By Victor Kanayo
Jannik Sinner cruised past Australian Christopher O’Connell 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the fourth round of the ongoing US Open.
It is the fourth consecutive year in which he has advanced that far in New York.
Sinner will face 14th seed Tommy Paul or Gabriel Diallo for a place in the quarter-finals. The 23-year-old has advanced to at least the last eight at every major this season, capturing his maiden Grand Slam trophy at the Australian Open.
Earlier, defending champion Novak Djokovic followed Carlos Alcaraz out of the door at the competition as he suffered a shock defeat by Alexei Popyrin in the third round.
Australia’s 28th seed Popyrin stood with his arms aloft as he wrapped up a surprise 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4 win to hand Djokovic his earliest US Open exit in 18 years.
The Serb will end the year without winning a Grand Slam for the first time since 2017, while his search for a record 25th major title goes on.
Djokovic was far from his clinical best, serving a career-high 14 double faults in a Grand Slam match and committing 49 unforced errors.
Djokovic’s exit follows that of French Open and Wimbledon winner Alcaraz, who lost to unseeded Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round.
