Fritz, Navarro, Keys, Shelton fly American flag on Day 3

World no. 4 reached his first major final at last year’s US Open.

Avenging his 2021 US Open defeat to Brooksby, Fritz set up a second-round showdown against the qualifier Cristian Garinwho swept past Borna Coric in straight sets. The AO 2024 quarter-finalist has a 2-1 head-to-head advantage over the Chilean.

Men’s 21st seed Ben Shelton extended his unbeaten record against Brandon Nakashima to 3-0 thanks to a 7-6(3) 7-5 7-5 victory over the Californian.

“I love seeing where American tennis is,” said the left-hander, who is friends with Americans including Gauff and Chris Eubanks, watching the match between Navarro and Stearns, who, like him, played college tennis.

“It was absolutely war,” said the 22-year-old, adding that he is happy to see fellow Florida player Reilly Opelka back on tour and competing well.

“There (were) probably too many American vs. American fights in the first round than I would have liked to see,” Shelton smiled. “But it is what it is.”

Elsewhere, Florida resident Amanda Anisimova advanced to the second round on Tuesday with a 6-2 6-3 win over Maria Lourdes Carle.

She will face the 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu in the couple’s first ever meeting. Wild card Iva Jovic also advanced, losing only three games to Nuria Parrizas Dias.

Qualification Teacher Ten also joined the winner’s circle, completing a four-hour, five-set marathon over Camilo Ugo Carabelli. It is the 19-year-old Californian’s first Grand Slam victory.

19. seeds Madison Keys also prevailed over compatriot Ann Li 6-4 7-5 in the duo’s first meeting.

“I’ve practiced with Ann a ton, we both trained in Orlando, so I’ve hit with her a lot, I know how good she is,” Keys said.

The 29-year-old is unbeaten in 2025 and won the ninth title of his career in Adelaide in the lead-up to AO 2025.

Elsewhere, American qualifiers Mitchell Krueger and Tristan Boyer secured their first AO main draw wins with upsets over Rinky Hijikata and Federico Coria.