The Cincinnati Open has lost both its top men’s seeds and the world No. 1 in a single day. Tommy Paul saved a match point to beat Alexander Zverev 4-6, 7-6(6), 6-4, Frances Tiafoe put out second seed Félix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 6-4, and Sara Bejlek stunned Aryna Sabalenka 7-6, 6-4 for the biggest win of her career. Thiago Agustín Tirante, who knocked out Novak Djokovic in the first round, is still going and is now two wins from a Masters 1000 final.
Earlier rounds are covered in our round of 64 report and round of 32 report. Outright angles are on the betting tips page, broadcast details in the how to watch guide.
Paul Beats Zverev From Match Point Down
Tommy Paul was a point from defeat and won anyway. Alexander Zverev held a match point in the second-set tie-break; Paul saved it, took the breaker 8-6 and then the decider 6-4 in a match rain had already interrupted. The top seed had come through four tie-breaks in his previous two rounds without ever looking commanding, and it caught up with him.
With Félix Auger-Aliassime also beaten, by Frances Tiafoe 6-3, 6-4, the men’s draw has now lost seeds 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 11, 13 and 14. Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz never entered. There is no former Cincinnati champion left in the field.
Bejlek Stuns the World No. 1
Aryna Sabalenka is out, beaten 7-6, 6-4 by Sara Bejlek. It is the second seed Bejlek has removed this fortnight after Barbora Krejčíková in the round of 64, and it puts a player ranked outside the world’s top 50 into a Masters-level quarter-final. Sabalenka had needed six match points to escape her opener and never found the level she showed in Toronto.
Round of 16 Results
| Through | Beat | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Tommy Paul (18) | Alexander Zverev (1) | 4-6, 7-6(6), 6-4 |
| Frances Tiafoe (17) | Félix Auger-Aliassime (2) | 6-3, 6-4 |
| Arthur Fils (21) | Alex de Minaur (5) | 6-3, 6-4 |
| Taylor Fritz (6) | Christopher O’Connell | 6-4, 6-3 |
| Flavio Cobolli (7) | Rafael Jódar (12) | 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-3 |
| Lorenzo Musetti (10) | Jaime Faria | 7-5, 6-2 |
| Thiago Agustín Tirante | Jakub Menšík (14) | 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 |
| Brandon Nakashima (27) | Nuno Borges | 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3 |
| Iga Świątek (7) | Diane Parry | 6-3, 6-3 |
| Elena Rybakina (2) | Diana Shnaider (14) | 6-4, 6-4 |
| Coco Gauff (4) | Marie Bouzková (22) | 6-3, 6-2 |
| Marta Kostyuk (10) | Mirra Andreeva (5) | 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 |
| Amanda Anisimova (9) | Linda Nosková (6) | 6-1, 6-4 |
| Sara Bejlek | Aryna Sabalenka (1) | 7-6, 6-4 |
| Madison Keys (20) | Xiyu Wang | 7-6, 6-4 |
| Jessica Pegula (3) | Sorana Cîrstea (15) | 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 |
The Quarter-Final Line-Up
| Quarter-final | Note |
|---|---|
| Tommy Paul (18) v Flavio Cobolli (7) | Cobolli is now the highest seed left in the men’s draw |
| Thiago Agustín Tirante v Arthur Fils (21) | Djokovic’s conqueror, two wins from a Masters final |
| Iga Świątek (7) v Elena Rybakina (2) | The projected quarter-final the draw promised, and it landed |
| Marta Kostyuk (10) v Coco Gauff (4) | Kostyuk is in a Cincinnati quarter-final for the first time |
| Jessica Pegula (3) v Amanda Anisimova (9) | All-American; four US women in the last eight, the most since 2004 |
| Madison Keys (20) v Sara Bejlek | Bejlek has beaten two seeds including the world No. 1 |
Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Lorenzo Musetti and Brandon Nakashima complete the men’s last eight; their pairings follow once the bracket is confirmed.
Tirante Is the Story of the Fortnight
Thiago Agustín Tirante arrived as a clay-court specialist ranked outside the top 40 and has beaten Novak Djokovic, a fellow qualifier and 14th seed Jakub Menšík to reach the quarter-finals. He now faces Arthur Fils in the half of the draw that has lost Djokovic, Casper Ruud and Zverev. A first Masters 1000 semi-final is one win away.
Where the Value Sits Now
Every pre-tournament outright angle on the men’s side is now dead: Zverev, Félix Auger-Aliassime and Ben Shelton are all out. Flavio Cobolli inherits favouritism on seeding alone, which in a draw this broken is a thin basis for a price. The each-way case is Tirante, in the emptiest quarter of the bracket.
In the women’s draw Elena Rybakina remains the pick and the reasoning has improved: she was priced as though beating Iga Świątek was the barrier to the title, and with Sabalenka gone the other half has no player ranked inside the top three left. Win that quarter-final and the route is as open as it gets. Our standing selections are on the Cincinnati Open betting tips page.
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