Popyrin flies Aussie flag as teen sensation, Tomljanovic fall

A dominant Alexei Popyrin was the only shining light for Australia on day three of the US Open as the No.28 seed fired his way into the third round with ease.
In oppressive heat, which soared above 30 degrees on court, Popyrin made short work of 43rd-ranked Spaniard Pedro Martinez, taking out the match 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 in under two hours.
The 25-year-old, who is seeded at a grand slam for the first time courtesy of his breakthrough in Montreal earlier in August, is on a hot streak, having won eight of his past nine matches during the American hardcourt season.
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He completely outplayed Martinez, hammering 36 winners to the Spaniard’s five.
Alexei Popyrin of Australia celebrates a point against Pedro Martinez of Spain. Getty
Popyrin stormed to the last 32 for the third time at a grand slam and his next clash will be a daunting one if things go as expected.
The Australian will likely face defending champion Novak Djokovic, who plays fellow Serb Laslo Djere on Thursday morning AEST.
It will be Popyrin’s seventh appearance in the third round of a grand slam tournament, however, he’s never reached the round of 16.
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The opening two days may have lulled Aussie fans into a false sense of security, with half of the country’s 20 main draw participants advancing to the US Open’s second round across the first two days, the best start in 45 years.
However, reality hit on day three as Popyrin’s compatriots failed to win a set.
Rinky Hijikata could not replicate the same form he exhibited in the first round as he got pumped by ninth-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, a 6-1, 6-1, 7-6 (4).
Hijikata could not overcome Dimitrov’s power from the back of the court as the Bulgarian smashed 36 winners to the Aussie’s 17. Dimitrov did not concede a break until the third set, with Hijikata briefly threatening to take the match into a fourth before the former world No.3 recovered to finish it off in the tiebreaker.
Ajla Tomljanovic was thrashed in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 by 33rd seeded Belgian Elise Mertens.
American-born Australian teenager Maya Joint was the talk of tennis after upsetting German veteran Laura Siegemund in the first round but could not overcome hometown veteran Madison Keys at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Joint started the match well and did her best to match Keys but eventually fell away, losing 6-4, 6-0 in just over an hour of play.
Joint was playing well when her first serve was going in, winning 80 per cent of those points. But the experience of Keys shone through as she attacked the teenager’s weaker second serve.
Joint will likely reach a career high of No.108 after her grand slam debut, yet is planning on attending university after the US Open to start a psychology degree, even as she approached direct entry into the Australian Open.
Fellow Australians, No.10 seed Alex de Minaur, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Jordan Thompson, Chris O’Connell, wildcard Tristan Schoolkate and Max Purcell will play their second-round matches on Friday (AEST).