Karen Khachanov defeats third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in US Open second round

Second-round exit in New York

Karen Khachanov eliminated third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second round of the US Open on Thursday, recording a 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 victory on Louis Armstrong Stadium. The 30-year-old Russian, ranked 50th in the ATP standings, closed out the contest in 3 hours and 17 minutes to secure his second career win against a top-10 player at a Grand Slam tournament. Auger-Aliassime, the world number 4, joins fourth seed Novak Djokovic on the sidelines after Djokovic exited in the opening round. The defeat ends the Canadian's campaign at Flushing Meadows, where he reached the semi-finals in 2021 and 2025.

Shift in momentum after the opening tiebreak

The match took place in sunny conditions with temperatures reaching the high 80s Fahrenheit, following four days of cool rain in New York. Auger-Aliassime took an early 3-0 lead in the opening set after consolidating a service break, but Khachanov countered by leveling the score at 4-4. Khachanov held serve at love twice to force a tiebreak, which Auger-Aliassime claimed 7-5 after Khachanov sent a backhand long. Khachanov responded immediately in the second set, moving ahead 3-0 with pace from the baseline and down-the-line backhand winners. The Russian erased two break points from 15-40 down while serving at 5-3 to close out the set.

Physical drop and mounting unforced errors

Auger-Aliassime struggled with heavy movement and reduced power on his serve as the match progressed, dumping water over his head during changeovers. At a changeover trailing 3-0 in the third set after losing two consecutive service games, the Canadian sat staring at the court surface for a minute. He produced 47 unforced errors during the match compared to 30 for Khachanov, landed 58% of his first serves, and committed eight double faults. Five of those double faults occurred in the third set, including one at 1-5 where the ball landed on his side of the net. Auger-Aliassime won four return points in the third set and did not earn a single break point across the final two sets. Khachanov broke serve seven times on nine opportunities and saved seven of the nine break points he faced before sealing the fourth set 6-2 with an unreturned serve.

Khachanov reflected on his opponent's condition in his on-court comments.

Maybe he had some physical issues. It's part of our sport, it's part of tennis. I'm super happy to get this win.

Season context and next round

Khachanov entered the US Open having lost his opening matches at three lead-in tournaments and reaching two quarter-finals earlier in the year. Auger-Aliassime had previously reached the quarter-finals at both Roland-Garros and Wimbledon following an opening-round retirement at the Australian Open, but withdrew from the Rogers Cup in Montreal in August with a back injury. The Canadian also ended a ten-year partnership with French coach Frédéric Fontang at the beginning of the summer. Auger-Aliassime will drop 750 ATP ranking points as a result of the loss. Khachanov moves on to the third round, where he will face either France's Benjamin Bonzi or Peru's Ignacio Buse.