US Open tennis 2026: Shelton sees off Hurkacz, Bu stuns Jodar, and more on day four – live

Jones isn't the only British player flourishing right now, because Fearnley has seized the third set 6-3 against Etcheverry. He still trails, though, by two sets to one.

From winning a 6-4 first set, to losing a 6-1 second set, and going 4-1 ahead in the third, Jones has experienced some big shifts in momentum against Linette, but the Brit is two games away from reaching the second round for the first time. The more experienced Linette holds to reduce her deficit to 4-2, but Jones, wearing a right arm sleeve a la Alcaraz (but hers is not because of an injury, instead the rare genetic condition she was born with that can cause muscle cramping and nerve issues), holds to 30 and now she's a game away at 5-2!

Just about to start is Stefanos Tsitsipas v the South African Lloyd Harris. A rejuvenated Tsitsipas, after his first-round victory over Arthur Fils – who was many people's dark horse to reach the final – is attempting to reach the third round of a slam for the first time in more than two years after all of his injury problems. He said after his win over Fils that ending his coaching relationship with his father has also helped him rediscover some form.

Frustratingly Sky isn't showing De Minaur v Guerrieri, even as Demon moves closer to victory at 6-2, 6-2, 3-3, but at least it appears that one member of the De Minaur-Boulter household will be celebrating today.

The Jones v Linette match has a completely different feel to yesterday, with Jones, having resumed at 6-4 today, now into a decider after being dominated in the second set 6-1. Fearnley, meanwhile, is showing more variety in his game than he did before the rain interruption, coming to the net to take matters into his own hands, and he's leading 3-2 on serve in the third set, having lost the first two 6-3, 6-3.

Bu has match point against Jodar at 40-15 … and Jodar nonchalantly swats away a return winner. But Bu seals the biggest win of his career when Jodar hits beyond the baseline on the second match point! Having burst on to the scene this year, the bubble has burst for the prodigious young talent from Madrid, but he'll be back. I'm not sure if Jodar was injured, ill or just having a bad day, but what is certain is that Bu, the 24-year-old lucky loser from China who replaced the injured Thanasi Kokkinakis in the draw, has secured his first ever match win at a grand slam.

Just as Shelton finishes, play resumes on the other courts. Jacob Fearnley soon falls two sets down, 6-3, 6-3, against Tomas Martin Etcheverry; Fearnley's fellow Brit Fran Jones, restarting at 6-4, has lost the first two games of the second set against Poland's Magda Linette; Emma Navarro has taken the second set 6-2 to force a decider against her fellow American Caty McNally; Rafael Jodar is on the brink, surprisingly 6-2, 6-1, 5-1 down to the lucky loser Yunchaokete Bu; and Alex de Minaur has extended his lead over Andrea Guerrieri to 6-2, 6-2.

Shelton is asked on court by Annabel Croft what he'd say about the match if he was commentating. “I have no idea,†he replies. “I guess that's why I'm not in the commentary box and I'm down here playing. It was a battle until the end. It was really tough to deal with everything he threw at me. But if I was commentating I'd talk about how loud this crowd was from start to finish. It's been an up and down year [with four titles but some early grand slam exits] but I'm really ready to hit my stride.â€

Shelton is two points from victory at 15-30 on Hurkacz's serve. Hurkacz edges to 30-all, but the red lights flash on the net post as the Pole flings a forehand wide! At 30-40 it's match point … and Shelton seals the victory when he cuts Hurkacz up with a slice! Eye balls bulging and fists pumping, the eighth seed celebrates wildly; he knows how dangerous a second-round opponent Hurkacz was. Shelton's girlfriend, the NWSL and USA forward Trinity Rodman, wearing a T-shirt that says “I love my boyfriendâ€, is grinning in the stands too. There hasn't been an American male singles winner at the US Open since 2003 … could this be the year? With Alcaraz's fitness uncertain, Sinner absent and Djokovic departed, this could be the best chance Shelton's ever had.

Boulter must now hold serve … which is something she's not been able to do once … if she's to stay in the match. She's had all sorts of problems with her ball toss under the lights, and she quickly slumps 0-15 down. A longer second point plays out, but the crafty Czech has more variety and she eventually elicits the error. 0-30. 15-30. And a double fault gifts Muchova a match point. Muchova marmalises a return and last week's mixed doubles champion is into the third round with a flawless performance. It's a match the British No 1 will want to forget just as quickly as she departs from the court. Muchova will play Navarro or McNally next … and on this showing, the Wimbledon runner-up will take some beating this fortnight.

