Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz get
the American men off to a strong start at the US Open
[August 25, 2025]
By HOWARD FENDRICH
NEW YORK (AP) — There's a larger contingent of Americans in the U.S.
Open men's bracket than at any time in the past quarter-century.
Might be the best crop in nearly that long, too, and two of the
leaders — Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton — got the tournament started
on Sunday with dominant performances.
Shelton, the No. 6 seed and twice a Grand Slam semifinalist, needed
just 2 hours, 7 minutes to get past qualifier Ignacio Buse of Peru
6-3, 6-2, 6-4 in the first contest in Arthur Ashe Stadium on the
event's debut of a Sunday start instead of Monday.
Fritz, the No. 4 seed and the runner-up to Jannik Sinner at Flushing
Meadows a year ago, needed about 10 fewer minutes to move on with a
7-5, 6-2, 6-3 victory over yet another U.S. man, Emilio Nava, a
wild-card entry, at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
In all, there are 23 men from the host country in the field, the
most since the same number were in the draw in 1997 at what Fritz
called "the most important tournament for us Americans all year."
There are 25 U.S. women, which is less of a milestone for a group
that regularly produces Grand Slam champions and finalists.
“I do think the competition among all of us,” Fritz said about the
men, “pushes all of us and gives us motivation to be better.”
They're all chasing the same prize: the first Grand Slam singles
trophy for an American man since Andy Roddick triumphed in New York
in 2003.
That's quite a ways away at this point, though, especially
considering that Sinner and No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz have combined to
win each of the past seven major titles.
“As soon as you start looking ahead of yourself, you stumble over
your own feet,” said Shelton, who lost to Sinner in the Australian
Open semifinals in January, to Alcaraz in the French Open's fourth
round in June and to Sinner in the Wimbledon quarterfinals in July.
“This is the one, for sure,” Shelton said about the U.S. Open, where
he reached the final four in 2023. “This is the pinnacle of tennis
for me, what I dreamed about when I was a kid.”
He produced some highlight-worthy moments Sunday while accumulating
more than twice as many winners as Buse, including one swerving,
around-the-post forehand that looked very much like something his
idol — another lefty, by the name of Rafael Nadal — used to do.
[to top of second column] |
Ben Shelton, of the United States, reacts after defeating Ignacio
Buse, of Peru, during the first round of the US Open tennis
championships, Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Kirsty
Wigglesworth)
Shelton won the point on 26 of 33 trips to the net
and saved all five of Buse's five break chances.
Fritz, similarly, went 13-for-14 at the net and swept aside all four
break points he faced, buoyed, he said, by “the confidence that I
know I've played well here before.”
What else happened at the US Open on Sunday?
Emma Raducanu won a match in New York for the first time since she
claimed the 2021 U.S. Open title, eliminating Ena Shibahara 6-1,
6-2. No. 1 seed and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka beat Rebeka
Masarova 7-5, 6-1. Alexandra Eala became the first woman from the
Philippines to win a match at any Grand Slam tournament, overcoming
a 5-1 deficit in the final set and getting help from a video review
that flustered her opponent during a 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (13-11) victory
over No. 14 seed Clara Tauson. At night, Novak Djokovic beat
19-year-old Californian Learner Tien 6-1, 7-6 (3), 6-2 to improve to
19-0 in the first round of the U.S. Open, before 2024 runner-up
Jessica Pegula topped Mayar Sherif 6-0, 6-4 in the last match in
Ashe.
Who is on Monday's schedule at the US Open?
Venus Williams is slated to make her return to Grand Slam tennis
after a two-year absence, meeting 2023 French Open finalist Karolina
Muchova on Monday night. The 45-year-old Williams is a seven-time
major singles champion. Others on the Day 2 program include Alcaraz
against big-serving American Reilly Opelka, Australian Open champion
Madison Keys, and two-time U.S. Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe.
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