Bublik

The world tennis No 1 beat Bublik in the round of 16, losing just three games and reversing a shock loss to the Kazakh in June.

Defending champion Jannik Sinner said he enjoyed the vibe of playing under the Arthur Ashe Stadium lights after he continued his hardcourt Grand Slam run by hammering 23rd seed Alexander Bublik to make the US Open quarterfinals.

The Italian tennis player came into the match on Labour Day, seeking his 25th straight major match win on his preferred surface, and never looked in danger against a tricky rival, bolting out of the blocks to win 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 on his night session debut this year.

“It’s always special to go on Ashe to play,” Sinner said after the match on Monday.

“Night matches, they’re a bit different because there’s a bit more attention, I feel. It’s a different vibe, also, around the court. It’s very loud. It’s also different to play.

“It was the first time for me this year. It was nice. You have the good and the bad if you play in the evening. It’s very special, and you feel very privileged to step onto court in the night on the biggest court we have.”

A mere 81 minutes after the clash began, Sinner was back in the locker room after gaining revenge for a shock defeat by Bublik on June 20, in the Halle Open final – his only loss to a player not named Carlos Alcaraz this year.

“We know each other well. We’ve had some tough battles this year, so we know each other a bit better,” the top-seeded Sinner said.

“He had a tough match last time [against Tommy Paul], finishing late. He didn’t serve as well as he does. I broke him in every set, and it gave me the confidence to play well.”

A double break helped Sinner build a 4-0 lead before Bublik could even get on the board, and the dominant 24-year-old chased down a drop shot to fire home a deep backhand winner that wrapped up the opening set with another break.

Bublik’s attempts to disrupt Sinner’s rhythm with more drop shots proved futile, but it was his service errors that left him trailing by two sets, before Sinner wheeled away to his eighth straight grand slam quarterfinal.

Up next is a meeting with compatriot Lorenzo Musetti. Sinner said it would be a great occasion for Italian tennis.

“It’s great to see. Italian tennis is in great form. We have so many players and different game styles,” he said.

“Lorenzo is one of the biggest talents we have in our sport. I’m looking forward to this one. From an Italian point of view, it’s great to have for sure one Italian player in the semis.

“I know that there are a lot of Italian players in the crowd. It makes everything special.”

Suffering a shock loss in the Roland Garros last 16 is a mark of how far Draper has come in the past year.

Twelve months ago in Paris, the 23-year-old Englishman suffered a chastening first-round defeat to 176th-ranked Dutchman Jesper de Jong while still figuring out what his most effective game style was.

Realising he was trying to be too aggressive, Draper sought a better balance.

Winning his first ATP title just a few weeks later helped boost his confidence before he enjoyed a run to the US Open semi-finals.

Improved fitness has also been a key factor.

After winning the biggest title of his career on the Indian Wells hard courts in March, he quickly set about using his most potent tools – first serve and forehand – on the clay.

Reaching the Madrid Open final showed he had the ability to be succeed on the surface and the fifth seed played maturely in his first three matches in Paris, before being thrown off-kilter by Bublik.

“I struggle to put things in perspective, but I am proud of the effort I’ve done on the clay. I think I’ve really improved,” Draper said.

“This year I’m leaving number five in the world, I’ve made the fourth round, I’m playing consistently really good tennis week in and week out.

“I always use the fuel and the hurt to better myself.”

In 23-year-old Draper, British tennis fans believe they may just have found their next serial Grand Slam contender.

British former world number four Tim Henman told BBC Sport recently that Draper’s best attributes – his left-handed serve and crunching forehand – could “work on any surface”.

Prior to this year, though, Draper had never won a match at the clay-court major with most of his success coming on hard courts or grass.

However, he has made huge strides on the surface this season and reached his first clay final in Madrid in April.

Managing to avoid the injuries that have plagued him in the past has enabled Draper to reach a significantly higher level of fitness, which has been key to his improvement on the slower surface.

Now just the world number 62 stands between him and another Grand Slam quarter-final.

And while Draper has enjoyed the best year of his career, Bublik fell from a high of 17th in the rankings in 2024 to as low as 82nd in March.

That prompted a radical change of approach that led to the Kazakh taking a trip to Las Vegas that month to blow off some steam.

“My fall was not linked with lack of attitude and lack of practising,” he said.

“It was the exact opposite. I just burned out because I was waiting for the results to come.

“I was like, if I practise more, if I hit better forehands, it will come. It didn’t, and then I got to the point of ‘OK, why am I sacrificing so much? For what?'”

Asked if the trip to Nevada was a training trip, Bublik added: “No, Vegas, Vegas, like a hangover thing Vegas.

“It was a good three days. I had just let it all out. I said, I’m useless now, I can’t win a match, so let it be, let’s see how it goes.”

It worked as Bublik won his next event, the Challenger tournament in Phoenix, Arizona, having arrived from Vegas three hours before his first match. He also triumphed on clay in Turin last month.

The 27-year-old is slowly climbing the rankings again – but Draper will be keen to ensure a first Grand Slam quarter-final appearance has to wait.