Cobolli, Keys move on at U.S. Open as rainy morning paused play

Flavio Cobolli rallied from two sets down to avoid an early upset on the men’s side, and his wasn't even the most dramatic comeback at the US Open on Tuesday.

Maria Sakkari fell behind 6-2, 4-0 once she was finally able to get on the court after the rain stopped, then the No. 32 seed rallied to edge Robin Montgomery 2-6, 7-5, 6-2.

French Open champion Mirra Andreeva and 2024 US Open runner-up Taylor Fritz had smooth sailing into the second round, unlike some of the other close calls after a rainy morning.

Cobolli, the No. 5 seed and French Open runner-up, beat Francisco Comesana 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, finishing his match that lasted 4 hours, 12 minutes not long after some sun had broken through the clouds and allowed play to start on all the outside courts.

Cobolli made his first career two-set comeback to avoid joining No. 4 seed Novak Djokovic and No. 10 Arthur Fils among early losers in a men's draw that was already missing top-ranked Jannik Sinner, Cobolli's fellow Italian who was unable to play in the tournament because of a right knee injury.

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He said he took a bathroom break after the second set and decided to change everything.

“So I changed all the dress that I started with today and it works,” Cobolli said. “In Grand Slams it’s never done. You have to fight until the last point.”

Fritz, the No. 9 seed, rolled to a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 victory over 18-year-old fellow American Darwin Blanch. Andreev beat Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-2.

Madison Keys was the first player to move into the second round early in a tournament where rain threatened to hamper the schedule for a couple days.

Showers that began Monday night and would possibly be on and off through the