US Open, Djokovic eliminated in first round by Navone in five sets

The Sport section, reported uncovered in the 6:30 edition, opens in the afternoon with the heaviest result of the first day of the US Open: Novak Djokovic, fourth seed, was eliminated at the opening round by Argentina’s Mariano Navone.

The score, reported by the official results published by the ATP, tells the story of a match in two halves: 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 for Navone. The Argentine wins the first set in a tiebreak, loses the next two, then closes out the last two sets conceding three games in total. A 6-1 fifth set after four hard-fought sets speaks more to physical stamina than to tactics.

On the same day Daniil Medvedev defeated French qualifier Hugo Gaston in three sets, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4. Casper Ruud and Marin Cilic withdrew from the draw.

The return

Monday, August 31’s schedule, published by Olympics.com based on the official calendar of the US federation, brings the most anticipated name onto the court: Carlos Alcaraz, defending champion, returns to singles play after an absence from the tour lasting since April due to a wrist injury. Four months out is an amount of time that in modern tennis weighs asymmetrically: ranking is defended with points already earned, playing rhythm is not.

In the women’s draw, Aryna Sabalenka, world number one and winner of the last two editions, has taken to the court, facing Colombia’s Camila Osorio in her opening match.

The tournament began on Sunday, August 30 and closes with the men’s final on September 13. With Djokovic’s first-round exit and the withdrawals of Ruud and Cilic, the seeding picture had already changed before the men’s draw had even completed its opening round.

On the same day, in Europe

The sports calendar for August 31 also records the Italian women’s national volleyball team, on court at 16:00 in Brno, in the Czech Republic, against Bulgaria at the European Championships hosted by the Czech federation. The information is in the daily agenda of ANSA and is confirmed by the TorreSette press review, which notes the ongoing Mediterranean Games in Taranto during the same period, with numerous Italian athletes competing.

What we don’t know

The available excerpts do not contain the result of Alcaraz’s opening match nor that of Sabalenka, which at the time of publication were either scheduled or in progress. The reasons for the withdrawals of Ruud and Cilic are not known. No result is available for the Brno match, and for the Mediterranean Games in Taranto the sources used do not report an updated medal table.