US Open Round of 16: Ten Americans Remain, Five Men Mark Strongest Male Contingent Since 1995

Ten American players advanced to the round of 16 at the 2026 US Open, part of a wave of American success that saw 15 total U.S. singles players reach the third round, the most since 2002. Among them are five American men, marking the deepest male representation in the fourth round of a major since 1995, per ESPN Tennis. The women's side features No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula, 32, who has dropped only one set through three rounds and faces No. 16 seed Sorana Cirstea. Pegula, whose best previous US Open result was runner-up in 2024, reached finals in Washington and Cincinnati earlier this summer and won a quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open. She holds a 3-1 career record against Cirstea, including a win in Cincinnati's round of 16 last month. No. 4 seed Coco Gauff, 22, the defending 2023 US Open champion, has also advanced without dropping a set. She next faces No. 14 seed Iva Jovic, the 18-year-old American who has reached the round of 16 for the first time at a major. Gauff beat Jovic in three sets at the Italian Open in May. Gauff won the Cincinnati Open last month, her first title of 2026, and reached the Wimbledon semifinals in July. Jovic, seeded No. 14, has won her first WTA title at Guadalajara and reached the Australian Open quarterfinals earlier this year. She defeated No. 17 seed Alexandra Eala in a three-hour, over-the-distance match on Arthur Ashe Stadium, her Ashe debut. She is the fourth American woman aged 18 or under to reach the US Open round of 16 since 2000, and the first since Gauff herself. No. 26 seed Emma Navarro, 25, upset No. 7 seed Karolina Muchova 6-3, 7-5 to advance. Her best previous US Open result was the semifinals in 2024. Navarro, who went 2-3 in hard-court events this summer, has won two 500-level WTA titles since her 2024 breakthrough. She faces No. 21 seed Anna Kalinskaya but is winless in two career tries against her. Townsend, 30, has three Slam doubles titles and has never faced Sabalenka, the world No. 1 and two-time defending champion. Sabalenka, asked about the matchup, said she anticipated a "great battle" and praised Townsend's variety. On the men's side, No. 8 seed Ben Shelton, 23, reaches the round of 16 to face Stefanos Tsitsipas. Shelton, whose best US Open result was the semifinals in 2023, won his second straight Canadian Open last month but lost his opening set 6-1 at the US Open before rallying. Tsitsipas, fresh off his fourth-round run, beat Shelton in their only previous meeting at the 2023 Cincinnati Open. No. 11 seed Frances Tiafoe, 28, advanced with a straight-set win over No. 22 seed Valentin Vacherot. His best previous US Open results were the semifinals in 2022 and 2024. Tiafoe reached the Cincinnati Open final last month, his biggest final to date, before facing No. 7 seed Daniil Medvedev, a 2021 US Open champion. Tiafoe has lost all six tour-level meetings with Medvedev, though he beat him at the 2024 Laver Cup and in qualifying in 2015. No. 14 seed Learner Tien, 20, earned his first US Open main-draw win before this tournament but has now beaten No. 17 seed Jakub Mensik in a late-night five-set match. Tien opened the year with an Australian Open quarterfinal, won his second career ATP title in Geneva, and reached the Canadian Open semifinals in August. He defeated Gael Monfils, who was playing his final major before retirement. Tien has never faced his round-of-16 opponent, Karen Khachanov, a 2022 US Open semifinalist. No. 20 seed Tommy Paul, 29, advanced with a five-set victory over No. 15 seed Alexander Bublik, a rematch of their fourth-round meeting last year, which Bublik won. Paul's best US Open results were fourth round in 2023 and 2024; the US Open is the only major where he has not reached the quarterfinals. He faces No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz, the reigning US Open champion playing his first tournament after a four-month wrist injury absence. Alcaraz has won six of eight career meetings with Paul, including the past five. Alex Michelsen, 22 and ranked No. 46, upset No. 16 seed Brandon Nakashima in straight sets without dropping a set through three matches. His best previous US Open result was the second round in 2023 and 2024. Nakashima had reached the Canadian Open final and Cincinnati semifinals. Michelsen faces No. 27 seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the round of 16. No American man has won a Grand Slam singles title since Andy Roddick at the 2003 US Open. Serena Williams and Pete Sampras were the last Americans to jointly win both US Open singles titles in the same year, in 2002. Pegula remains in contention for the world No. 1 ranking if she wins the tournament. Gauff, asked about the ranking, said per ESPN: "It would be cool to be No. 1, but it's not something I have thought about, to be honest. I think I'm just more focused on winning Slams because in the day, that's what people talk about more in your career than necessarily hitting the No. 1 ranking. Obviously, if you win Slams, the ranking will come."