NEW YORK (AP) Theres a larger contingent of Americans in the U.S. Open mens bracket than at any time in the past quarter-century. Might be the best crop in nearly that long , too, and two of the leaders Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton got the tournament started on Sunday with dominant performances.
Shelton, the No. 6 seed and twice a Grand Slam semifinalist, needed just 2 hours, 7 minutes to get past qualifier Ignacio Buse of Peru 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 in the first contest in Arthur Ashe Stadium on the events debut of a Sunday start instead of Monday.
Fritz, the No. 4 seed and the runner-up to Jannik Sinner at Flushing Meadows a year ago, needed about 10 fewer minutes to move on with a 7-5, 6-2, 6-3 victory over yet another U.S. man, Emilio Nava, a wild-card entry, at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
In all, there are 23 men from the host country in the field, the most since the same number were in the draw in 1997 at what Fritz called the most important tournament for us Americans all year. There are 25 U.S. women, which is less of a milestone for a group that regularly produces Grand Slam champions and finalists.
I do think the competition among all of us, Fritz said about the men, pushes all of us and gives us motivation to be better.
Theyre all chasing the same prize: the first Grand Slam singles trophy for an American man since Andy Roddick triumphed in New York in 2003.
Thats quite a ways away at this point, though, especially considering that Sinner and No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz have combined to win each of the past seven major titles.
As soon as you start looking ahead of yourself, you stumble over your own feet, said Shelton, who lost to Sinner in the Australian Open semifinals in January, to Alcaraz in the French Opens fourth round in June and to Sinner in the Wimbledon quarterfinals in July.
This is the one, for sure, Shelton said about the U.S. Open, where he reached the final four in 2023. This is the pinnacle of tennis for me, what I dreamed about when I was a kid.
He produced some highlight-worthy moments Sunday while accumulating more than twice as many winners as Buse, including one swerving, around-the-post forehand that looked very much like something his idol another lefty, by the name of Rafael Nadal used to do.
Shelton won the point on 26 of 33 trips to the net and saved all five of Buses five break chances.
Fritz, similarly, went 13-for-14 at the net and swept aside all four break points he faced, buoyed, he said, by the confidence that I know Ive played well here before.
What else happened at the US Open on Sunday?
Emma Raducanu won a match in New York for the first time since she won the 2021 U.S. Open title, eliminating Ena Shibahara 6-1, 6-2. Other players in action included No. 1 seed and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka, while at night, Novak Djokovic was scheduled to face 19-year-old Californian Learner Tien, before 2024 runner-up Jessica Pegula was up against Mayar Sherif in the last match in Ashe.
Who is on Mondays schedule at the US Open?
Venus Williams is slated to make her return to Grand Slam tennis after a two-year absence, meeting 2023 French Open finalist Karolina Muchova on Monday night. The 45-year-old Williams is a seven-time major singles champion. Others on the Day 2 program include Alcaraz against big-serving American Reilly Opelka, Australian Open champion Madison Keys , and two-time U.S. Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe.
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More AP tennis:
纽约（美联社）——本届美国网球公开赛男子单打签表中的美国选手数量创下近25年来新高，其整体实力也可能是同期最强。其中两位领军人物——泰勒·弗里茨和本·谢尔顿——在周日以压倒性表现开启赛事征程。
作为赛会6号种子、两度打入大满贯半决赛的谢尔顿仅耗时2小时7分钟，便以6-3、6-2、6-4直落三盘击败秘鲁资格赛选手伊格纳西奥·布塞。这场比赛是阿瑟·阿什球场在本届赛事首次由周一开赛改为周日揭幕后的首场对决。
作为赛会4号种子、去年在法拉盛公园屈居亚军的弗里茨，在路易斯·阿姆斯特朗球场以7-5、6-2、6-3击败持外卡参赛的美国选手埃米利奥·纳瓦，顺利晋级下一轮，耗时比上次少了约10分钟。
本届赛事共有23名东道主男选手参赛，这是自1997年（当时也有同样数量的选手入围）以来人数最多的一次。弗里茨称这是我们美国人全年最重要的赛事。此外还有25名美国女选手参赛，但对于这个经常诞生大满贯冠军和亚军选手的群体而言，这一数字并不算重大突破。
弗里茨在谈及男选手们时表示：“我确实认为我们之间的竞争激励着所有人，并推动我们不断进步。”
他们都在追逐同一个目标：自2003年安迪·罗迪克在纽约夺冠以来，美国男子选手的首个大满贯单打冠军奖杯。
不过，目前看来这还相当遥远，尤其是考虑到辛纳和世界排名第二的卡洛斯·阿尔卡拉斯已经联手包揽了过去七项大满贯冠军。
“一旦你开始好高骛远，就会栽跟头。”谢尔顿说道。他在今年1月的澳网半决赛中败给辛纳，6月法网第四轮输给阿尔卡拉斯，7月温网四分之一决赛再度负于辛纳。
“毫无疑问，这就是我梦寐以求的赛事，”谢尔顿谈及2023年闯入四强的美国网球公开赛时说道，“对我而言，这是网球的巅峰，是我儿时就憧憬的梦想。”
他在周日比赛中贡献了多个精彩瞬间，制胜分数量是布塞的两倍多，其中还包括一记绕过球柱的强烈上旋正手击球——这与他偶像（同为左撇子的拉斐尔·纳达尔）的招牌动作如出一辙。
谢尔顿（Shelton）在33次上网截击中有26次得分，并成功挽救了布塞（Buse）的全部五个破发机会。
同样地，弗里茨在网前14次交锋中拿下13分，并化解了全部四个破发点。他表示，这种表现源于"我深知自己曾在这里打出过好成绩所带来的信心"。
周日的美网公开赛还发生了哪些其他事件？
艾玛·拉杜卡努自2021年美网夺冠后首次在纽约赢得比赛，以6-1、6-2淘汰柴原瑛菜。其他出战选手包括头号种子兼卫冕冠军阿丽娜·萨巴伦卡，晚间赛事中，诺瓦克·德约科维奇原定对阵19岁的加州小将天 Learner，随后2024年赛会亚军杰茜卡·佩古拉将在阿瑟·阿什球场的压轴战中迎战梅亚尔·谢里夫。
美国网球公开赛周一赛程有哪些选手出战？
维纳斯·威廉姆斯在缺席两年后即将重返大满贯赛场，她将于周一晚间对阵2023年法网亚军卡罗琳娜·穆霍娃。这位45岁的老将曾七次斩获大满贯单打冠军。次日赛程还包括：阿尔卡拉斯对阵发球强劲的美国选手赖利·欧佩尔卡、澳网冠军麦迪逊·凯斯，以及两度打入美网四强的弗朗西斯·蒂亚福。
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