Three sets, no drama
Frances Tiafoe needed five sets to get past Martin Damm Jr. in the first round. He needed three to get past a seed. The American beat No. 22 Valentin Vacherot 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 on Friday night in New York to reach the fourth round of the US Open.
Tiafoe broke early in each set and never let Vacherot back into a rhythm. The second set went in 6-2 and settled the argument. From there the 11th seed served out the match without facing anything resembling a scare.
The contrast with his opening week matters. Tiafoe survived a genuinely awkward first round, then swept aside qualifier Yuta Sakamoto, and has now added a seeded scalp in straight sets. His form through the North American swing had already been strong.
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Familiar territory in Queens
New York has been kind to Tiafoe. He reached the semi-finals in 2022 and again in 2024, the two deepest runs of his career at any major. Last year he went out in the third round, which is exactly the hurdle he has just cleared.
The next one is steeper. Daniil Medvedev, the No. 7 seed, waits on Sunday, and the head-to-head reads 6-1 in the Russian’s favour. That includes a win over Tiafoe in Brisbane earlier this year. A place in the quarter-finals is on the line.
A draw that keeps opening
The American contingent has held up unusually well this fortnight. Only two seeded Americans had been eliminated by the end of Friday, and Tommy Paul joined Tiafoe in the last 16 after grinding out five sets against Alexander Bublik on the same day.
Vacherot leaves with a third-round exit and little to reproach himself for beyond a slow start in each set. Tiafoe leaves with the kind of scoreline he has rarely produced against seeded players this season.
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