Follow live coverage of Day 7 of the 2024 US Open

Welcome to the US Open briefing, where The athlete will explain the stories behind the stories on each tournament day.

On the sixth day in New York City, after 48 shocking hours, things calmed down and there were a number of expected results – until night fell and the debate about reviewing tennis videos arose.

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A regular day of US Open tennis? Will it never happen?

English Premier League fans may be familiar with the social media meme showing former Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte looking disheveled during an interview. The caption reads: “An ordinary day at Barclays (a former EPL sponsor). That’s all I ask. Will never happen.”

It gives the feeling that the league can always be relied upon to provide some drama or headline or another.

It seems relevant for this year’s US Open, especially after two of the biggest names in the men’s field, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic, were eliminated by lower-ranked opponents on two consecutive nights. Those two nights also saw the latest start and nearly the latest finish in the tournament’s history.

For a long time, Saturday looked like a normal day at the US Open would happen. Or at least a fairly routine one based on rankings and expectations.

The day’s session went smoothly, 10 of the 12 games ended in two sets and without any major surprises.

The night session also passed largely without major incidents, until the third game of the second match at Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Beatriz Haddad Maia, seeded 22nd, was one stroke behind 15th seed Anna Kalinskaya.

Haddad Maia recovered the ball, and Kalinskaya missed as she tried to return it to the open court for an easy win. She immediately requested a video review for a double rebound, using the review system that was not available at the Cincinnati event nearly two weeks ago in a similar incident between Jack Draper and Felix Auger-Aliassime.

And when I know that I have seen this year… pic.twitter.com/TBXpjNjdZl

— Bola Amarela (@Bola_Amarela) 1 September 2024

Umpire Miriam Bley initially ruled that Haddad Maia had played a fair shot, and after a video review, her original decision stood – although the footage appeared to show that Haddad Maia had at least hit the ball into the ground, along with the double rebound. So instead of having a break point for Kalinskaya, it was advantage for Haddad Maia. She duly won the game, and Kalinskaya did not seem to recover from the injustice. She eventually lost the match 6-3, 6-1.

A normal day at the US Open. That’s all I ask for. Will never happen.

GO DEEPER

Why Draper and Auger-Aliassime’s match point should change the way we view video replays in tennis

Charlie Eccleshar

What happened to Tommy Paul and Gabriel Diallo?

Tommy Paul is known for his fluid, swinging all-court game. Other players win more often than the world number 14, but he plays a brand of tennis that gets compliments from other players because it’s so beautiful to watch.

So it was quite amazing to watch Paul play one of the ugliest matches of the 2024 US Open so far. His four-set victory over Gabriel Diallo of Canada at Louis Armstrong Stadium included 14 serve breaks and 13 double faults between the two. There were 127 unforced errors, 50 from Paul versus 40 winners. Diallo’s split was 77-32. Yikes.

Paul, who is usually self-deprecating, was a little confused as to how to explain a game that he felt was “probably strange for many viewers.” He tried to keep a clear head and slow the game down. He demanded direction from his team. “Strange situation,” Paul said. “I mean, the conditions couldn’t have been much better. There was no wind, no sun and we were playing in a packed Louis Armstrong Stadium.”

When it was finally over after almost three and a half hours, Paul hardly celebrated, but just rolled his eyes and shook his head as he went to the net for a handshake. “I was just happy to be done,” he said. “These games are not the most fun to be on the court, but tonight I will be happier than if I play perfectly.”

Yes, strange.

Matt Futterman

The stories of the first week

The second week of the US Open starts with the round of 16 on Sunday. It’s all about the finish.

The first week of a Grand Slam tournament is hardly like any other sporting event, although the basic elements are similar to the biggest events in pretty much any other sporting event. There are so many matches it’s hard to know where to look; surprising results and moments sometimes come one at a time and sometimes all at once.

Like Wimbledon seven weeks ago, the first three days of this US Open flew by but never really came alive. Then came day four and Carlos Alcaraz’s elimination against Botic van de Zandschulp. 24 hours later, Alexei Popyrin stood on the court at Arthur Ashe Stadium with his arms raised after knocking out Novak Djokovic. The tournament had come to life.

Here are some of the stories from week one, alongside these stunning defeats. Tell us yours in the comments…

James Hansen

Shot of the day

This return 👀

Just like Iga Swiatek drew it ✍️ pic.twitter.com/r1yrLrZ4md

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) 31 August 2024

US Open Men’s Draw 2024

US Open Women’s Draw 2024

(Top photo of Anna Kalinskaya: Charly Triballeau / AFP via Getty Images; Design: Eamonn Dalton)