Alexander Zverev won the German duel against Daniel Altmaier on Thursday (08/31/2023) and reached the third round of the US Open. There he will be the only individual player from the DTB team for men and women.
Zverev defeated Altmaier in four hard-fought sets 7: 6 (7: 1), 3: 6, 6: 4, 6: 3 and converted his first match point after 3:43 hours. “Daniel has a talent for getting good players to play badly against him. This is also an art“, said Zverev. “Tennis is a matter of feeling. You can find it in the match, you can lose it. I think I found it really well in the third and fourth sets. That’s when it clicked, and then it was clearer.”according to Zverev.
In the third round, the number 12 seeded German meets Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov. The 32-year-old former ATP Finals champion won a duel between two prominent veterans 6: 3, 6: 4, 6: 1 against two-time Wimbledon winner Andy Murray, who triumphed in New York in 2012.
In the round of 16, the world number six Jannik Sinner, who easily defeated compatriot Lorenzo Sonego on Thursday, could be the first really big chunk for Zverev.
John Isner, on the other hand, missed the entry into the third round. The local hero lost to his compatriot Michael Mmoh 6:3, 6:4, 6:7 (3:7), 4:6, 6:7 (7:10) and said goodbye in tears after a marathon match over 4:01 hours from the tennis stage. Isner had already announced before the tournament that he wanted to end his career afterwards.
German women without a chance
For women, Eva Lys and Tamara Korpatsch were the last German players to be eliminated in the second round of the US Open. The 21-year-old Lys from Hamburg lost to the Italian Lucia Bronzetti 3: 6, 2: 6 and missed the first entry into the round of the top 32. Korpatsch was 3: 6, 3: 6 against the number 14 seeded Russian Ljudmila Samsonova also without a real chance of winning. This means that all five German players who started in the individual competition of the Grand Slam tournament in New York are out.
Lys was treated several times during the game and was lying on his back. She fought her way through qualification with strong performances and did not drop a set in her first round win against American Robin Montgomery. She had never previously won a main round match in a Grand Slam. Korpatsch would also have been in the third round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. For the first time since 2009, the US Open will take place without a German woman.
Two of the co-favorites held themselves harmless. Second seeded Aryna Sabalenka easily defeated Britain’s Jodie Burrage 6-3, 6-2 and Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova defeated Martina Trevisan 6-2, 6-2. Also successful was Elina Switolina, who defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkowa 5:7, 6:4, 6:4.
Successes and setbacks in the doubles competition
In doubles there are still two players in the tournament. Laura Siegemund won after her bitter elimination in singles against Coco Gauff alongside Vera Zvonareva with 7: 5, 5: 7, 6: 4 against the US duo Caroline Dolehide/Asia Muhammad. On Wednesday Tatjana Maria had already moved into the second round with Aratxa Rus.
In the men’s game, number ten seeded German doubles Tim Pütz and Kevin Krawietz failed in the opening match against French Quentin Halys and Gregoire Barrere 3: 6, 6: 3, 6: 7 (6:10). The day before, Andreas Mies and American Mckenzie McDonald were the only DTB pros to survive the first round. A consolation for Krawietz and Pütz: Both won their opening matches before their joint doubles in mixed.