Boulter just can't live with Muchova when the Czech is in this form, and it's now 6-1, 4-0. This is surely an insurmountable lead. And before I even finish typing that sentence, Muchova makes it 6-1, 5-0. This is both brutal and beautiful.

Shelton is now 4-3 ahead on serve in the fourth set; break here and he'll be serving for the match. But Hurkacz holds with little fuss and it's 4-4. Hurkacz has had a break point in this set, but Shelton saved it with one of those serves that are as big as his biceps.

Some more magic from Muchova – is there a more pleasing player to watch on the WTA Tour? She's got every shot in the book – and Boulter is broken for the fifth time in five service games. And the Czech 7th seed backs up the break for 6-1, 3-0. The organisers be moving another match on to Louis Armstrong at this rate …

It's slightly unfortunate for the players who haven't yet completed their first-round matches that this second-round encounter got switched to Louis Armstrong, but the general rule is that matches must continue on the court they started on, otherwise I wouldn't have been at all surprised to see Iva Jovic, the stupendously talented 18-year-old American, moved on to this court. The good news, though, for the players waiting in the locker room, is that the rain is abating, and play on the uncovered courts could be back under way in about 15 minutes' time.

“Boulter needs to find a way to slow things down, she's over-pressing out there, which is easy to do given Muchova's range of shots. Don't be afraid to hit three, four, five shots if needed,†observes Laura Robson on the Sky commentary. Boulter does have a break point at 30-40 in the opening game of the second set, but Muchova takes three points on the spin for 6-1, 1-0, and an ominous stat for Boulter is that Muchova is 30-0 this season when she wins the first set.

Muchova breaks to 30 to complete her first-set domination 6-1, and Boulter has been broken in all four of her service games. Boulter looks rather discombobulated out there, which would suggest it was a very late court change, and it's certainly totally different playing under the lights and roof on Louis Armstrong compared with Stadium 17, where they would have been playing were it not for the rain.

Right, I'm back from my food (bolognese and pasta, in case you were wondering – sadly it wasn't a $40 lobster roll or some $100 caviar-flecked chicken nuggets) – and Muchova is making light work of Boulter, leading 5-1 after 20 minutes. And this is Muchova's first tournament since losing in the Wimbledon final. She's such a talent. Shelton and Hurkacz aren't moving at quite the same pace, with Shelton 2-1 up on serve in the fourth set, leading by two sets to one.

I'm going to step away to grab some food, but will be back shortly for Boulter v Muchova and the conclusion of Shelton v Hurkacz …

… and he brings up four set points at 6-2 when Hurkacz shanks a forehand! Shelton attempts an improbable winner off Hurkacz's smash but it doesn't land in. But he gets the job done with some heavy, heavy hitting. Shelton, the leading American hope in the men's singles, is a set away from the third round at 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (3).

Shelton is being pushed all the way in the third set, and has just entered a tie-break after he and Hurkacz split the first two sets, but Shelton suddenly presses the accelerator, and he's roaring and bulging THOSE biceps when he races into a 3-0 lead. It's a cut and paste of the previous sentence when he makes it 4-1, and then 5-2 …

So at the moment Shelton v Hurkacz is the only match taking place, but the silver lining is that Katie Boulter's match against the Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Muchova has been moved from Court 17 to Louis Armstrong, so the British No 1 will make her entrance shortly.

The rain means there'll be no more play on the uncovered courts until at least 4pm New York time/9pm BST. The scores before the players departed were Fearnley 3-6, 3-5 Etcheverry (27), Navarro (26) 3-6, 5-2 McNally, Jodar (12) 2-6, 1-6, 1-4 Bu (!!!), De Minaur (6) 6-2, 4-2 Guerrieri, while Fran Jones was about to resume her first-round match against Poland's Magda Linette after it was suspended when she was leading 6-4 yesterday.

Etcheverry, meanwhile, is serving for a two-set lead against Fearnley, moves to 40-15 and two set points … and then it starts raining. You couldn't make it up. Play is suspended. If Fearnley finds a way back into this, I wonder if that'll be the turning point.

Kostyuk, though, has the protection of the Louis Armstrong roof, and the 11th seed has match point at 40-30. Her bright red dress is a blur of colour as she produces some impressive defence, but it eventually breaks down. But she swiftly has another MP and Stephens swats wide! Kostyuk, one of the form players this summer, is into round three and she's doing a little dance. It's not quite the backflip that she's capable of (she was a fine gymnast in her youth), but she says she'll only do it again if she wins a slam. She's definitely a contender here.

