur Ashe Stadium, recording a 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 win against an out-of-sorts Fritz, who struggled to find his timing and rhythm for large parts of the three-hour, 39-minute clash.

"He was playing way better than me the first two sets," Cerundolo said in his on-court interview. "I wasn't feeling comfortable at all. But after I broke back in the third, I started getting into it step by step, and I think the fourth and fifth I played really good tennis. I wasn't finding that tennis in the previous sets or previous rounds.

"Taylor is a top player. He made the final here and won a lot of matches, so I know how hard it is to play against him. But winning here, on my first time on Ashe, is fantastic."

Cerundolo trailed by two sets and a break but maintained a solid base level to stay in the match. The 24th seed thumped winners off his big forehand and troubled Fritz with varied pace on serve to reach the third round at the US Open for the first time.

A crucial turning point came at 3-4 in the fifth set, when Cerundolo fended off three break points from 0/40. The Argentine found three consecutive unreturned first serves, then struck a huge forehand to move to game point himself, which he sealed with another unreturned first delivery. With momentum behind him, Cerundolo then immediately broke the Fritz serve for the sixth and final time and then served out.

It is the earliest Fritz has lost at the US Open since 2022, when he suffered a first-round exit against Brandon Holt. The home hope, who was a finalist in Flushing Meadows in 2024, hit 54 unforced errors and struck 41 winners in a below-par display and now trails Cerundolo 1-2 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

Earlier this summer, Fritz won his first title of the season at the ATP 500 hard-court event in Washington.

Cerundolo arrived in New York having lost his past three matches but will now meet Alexander Blockx for a place in the quarter-finals.

The 28th seed Blockx powered past fifth seed Flavio Cobolli 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0, 6-3 to advance to the third round at a major for the first time. The Belgian won 11 consecutive games from 2-3 in the second set to 1-0 in the fourth set and then held his nerve impressively to close out on serve to love to record just his second Top-10 win.

Blockx, who is seeded at a major for the first time, is the first Belgian man to earn a Top-10 victory at the US Open since Oliver Rochus upset Carlos Moya in 2000. The 21-year-old fired 17 aces and won 86 per cent of his first-serve points in his two-hour, 45-minute triumph against Cobolli.

"I think this was one of my craziest experiences so far in my career," Blockx said. "The atmosphere was amazing and after the first set I told myself to stay calm. I wasn't playing bad. I know deep inside I am a fighter and I will fight until the last ball and it paid off today."

Just 12 months ago, Blockx was at No. 116 in the PIF ATP Rankings but is now up to No. 32 in the Live Rankings.

Cobolli reached the final at Roland Garros and the quarter-finals at Wimbledon earlier this year. After surviving in five sets in the first round against Francisco Comesana and four sets in the second round against Tristan Schoolkate, the Italian was unable to find the required gear against Blockx.

Cobolli will now aim to finish the year well and qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time. The 24-year-old is fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin.