Alexei Popyrin stepped on to Arthur Ashe Stadium on Thursday hopeful of causing another massive New York upset. But instead he was handed a lesson by world No.1 Jannik Sinner.

While Alex de Minaur and Maya Joint headline the action for Australian hopefuls later today at Flushing Meadows, it is has been a testing start to date with Adam Walton joining Popyrin on the vanquished list when beaten by Hong Kong qualifier Coleman Wong.

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A year after he ousted Novak Djokovic on the same court, Popyrin had been realistic but also optimistic about his chances when assessing the clash with Sinner, who has won 39 of the 42 matches he has played on hard court over the past year.

He knew he had to play near perfect tennis to prevail against a metronomic rival whose consistency of performance is sublime. But his optimism was soon pricked by the brilliance of his rival.

With his first serve percentage below par in the opening set, the Australian was on the defensive throughout when falling 6-3 6-2 6-2 in just over two hours, with Sinner largely happy with how he performed aside from concerns about the level of his own serve.

“Obviously I tried to play the best tennis that I can. I am very happy to manage this match as good as I could,” he said.

“Today I felt like we both didn’t serve great but I was returning very well, especially on the second serve. Obviously I am hoping to improve the serve, but the rest I feel quite comfortable.”

It is useless stepping on to a tennis court with a negative mindset and while Popyrin acknowledged the Italian’s remarkable record prior to the match, he held faith in his ability. This was bolstered by winning 13 of the 30 matches he has played against top 10-ranked rivals.

But Sinner is the world No.1. He has been the best hard court player in the world for more than two years. Barring Carlos Alcaraz’s great escape in the Roland Garros final, he would be playing to complete the Grand Slam in New York.

Within ten minutes, as three games rattled by, the Australian was in significant trouble. The winner of the Canadian Masters last August had hoped to put his rival on the back foot but instead he was already chasing tail against a superstar on his favourite surface.

The Aussie did win the opening point and held a mid-court forehand to get to 0-30 in the first game. But that was as good as it got,

even though the world No.36 was able to settle into the match and challenge Sinner on occasion from then on in extended rallies.

His struggles on serve through the first set stemmed from his inability to land just 43 percent of his first serves, which gave a player renowned for the quality of his returns even more of an opportunity to put Popyrin on the defensive.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 28: Alexei Popyrin of Australia looks on between points against Jannik Sinner of Italy during their Men’s Singles Second Round match on Day Five of the 2025 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 28, 2025 in the Flushing neighbourhood of the Queens borough of New York City. Clive Brunskill/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by CLIVE BRUNSKILL / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)Source: AFP

The 25-year-old lifted his percentage as the match progressed, but the sustained quality of the four-time major champion from the baseline enabled him to maintain a stranglehold on his rival.

After dropping serve again early in the second set, Popyrin held three opportunities to level at 3-all, with one of the deuce points a cracking 30-shot rally that had the defending champion sucking in deep breaths and seeking solace in his towel afterwards.

But on each occasion Sinner rose to the challenge, as champions do.

He saved two of the break point opportunities by thundering a flat serve to the backhand wing of the Australian and then dictating terms with his forehand, while the third was a second serve ace that arched away from Popyrin.

Having eluded a snare, Sinner promptly proceeded to break the Australian, who is at risk of dropping outside the top 40, to love in the following game to move to a near impregnable position in both the set and the match.

A similar pattern unfolded in the infancy of the third set as well. Popyrin’s body language was strong — he continued to pump his first towards coach Wayne Ferreira and supporters including Davis Cup skipper Lleyton Hewitt — as he vied for a solution to Sinner.

But every time he held a break point, the reigning Wimbledon champion was able to find a way out of trouble. And similarly to the second set, he promptly broke his rivals serve to love once again.

Towards the end of the match, after Sinner whipped another forehand winner to secure a second service break in the third set, all Popyrin could do was applaud the brilliance of his rival as he trudged towards his chair.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 28: Alexei Popyrin of Australia looks on between points against Jannik Sinner of Italy during their Men’s Singles Second Round match on Day Five of the 2025 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 28, 2025 in the Flushing neighbourhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

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Walton, meanwhile, started well initially against the Hong Kong qualifier when breaking immediately, but his failure to clinch a tight first set dented his hopes in a 7-6 (5) 6-2 4-6 6-4 loss in a match lasting three hours.

While the Queenslander was able to extend the match into a fourth set, his hopes of reaching at least the third round of a major for the first time will have to wait for another year.