US Open 2022: Defending champion Daniil Medvedev STORMS into third round with easy win

Defending champion Daniil Medvedev is into the third round of the US Open 2022. The No. 1 seed beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-2, 7-5, 6-3 on Wednesday night for his 14th straight win in the second round of a Grand Slam tournament.

Medvedev is 22-4 at the US Open, where he was a finalist in 2019 before beating Novak Djokovic last year for his first major title. He next plays Wu Yibing, the first Chinese man to win a U.S. Open match in the professional era, which began in 1968.

Daniil Medvedev: #Serena fan pic.twitter.com/gjLf4YID2W — US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 1, 2022

A semifinalist at the US Open last year, Felix Auger-Aliassime was no match for the rapidly rising Jack Draper this year. The No. 6 seed was eliminated with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 loss in a second-round night match.

Auger-Aliassime made his first trip to a Grand Slam semifinal last year, the first Canadian man ever to get that far at the US Open. But Draper rolled past him to continue his climb up the rankings. The left-hander from Britain was outside the top 250 last year but is now on the verge of moving into the top 50.

US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez crashes out

Leylah Fernandez couldn't put together another long run at the US Open 2022. The No. 14 seed was eliminated in the second round Wednesday with a 6-3, 7-6 (3) loss to Liudmila Samsonova.

Fernandez, who turns 20 next week, beat three top-10 players last year during a surprising run to the finals, where she was defeated by Emma Raducanu. Raducanu had already been eliminated in the first round.

Fernandez could have played Serena Williams if both advanced to the fourth round.

(with PTI inputs)