Key events
Some backstory for the Adelaide man Li Tu. He made his ITF debut in 2011. He retired in 2014 and was out of the sport for six years, earning his degree and founding a coaching academy during his time away. Since returning in 2021, he’s won nine ITF titles and one more at the Challenger level. He exuded confidence during his pre-match interview in the tunnel, but make no mistake: this one is as David v Goliath as it gets. Alcaraz has won four of the last seven majors staged, winning 42 of 45 matched over that span.
The players are on court and going through their warm-ups. Ashe is about two-thirds empty at the moment but the teeming queues outside by the fountains suggest it will be filling up quickly. We should be under way in a couple of minutes.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to Arthur Ashe Stadium for tonight’s match between Carlos Alcaraz and Li Tu. We’re courtside inside the world’s largest tennis stadium as the French Open and Wimbledon champion launches his bid for a second US Open title against a 28-year-old Australian qualifier in search of his first man-draw win at a grand slam and first victory over an opponent ranked in the ATP’s top 50.
Alcaraz looks to extend a 14-match win streak at major tournaments and is looking to become the third man in the open era to win Roland Garros, Wimbledon and US Open in the same year after Rod Laver in 1969 and Rafael Nadal in 2010. He’ll go off as a healthy favorite against Li Tu, he of the shortest name in professional tennis, who first cracked the top 200 in march and reached a career-high ranking of No 186 shortly after winning the M25 Traralgon title on home soil.
Before we get started … Dan Evans has just toppled Karen Khachanov in the longest match in US Open history. The 34-year-old Briton rallied from 0-4 down in the fifth set to win 6-7 (6), 7-6 (2), 7-6 (2), 4-6, 6-4 after 5hr 35min (!). That eclipses the previous mark held by the famous 1992 semi-final between Stefan Edberg and Michael Chang, which took 5hr 27min to complete.
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s a look at what’s happening as the day session gives way to night in Queens.
