The 2019 US Open is only entering its second round, but we are already witnessing some shockers. Fourth seed Dominic Thiem and eighth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas both suffered defeats in their opening matches and have surprisingly been eliminated from the tournament.
Thiem, who reached quarterfinals last year, faced unseeded Italian Thomas Fabbiano on Wednesday and entered the match as an overwhelming favorite. Still, Fabbiano, who is ranked 92nd in the world, caught the 25-year-old Austrian by surprise and fairly easy grabbed a win with 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in sets.
Although Fabbiano put up an impressive performance, Thiem’s downfall was largely contributed by his shaky backhand and 48 unforced errors.
“I got very, very tired and exhausted after two sets. I’m far away from 100 percent. Like this, it’s very tough to win,” – Thiem admitted after the match. “I went on court because in tennis, especially in long two-week tournaments, anything can happen.”
The eighth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas also lasted only four sets, before being eliminated by No.43 ranked Andrey Rublev.
Tsitsipas lost the first set, but it looked like he might take control of the match after winning a nerve-wracking tiebreaker in the second set. Things, however, went south for the 21-year-old Greek in the next two sets as he clashed with chair umpire Damien Dumusois on several occasions and began struggling with cramps.
With Tsitsipas losing his nerves and step towards the end of the match, Rublev seized the opportunity and got a 6-4, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (7), 7-5 win to advance into the next round.
Other surprising exits in the first round of 2019 US Open include the elimination of Wimbledon semi-finalist Roberto Bautista Agut, who fell down against unseeded Mikhail Kukushkin and the loss of ninth-seeded Karen Khachanov against Vasek Pospisi.
