Jannik Sinner continues to look unstoppable in New York.
The 24-year-old Italian, angling for a successful title defense at the US Open, bulldozed past Alexander Bublik on Monday, 6-1, 6-1, 6-1, to storm into the quarterfinals.
Bublik had swept through his first 55 service games of the tournament without being broken, but against Sinner that streak quickly went up in smoke. The Italian broke him eight times in 11 return games and reeled off one of the most dominant fourth-round victories in recent memory.
Sinner has now won 11 consecutive matches at Flushing Meadows and stretched his Grand Slam hard-court winning streak to 25. Since the beginning of 2024, he has amassed an astounding 69–4 record on the surface.
Next up is history: Sinner will square off against Lorenzo Musetti in the first all-Italian men’s singles quarterfinal in Grand Slam Open Era history. For Sinner, it’s a special occasion, but also one that comes with added responsibility.
“Pressure has always been there,” he said. “It’s going to be very interesting to see obviously. It’s a bit different when you play… from me being Italian playing against another Italian, they are always a bit different matches. But at the same time, he’s an amazing player, very, very talented.”
Musetti also had an easy time of it on Monday as he ripped past Spain’s Jaume Munar 6-3, 6-0, 6-1.
For the first time in Open Era history, multiple Italians have reached the quarterfinals at all four majors.
“He is playing some great tennis,” Sinner said of Musetti. “He has struggled a bit during the season, but now he finds himself in an amazing form and shape. The pressure is on me. But most of the time the pressure is a little bit more on me than on the opponent, so let’s see what’s coming. I like these challenges. It’s great from an Italian point of view to have, for sure, an Italian playing the semis of a Grand Slam.”
As for the demolition of Bublik, Sinner said he kept things simple: focus on consistency, make him move, and stay in control of the physical battle. “Some days are good, and some days are not good,” he said. “Today I played some good tennis at times. At times he gave me some free points. I just tried to stay as consistent as possible, and I think that today was maybe the main key.”
