US Open is back! Day 1 highlights including the first upset

‘Sascha’ Zverev got through his match with a heartfelt socially distanced video congrats from his brother, and Cam Norrie put on the fight of his life to beat back top seed Diego Schwartzman.

What does a US Open look like without all its customary noise and rowdy New York City behavior? We got a look at the new, weird US grand slam and it just didn’t seem the same, although the event went smoothly enough. Instead of crowds, we were treated to tennis players hanging out in the boxes that usually fetch for thousands.

Diego Schwartzman certainly took full advantage of his down time after his surprise loss to Great Britain’s Cam Norrie, who thrilled by coming back from two sets down to win the first-round match. It certainly was the match of the day and it would have brought a full crowd to its feet. It’s matches like that where we miss a raucous audience celebrating a come-from-behind victory, 3-6, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, 7-5.

The empty stadiums provided ample opportunity for tennis players to watch their peers, like Andy Murray checking out the Kevin Anderson/Alexander Zverev match.

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The 23-year-old current world No. 7 got handed a tough R1 opponent with Anderson but only managed to lose one set and eked out the win to move onto the second round, 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-3, 7-5. He received a sweet congratulations from his tennis playing brother Mischa, via video cam.

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Novak Djokovic kept up his dominance with a straight sets, breezy win over Damir Džumhur, 6-1, 6-4, 6-1. It was no surprise since he hasn’t lost a match all year, including winning the Western and Southern Open just last weekend. The world No. 1 is the favorite of the tournament. He’s also had his hands full as the ATP President, announcing a new union just the day before.

Another favorite for the title, Stefanos Tsitsipas, sailed through to the second round by defeating Albert Ramos Viñolas without barely losing a game, 6-2, 6-1, 6-1.

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The all-American battle between Steven Johnson and 16-seed John Isner went to five sets, sending the higher ranked Isner packing early, 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-6(3). But young Taylor Fritz also kept American hope alive by rallying after losing the first set to win over Dominik Koepfer, 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.

Expectations were high for tennis superstar Coco Gauff, but fans were disappointed that she lost in the first round to Anastasija Sevastova, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4. However, she’s young and shouldn’t be counted out.

Although some top seeds are missing on the women’s side (Ashleigh Barty, Simona Halep to name a few), the women’s game was in good hands with grand slam winners Petra Kvitova and Angelique Kerber handily winning their matches in straight sets.

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US Open first round matches continue on Tuesday, Sept. 1.