NEW YORK: Rafael Nadal launched his tilt at a fourth US Open title on Tuesday with a swift defeat of John Millman as other leading seeds in his half of the draw tumbled out in the first round.

Four players in the world’s top 10 — Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Karen Khachanov and Roberto Bautista Agut — lost on Tuesday to ease Nadal’s potential path to the final.

The Spanish second seed — US Open champion in 2010, 2013 and 2017 — needed barely two hours to see Millman off 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 at Arthur Ashe Stadium with the world number 60 from Australia unable to reproduce the magic that saw him stun Roger Federer here a year ago.

“The beginning, the first match, is always a little bit new even if I’ve played here plenty of times,” said Nadal, who meets Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis next. “I think I played well and in general am very happy with the way I started.”

Two-time French Open runner-up Thiem was upset by Italian giant-killer Thomas Fabbiano 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, the Austrian fourth seed slumping to another first-round exit, having lost at the same stage at Wimbledon.

Greek eighth seed Tsitsipas struggled with cramps and accused umpires of having ‘preferences’ after he fell to a 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (9-7), 7-5 defeat by Next Gen rival Andrey Rublev in a gruelling four-hour slog.

Tsitsipas, for whom it was also a second successive Grand Slam opening-round defeat, was hit with a point penalty for a time violation in the final set.

Russian ninth seed Khachanov lost to Canada’s Vasek Pospisil in five sets, with 10th seed Bautista Agut of Spain succumbing in similar fashion to Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan to leave that quarter of the draw wide open for Nick Kyrgios.

The volatile Australian eased past American Steve Johnson 6-3, 7-6 (7-1), 6-4 in a match that finished at 1:12am local time.

Alexander Zverev, seeded sixth, outlasted Moldova’s Radu Albot 6-1, 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 6-2, while Marin Cilic, the 2014 champion, advanced in straight sets over Slovakia’s Martin Klizan.

Reigning women’s US Open champion Naomi Osaka confronted severe nerves as she overcame Russia’s Anna Blinkova, the world No. 84.

Osaka suffered a first-round exit last month at Wimbledon and the Japanese star struggled to put away Blinkova before prevailing 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2.

The top seed goes on to face Poland’s Magda Linette.

Wimbledon champion Simona Halep, ousted in the opening round the past two years at Flushing Meadows, beat US lucky loser Nicole Gibbs 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Sloane Stephens, the 2017 champion, slid to a 6-3, 6-4 loss to Russian qualifier Anna Kalinskaya, while 15-year-old Wimbledon sensation Coco Gauff edged past Anastasia Potapova, 18, in three sets on her US Open debut.

Tuesday’s collated results (prefix number denotes seeding):

Men’s singles:

First round: Andrey Rublev (Russia) bt 9-Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece) 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (9-7), 7-5; Gilles Simon (France) bt Bjorn Fratangelo (US) 5-7, 7-5, 7-5, 7-5; 24-Matteo Berrettini (Italy) bt Richard Gasquet (France) 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2; Jordan Thompson (Australia) bt Joao Sousa (Portugal) 6-3, 6-2, 6-4; Alexei Popyrin (Australia) bt Federico Del Bonis (Argentina) 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (7-5); Mikhail Kukushkin (Kazakhstan) bt 10-Roberto Bautista Agut (Spain) 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3; 13-Gael Monfils (France) bt Albert Ramos (Spain) 7-6 (7/2), 6-4, 6-3; Marius Copil (Romania) bt Ugo Humbert (France) 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (13-11), 4-6, 6-1; Denis Shapovalov (Canada) bt 18-Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada) 6-1, 6-1, 6-4; Pablo Andujar (Spain) bt 30-Kyle Edmund (Great Britain) 3-6, 7-6 (7-1), 7-5, 5-7, 6-2; Lorenzo Sonego (Italy) bt Marcel Granollers (Spain) 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; Alexander Bublik (Kazakhstan) bt Santiago Giraldo (Colombia) 2-6, 6-0, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4; Thomas Fabbiano (Italy) bt 4-Dominic Thiem (Austria) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2; 6-Alexander Zverev (Germany) bt Radu Albot (Moldova) 6-1, 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 6-2; Frances Tiafoe (US) bt Ivo Karlovic (Croatia) 6-2, 6-3, 1-2 — Karlovic retired; Aljaz Bedene (Slovenia) bt Jozef Kovalik (Slovakia) 6-3, 6-4, 7-5; 29-Benoit Paire (France) bt Brayden Schnur (Canada) 6-2, 6-4, 6-4; 20-Diego Schwartzman (Argentina) bt Robin Haase (Netherlands) 6-3, 7-6 (8-6), 6-0; Egor Gerasimov (Belarus) bt Lloyd Harris (South Africa) 7-5, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-3); Tennys Sandgren (US) bt Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France) 1-6, 6-7 (2-7), 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5; Vasek Pospisil (Canada) bt 9-Karen Khachanov (Russia) 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, 4-6, 6-3; 14-John Isner (US) bt Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (Spain) 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; Jan-Lennard Struff (Germany) bt Casper Ruud (Norway) 6-4, 6-4, 6-2; Cedrik-Marcel Stebe (Germany) bt Filip Krajinovic (Serbia) 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8-6); 22-Marin Cilic (Croatia) bt Martin Klizan (Slovakia) 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (8-6); 32-Fernando Verdasco (Spain) bt Tobias Kamke (Germany) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2; Chung Hyeon (South Korea) bt Ernesto Escobedo (US) 3-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-2; Thanasi Kokkinakis (Australia) bt Ilya Ivashka (Belarus) 6-3, 7-6 (10-8), 6-7 (4-7), 6-2; 2-Rafael Nadal (Spain) bt John Millman (Australia) 6-3, 6-2, 6-2; Antoine Hoang (France) bt Leonardo Mayer (Argentina) 3-6, 6-2, 6-7 (6-8), 6-1, 6-3; Henri Laaksonen (Switzerland) bt Marco Cecchinato (Italy) 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (8-6), 2-6, 3-6, 7-6 (7-2); 28-Nick Kyrgios (Australia) bt Steve Johnson (US) 6-3, 7-6 (7-1), 6-4.

