Djokovic stunned by inspired Popyrin at US Open, Gauff survives

NEW YORK : Novak Djokovic's quest for a record 25th Grand Slam title ended at the U.S. Open on Friday as the defending champion was sent packing from the third round by Australian Alexei Popyrin, while Coco Gauff overcame a big scare to advance.

Djokovic searched in vain for the form that helped him win the Paris Olympics gold medal this month, as the 37-year-old Serbian crashed 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4 to ensure he will end the year without a major for the first time since 2017.

A second stunning result in as many days at the year's final Grand Slam, following Carlos Alcaraz's exit, will encourage a host of players bidding for a rare shot at glory.

Frances Tiafoe kept alive his hopes of becoming the first American man to claim the U.S. Open title since Andy Roddick 21 years ago by outlasting compatriot Ben Shelton 4-6 7-5 6-7(5) 6-4 6-3 to move ahead.

He was joined by another top contender in Taylor Fritz, who eased past Francisco Comesana 6-3 6-4 6-2 to emerge as the first American man to make the last 16 at all four Grand Slams in the same year since Andre Agassi in 2003.

"It's a pretty cool thing to do because just last year I was really struggling with Grand Slam results," Fritz said.

"So it's nice to do a lot better at something I put a lot of emphasis on, which was performing at the slams and performing at the biggest tournaments."

Gauff had conceded only six games across the opening two rounds in New York but came under immediate pressure from Elina Svitolina as she dropped the first set to the Ukrainian before rebooting to complete a 3-6 6-3 6-3 victory.

"I feel like I lost eight points in a row at the end of the first set. I don't really know the exact number. Probably more," world number three Gauff said.

"So I knew I needed a