Kostyuk has a few choice words for herself as she charges forward to the drop shot (she's such a fine athlete) but then bashes a backhand into the net. At 6-1, 5-5, she desperately wants to break Stephens here, and has the chance to do so at her advantage, but even her quick feet can't chase down Stephens's smash. Deuce. Advantage Kostyuk, another break point. And Stephens strikes long! Kostyuk, having led by a set and a break, before having to save a set point, will now serve for the match at 6-1, 6-5.

Alex de Minaur said he was “broken inside†after his fourth-round exit at Wimbledon, and he was similarly deflated after the French Open, but his first slam as a married man (after his wedding to Katie Boulter) seems to be lifting his spirits, because the sixth seed has sprinted through the opening set against Italy's Andrea Guerrieri, taking it 6-2, and he already has a break at 3-2 in the second. It's one of the first-round matches that didn't get on yesterday.

While all that was happening, Hurkacz levelled up against Shelton on Arthur Ashe, having been a break down in the second set. I didn't see it, but thankfully this will help…

But Fearnley just can't buy a hold, and he drops serve again. So Etcheverry leads 6-3, 3-1, while Choinski is pulled back to 5-5 in the tie-break … VDZ is two points from victory, make that one because it's quickly 6-5. The match point is, at least, on Choinski's serve, but the Brit bashes a forehand long and this rain-delayed opening-round match is over. The good news for British fans: Fran Jones and Toby Samuel will follow on Court 5.

A glimmer for Fearnley as he breaks back for 1-2 in the second set … just as Choinski, his fellow Brit, embarks on a third-set tie-break, a breaker he must win if he's to extend this match against Van de Zandschulp any further. VSZ blinks first, conceding the mini-break, and Choinski still has the mini-break as they change ends at 4-2 …

Fearnley's serve hasn't been good enough today, and for the fourth time in only six service games he's broken, as he falls 6-3, 2-0 behind. Hurkacz, meanwhile, could steal the second set against Shelton, leading 5-4 and 30-40 on the American's serve, but the big-serving lefty serves deep to Hurkacz's backhand before firing a winner past the Pole's forehand! The Arthur Ashe crowd definitely liked that. And Shelton survives from deuce. He leads 6-3, 5-5.

Kostyuk isn't messing around. She's secured the opening set 6-1 against Stephens. The Ukrainian 11th seed is in the same quarter of the draw as Aryna Sabalenka, but after semi-final appearances at the French Open and Wimbledon this summer, she'll be hoping to go at least one better in New York, with the hard courts suiting her big-hitting game.

It's been tight and tense, but Fearnley has lost the first set, 6-3, against Etcheverry, who's been just a little sharper on serve. Choinski, meanwhile, is staying in touch with VDZ in the third set, leading 4-3 on serve, but is 6-3, 6-1 down in sets.

Jodar has risen from world No 165 at the start of the year to No 13, and another player who's also catapulted his way up the rankings is his fellow Spaniard Daniel Merida, who's now at 39 having been at 180, and Merida has just recorded the biggest victory of his career, taking out the 23rd seed Andrey Rublev from a set down. And Merida has a winnable match in the third round, because he'll face Nakashima's conqueror Michelsen. So Rublev has a second-round exit to add to his first-round Wimbledon departure. It's been a disappointing season for the combustible Russian, despite having Marat Safin in his corner.

If I had more eyes I'd also be watching Marta Kostyuk v Sloane Stephens, one of the breakout players of 2026 v the 2017 champion, but I can tell you Kostyuk leads 3-0 in the opening set. Meanwhile Emma Navarro, seeded only 26 at this tournament after her health struggles, is 5-3 down against her fellow American Caty McNally, and the new Rafa on the block, Rafael Jodar, trails 6-2 against the Chinese lucky loser Yunchaokete Bu. Which is a surprise given how seriously impressive the 19-year-old Jodar has been this year.

Ben Shelton, the highest-ranked American and 2023 semi-finalist, has got off to a strong start on Arthur Ashe, taking the first set 6-3 against Poland's Hubert Hurkacz, who's the answer to one of tennis's greatest quiz questions having ended Roger Federer's grand slam career at Wimbledon five years ago. It's 1-1 in the second set.

VDZ rams down a ninth ace and he's two points from a two sets to love lead, at 6-3, 5-1, 30-all. A one-two punch straight out of the tennis textbook has Choinski on the ropes at set point. And a second-serve ace down the T delivers the second-set knockout. Choinski trails 6-3, 6-1.

