Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz navigated a challenging second-round match at the US Open, battling back from a set down to defeat Portugal's Jaime Faria 3-6, 6-7, 6-2, 6-1. The victory advanced Alcaraz into the third round of the tournament and continued his physical comeback after a recent absence.
Alcaraz acknowledged that playing a four-set match, while not ideal in terms of score, provided valuable physical testing. "At the end, I realised that playing four sets was really good for me to test everything physically, to test my body, how I feel, and how I'm going to feel tomorrow after this match," Alcaraz stated.
With top contenders Jannik Sinner absent due to injury and Novak Djokovic already eliminated, the men's draw appears more open, potentially increasing Alcaraz's chances of securing another major title. His next opponent will be China's Wu Yibing, currently ranked 113th in the world.
Meanwhile, American Tommy Paul, seeded 20th and a potential fourth-round opponent for Alcaraz, also advanced. Paul defeated Croatia's Dino Prizmic 6-2, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 and is scheduled to face Kazakhstan's 15th seed Alexander Bublik. Eighth seed Ben Shelton continued his pursuit of becoming the first American men's champion since Andy Roddick in 2003, winning his match against Poland's Hubert Hurkacz. Another American hopeful, Frances Tiafoe, also secured a victory.
However, the draw saw a significant upset with Spain's 12th seed Rafael Jodar being convincingly defeated by Chinese world number 124 Bu Yunchaokete.