3 times Novak Djokovic's US Open 3R opponent Alexei Popyrin shocked higher-ranked opponent

Novak Djokovic and Alexei Popyrin will face off in the third round of the 2024 Australian Open on Friday (August 30). The Serb has lifted the title on four occasions, with his most recent US Open win coming last year after he defeated Daniil Medvedev in the final.

Despite his outstanding record at the tournament, it might not be an easy stroll for the World No. 2, as his third-round opponent, Alexei Popyrin, has recently shocked higher-ranked players on the ATP tour.

Djokovic equaled Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles at the US Open last year after defeating Daniil Medvedev in the final. However, this season, his efforts to break the record have been unsuccessful so far. The Serb reached the semifinals at the Australian Open, the quarterfinals of the French Open, and made it to the final of the Wimbledon Championships. The major highlight of the 37-year-old's season was winning his maiden Olympic gold medal in men's singles at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games after defeating Carlos Alcaraz in the final. Following his outstanding run at the Olympics, the Serb chose not to participate in any tournaments during the American hard court swing leading up to the US Open.

Djokovic defeated Radu Albot in the first round and beat his countryman Laslo Djere in the second round to set up a clash with Popyrin, who also beat Kwon Soon-woo and Pedro Martinez in the first and second rounds. The Australian is having one of the best seasons of his career, having climbed to a career-high ranking of No. 23 on the ATP Tour in early August.

This season, Djokovic and Popyrin have faced each other twice: at the Australian Open, where Djokovic found himself in a difficult position midway through the match but saved four set points from 0/40 at 4-5 in the third set and went on to secure the win 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-3; and at the Wimbledon Championships, where Djokovic won 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(3).

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the higher-ranked opponents Alexei Popyrin has shocked as he faces off against Novak Djokovic on Friday:

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#3 - Taylor Fritz at the 2023 Australian Open second round

Taylor Fritz and Alexei Popyrin. Source: Getty Images

On January 2023, Taylor Fritz was ranked No. 9 on the ATP Tour, while Alexei Popyrin, who had struggled with form during the 2022 season, was ranked outside the top 100 and entered the tournament as a wild card. This was the second time the two had faced off on the ATP Tour, and the Australian saw it as an opportunity to seek revenge against Fritz. In the second round of the 2023 Australian Open, Popyrin lost the first set but rallied from behind to defeat Fritz 6-7 (4), 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-2.

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#2 - Felix Auger-Alliaseme at the 2023 Italian Open first round

Felix Auger-Alliaseme and Alexei Popyrin. source: Getty

Another time Alexei Popyrin shocked a higher-ranked opponent was during the second round of the 2023 Italian Open, where he defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime, who was ranked No. 10 on the ATP Tour at the time. In a match that lasted three hours and 17 minutes, Popyrin came out victorious with scores of 6-4, 4-6, 7-5. It was the Australian's second win over the Canadian in the same season, having previously won in the first round 6-4,7-6(5) of the Adelaide International 1.

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#1 - Andrey Rublev at the 2024 Canadian Open final

Alexei Popyrin and Andrey Rublev. Source: Getty

The Australian's most recent victory against a higher rank occurred last week on August 13 in the final of the Canadian Open. Entering the tournament unseeded and ranked No. 62 on the ATP Tour, Popyrin managed to overcome fifth seed Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-4 to claim the 2024 Canadian Open title. It was his first Masters 1000 title and the third title of his career. On his way to the final, he outclassed the likes of Grigor Dimitrov, Ben Shelton, Hubert Hurkacz, and Sebastian Korda, all of whom were ranked in the top 20.