US Open 2024 live updates: Day 8 latest as Jannik Sinner up two sets to love on Tommy Paul (2024)

• Iga Swiatek (1) into quarterfinals in 100th Grand Slam match.
• Tommy Paul (14) faces world No. 1 Jannik Sinner (1) on Arthur Ashe in final match of the day.
• Jessica Pegula (6) will play Swiatek after beating Diana Shnaider (18); Jack Draper (25) sets up clash with Alex de Minaur (10)
• Beatriz Haddad Maia (22) and Karolina Muchova will contest second women's quarterfinal.

Subscribe to The Athletic on an exclusive offer here

Jannik Sinner is inevitable.

To start the third set, Sinner gets an early break against Tommy Paul, going up 2-0.

Tough for Paul to lose that game.

Sinner just hit a lethal on the run forehand crosscourt winner to get the break.

Incredible.

The slimmest of margins decided the second set as Jannik Sinner captured the tiebreak 7-6 (5) against Tommy Paul.

Neither Paul nor Sinner were broken in that set.

Paul was up 5-4 in the tiebreak, two points from the set.

But Paul dumped the second serve return into the net after Sinner went right at the body. At the next point at 5-5, Sinner jammed Paul, knowing that he takes the backhand return early, which the American sailed wide.

At 6-5, Sinner crunched a crosscourt forehand which Paul couldn't handle, giving Sinner the set.

Sinner is up two sets to love on Paul, inching closer to the quarterfinal.

That's a gutsy hold from Tommy Paul at 5-5.

He was up 40-0, barreling towards a first-set tiebreak.

But Jannik Sinner won four points in a row, getting his first break point opportunity of the set.

Paul staved off the break chance, thanks to Sinner's backhand going long. He held serve to go up 6-5.

Paul has done well to survive a likely tiebreak. Sinner is on cruise control, giving nothing for free. At some point, he will need to coll off for Paul, or anyone, to have a chance at him.

Both Jannik Sinner and Tommy Paul are holding serve in this second set.

No break point faced for either player in this set so far.

3-3 second set with Paul serving.

Tension rising in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Some interesting patterns emerging in this matchup.

Paul is using a slower, kicking serve on the ad-side, to drag Sinner out the court and make him play the ball above his shoulders. On the deuce side, he's hitting flatter and harder, most often down the T or into Sinner's body.

In rallies, Paul is changing direction out of his forehand corner and going down the line into Sinner's backhand. When Sinner goes cross-court from there, Paul slices his backhand short, sometimes in front of the service line, into Sinner's forehand. It looks to be an attempt to break Sinner out of his thump-thump baseline rhythm. Smart, because when he gets that ticking, he's basically impossible to live with.

Jannik Sinner, after being down a double break in the opening set, rallied to win the first set tiebreak 7-6 (3) against Tommy Paul.

Props to Sinner for clawing his way back into that set. Most players, and I'd even include Djokovic and Alcaraz on some nights, go down two breaks and figure they will just restart in the next set.

Sinner is relentless though.

Tommy Paul has played twelve net points, winning eight; Sinner has played six, winning five.

Sinner's ratio is better, but Paul is coming in more frequently, as he attempts to escape the baseline rallies which, as Matt observed, he simply can't win consistently enough to win the match.

6-6. Tiebreak. "Embrace it," says Paul's coach.

Paul is trying to steal a page from the Alcaraz playbook against Sinner — change the height of the ball, mix in looping sots with low flat ones. It's not a bad plan. But can he execute it?

Tiebreak time...he would have signed for that at the start.

What an impressive service hold from Tommy Paul.

Dealing with a lot of pressure from his opponent, Jannik Sinner, Paul found a way to escape and hold serve.

He even saved a set point, thanks to an ace from Paul, his fastest first serve of the match so far.

5-5 opening set.

Paul knows better than anyone that he can't hang back and bang with Sinner.

That's a fight he's not going to win.

He's at his best when he is pushing into the court.

Problem is Sinner is really good at keeping him back.

The crowd here in Arthur Ashe is ready to do everything it can to get Paul into this match. When he surged early with the double break, the building was starting to shake.

The USA chants were revving up. But Sinner's four-game roll has taken the life out of the packed house — except the guy screaming in my ear behind me.

Paul and Sinner trade the unforced errors.

For the first five games, they were all over Sinner like a rash.

For the last three, it's been the American making the mistakes.

4-4, Sinner serving.

That didn't take long.

After being down a double break 4-1, Sinner rallied to win three straight games.

He's won 12 of his last 14 points and putting Paul on his back foot with the blazing power on his flat groundstrokes.

4-4 opening set.

Sinner breaks right back.

The first loose game from Paul, and the Italian capitalizes immediately.

Paul leads 4-2 in the first set.

Make that 11 points in a row for Tommy Paul.

He leads 4-1 against the world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

The crowd is raucous for the American.

4-1 Paul. What a start.

Tommy Paul has won nine points in a row against the world No. 1. He holds to love, and then puts Sinner down 0-30.

As it so often goes in tennis, Tommy Paul fends off break points, and then gets one of his own.

Jannik Sinner drags a forehand wide, and the American is off and running in the first set.