With trademark ruthlessness and efficiency, Jannik Sinner stormed into the second round of the US Open.
The world No 1 needed just 98 minutes and dropped just four games with a dominant performance inside the Arthur Ashe Stadium, dispatching Vit Kopriva without barely breaking a sweat.
The reigning US Open champion, and the winner of the last three hard-court Slams, it comes as no surprise to see Sinner earmarked by most as the title favourite this fortnight.
However, after a paint-by-numbers round one for the Italian, things should – and likely will – get tougher when he returns to court on Thursday.
Sinner will be the favourite to dispatch Alexei Popyrin when they meet, though the Italian will have to do something he has never done before: beat the world No 36.
‘I don’t feel too starstruck by the occasion’
It has been over four years since the sole meeting between Sinner and Popyrin, a match won by the Australian at the Madrid Open.
A 7-6(5), 6-2 victory in the Spanish capital remains the only time that Popyrin, a big-hitting 26-year-old from Sydney, has ever tested himself against the Italian.
Naturally, a lot has changed for Sinner since then, with the 24-year-old now a four-time Grand Slam champion with over 60 consecutive weeks as the world No 1.
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However, plenty has changed for Popyrin as well in the past four years.
Unexpectedly, the Australian hit the peak of his career just last summer, with a string of extraordinary results in North America.
With the odds stacked against him, Popyrin – ranked 62nd in the world – became the fourth-lowest-ranked player to win a Masters 1000 title at the 2024 Canadian Open.
That was followed by a career-best run to the fourth round of the US Open, famously stunning defending champion and recent Olympic gold medallist Novak Djokovic in four sets.
Beating Djokovic remains the finest win of his career, and his showdown against Sinner will likely see him return to the scene of that victory: the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Many would be overawed by playing inside the largest arena in tennis, but the Australian is not one to be overawed.
“I’ve walked out onto Arthur Ashe before, so I know what to expect of that stadium,” said Popyrin.
“I think walking out against Novak, I think it was a little bit different for me because I played him in two previous occasions that year and both in Slams.
“But then again, you’re walking out onto a big stadium and you’re playing one of the top guys in the sport and I think that’s the moments that I relish.
“That’s the moments where I kind of come out and play some of my best tennis, and I’m hoping I can do that again.”
Defeat to Alexander Zverev in this year’s Canadian Open quarter-finals saw Popyrin, who has a career-high of world No 19, drop significantly down the ATP Rankings at precisely the wrong time.
Popyrin heads into the US Open as the world No 36, just missing out on a seeding for the men’s singles event.
He was in convincing form against Emil Ruusuvuori in the opening round, but now faces taking on the world No 1 as early as round two.
Popyrin certainly faces an uphill task, but there are certainly reasons for optimism.
Expectations on the Australian will be lowered considering his opponent, though he will still have the confidence and belief to cause a seismic shock.
And, as he put it himself, he will be by no means overawed by facing the very best.
He added: “Jannik’s is the best in the world and is one of the best for a reason.
“But you know, I’m not, I’m not too, I don’t feel too starstruck by the occasion. I think I’ve been in that position before. I think last year is a great example of it.
“Yeah, for me, I feel like if I, if I can stick to my, if I can stick to my game, if I can play the way I want to play, then I can cause trouble.”
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