Choinski isn't the only British player on court, with Jacob Fearnley, the luckiest of lucky losers after his five-set escape act in the first round, taking on the Argentinian 27th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry as he bids to reach the US Open third round for the first time. After the pair traded an early break for 1-1, Fearnley has secured the first hold to lead 2-1.

Choinski, from 3-2 on serve in the opening set against Van de Zandschulp (I may call him VDZ from now on for RSI-reducing reasons), has not won another game and it's 3-6, 0-1. Choinski may be the son of professional ballet dancers but he's looking pretty heavy on his feet right now. He does, at least, hold serve for 1-1 … but VDZ soon secures a break for 3-1 and the British No 3 is falling into a deeper hole against the player who knocked out Carlos Alcaraz in New York two years ago.

Meanwhile the man who defeated Medvedev in Cincinnati last month, Brandon Nakashima, has seen his dazzling hard-court summer come to an end, losing in straight sets in his American derby with Alex Michelsen. Michelsen awaits the winner of Andrey Rublev v Daniel Merida. Rublev is currently doing Rublev things, conceding the second and third sets after winning the first.

Medvedev then decides it's time to do what grand slam champions do, stepping it up when it matters, breaking Gorzny for 6-1, 6-3, 6-5 … but he then does what he's also prone to do, suddenly losing his concentration, and he's facing break point at 30-40. The 2021 champion saves it … and he doesn't give the young American another look-in, breezing through the next two points to advance to round three, where he'll play either Arthur Rinderknech or Jaume Munar, who are locked at one set all.

Back on Louis Armstrong, Gorzny has held from deuce after duping Medvedev with an underarm serve, and he then produces a contender for point of the tournament when he spins, slides and somehow comes out on top in a rally he had no right to win! He has 0-30 on Medvedev's serve. But Medvedev recovers to 30-all, and wraps up the game from there. Medvedev leads 6-1, 6-3, 5-5, but he's not having everything his own way in this third set.

And news of two more wins (my head is spinning given the endless number of matches today): Russia's Diana Shnaider, this year's French Open semi-finalist, has seen off the former world No 1 Karolina Pliskova in straight sets, 6-1, 7-6 (4), in the second round. And Paula Badosa, having resumed her first-round match today leading Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 5-4, has finally settled matters on her ninth match point, and her sixth of the day, holding serve for a 6-1, 6-4 triumph. “Going to sleep last night wasn't easy,†she admits. The popular Spaniard, who was born in New York, had to miss the tournament last year because of injury but now has a meeting with Coco Gauff to look forward to.

Pegula will play Leylah Fernandez in round three, another former US Open finalist, who's beaten Thailand's Mananchaya Sawangkaew 6-4, 6-1.

Pegula has the finish line in sight, leading Kenin 6-3, 5-1 and 30-0 on her serve. Make that 40-0. This has been relentless from the 2024 runner-up. Kenin clunks a wild return wide and Pegula has seen off her friend for the loss of only four games and seven points on serve and, at 56 minutes, it's her second fastest victory of the season. Impressive numbers. And she could even end this tournament as the world No 1, if she wins her first grand slam title and Elena Rybakina fails to reach the semi-finals … not that she's talking up her chances. “I like working hard, I love chasing, getting better at everything, knowing that I probably won't get there, but that's the point,†she says on court.

Thanks Daniel. Hello everyone! Townsend's victory in the battle of the Taylors/Taylahs and Paolini's win in the battle of the inis means that Paula Badosa is about to resume her rain-interrupted match, 6-1, 5-4 up on Daria Kasatkina, and Britain's Jan Choinski will soon be getting going against the Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp, which is also a first-round match. Choinski v Van de Zandschulp in on Court 5, which is the place to be for British fans today, with Fran Jones and Toby Samuel to follow.

Righto, great news: Katy Murrells is here to croon you through the rest of the afternoon. Peace out.

Kenin just can't get near Pegula, whose all-round game is too much for her. Against some of the bigger hitters, she can sometimes force errors – she took Anisimova to a third-set tiebreak at Wimbledon, for example – but Pegula doesn't hit with the same ferocity, and it's hard to be more consistent than her. She breaks and consolidates to lead 6-3 3-0.

Next for her: Parry or Cirstea.

Nakashima isn't playing badly, at all, but such is tennis: an error, a winner, and suddenly a set disappears. Michelsen leads 6-3 6-4 and it's a long way back from here.

We cut to Common, in a box, and our commentator claims minor glory in not knowing who he is. I'm almost minded to make him a playlist but in the meantime, Resurrection is one of the great hip-hop albums – and I also love Finding Forever, along with a load of singles.