Cerundolo sees wide-open men's field after Fritz upset at US Open

American tennis player Taylor Fritz was eliminated from the U.S. Open in the third round on Saturday when he lost to Argentine Francisco Cerundolo. Fritz, who had not dropped a set in his first two matches, was considered a top contender to end a 23-year U.S. men's major drought. However, Cerundolo's superior play in the first two sets led to Fritz's early exit.

The Argentine player, who had never reached the fourth round of the U.S. Open before, showed significant improvement in the later stages of the match. Fritz, appearing frustrated, acknowledged the difficulty of the match, saying, "I don't know how I let that happen today." Cerundolo will now face Belgian Alexander Blockx in the fourth round.

This early loss adds to a string of early exits for the top seeds at the tournament, highlighting the closely contested nature of professional tennis.