Women’s singles:

First round: 1-Naomi Osaka (Japan) bt Anna Blinkova (Russia) 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2; Magda Linette (Poland) bt Astra Sharma (Australia) 6-3, 6-4; Cori Gauff (US) bt Anastasia Potapova (Russia) 3-6, 6-2, 6-4; Timea Babos (Hungary) bt 28-Carla Suarez Navarro (Spain) 6-2, 0-0 — Suarez Navarro retired; 21-Anett Kontaveit (Estonia) bt Sara Sorribes (Spain) 6-1, 6-1; Ajla Tomljanovic (Australia) bt Marie Bouzkova (Czech Republic) 1-6, 7-5, 6-1; Alize Cornet (France) bt Jessica Pegula (US) 6-2, 6-3; 13-Belinda Bencic (Switzerland) bt Mandy Minella (Luxembourg) 6-3, 6-2; Kaia Kanepi (Estonia) bt Tatjana Maria (Germany) 5-7, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3; 26-Julia Gorges (Germany) bt Natalia Vikhlyantseva (Russia) 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-1); Francesca Di Lorenzo (US) bt Veronika Kudermetova (Russia) 7-6 (7-4), 6-2; Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Russia) bt Pauline Parmentier (France) 6-1, 7-6 (7-2); 7-Kiki Bertens (Netherlands) bt Paula Badosa (Spain) 6-4, 6-2; 4-Simona Halep (Romania) bt Nicole Gibbs (US) 6-3, 3-6, 6-2; Taylor Townsend (US) bt Kateryna Kozlova (Ukraine) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2; Sorana Cirstea (Romania) bt Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic) 7-5, 6-2; Aliona Bolsova (Spain) bt 31-Barbora Strycova (Czech Republic) 6-3, 0-6, 6-1; 19-Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) bt Wang Yafan (China) 1-6, 7-5, 6-3; Danielle Collins (US) bt Polona Hercog (Slovenia) 6-3, 4-6, 6-4; Kirsten Flipkens (Belgium) bt Wang Xiyu (China) 3-6, 6-2, 6-2; 15-Bianca Andreescu (Canada) bt Katie Volynets (US) 6-2, 6-4; Kristie Ahn (US) bt Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia) 7-5, 6-2; Jelena Ostapenko (Latvia) bt Aleksandra Krunic (Serbia) 6-3, 7-6 (9-7); Alison Riske (US) bt 24-Garbine Muguruza (Spain) 2-6, 6-1, 6-3; 25-Elise Mertens (Belgium) bt Jil Teichmann (Switzerland) 6-2, 6-2; Kristyna Pliskova (Czech Republic) bt Diane Parry (France) 6-4, 6-3; Andrea Petkovic (Germany) bt Mihaela Buzarnescu (Romania) 6-3, 6-4; 6-Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) bt Denisa Allertova (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-4; 23-Donna Vekic (Croatia) bt Richel Hogenkamp (Netherlands) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3; Yulia Putintseva (Kazakhstan) bt Madison Brengle (US) 6-3, 6-3; 9-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) bt Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4; Anna Kalinskaya (Russia) bt 11-Sloane Stephens (US) 6-3, 6-4.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2019