'It felt great': Fearsome Fritz thrashes Bellucci to continue perfect start to US Open

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/fritz-taylor/UH09iaZ6/"]Fritz[/a] is among ‌a handful of contenders looking to end a ‌23-year American wait for a men's Grand Slam ‌singles champion after Andy Roddick's Flushing Meadows triumph, and the ninth seed has strengthened his position after his ‌first two matches.[/p][p][b]"I came out feeling ⁠really good. I ‌felt confident with the way I was playing. In ​the whole match, there weren't many nerves. I was aggressive, and it felt great,"[/b] ​said Fritz after [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/bellucci-m-M9pojLqi/fritz-t-UH09iaZ6/?mid=6PdDing3"]his 98-minute demolition job[/a].[/p][image alt="Key match stats" id="5ac54999-3e15-4faf-bb99-7542fa888d54" credit-line="Flashscore" guid="ba67073e-1dda-4ee0-97af-5ddeac48f18e" original-width="2160" original-height="2700" /][p][b]"It's fun, playing a match like that on Arthur Ashe ⁠Stadium. I don't ​know if there are many more things better than that; it's a great feeling."[/b][/p][p]The 2024 runner-up barely gave his unseeded Italian opponent any chances to ‌settle as he dictated terms from the baseline and raced through the opening set in 35 minutes without conceding a game on the main show court.[/p][p]A timely ace in a tight game helped world number 95 [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/bellucci-mattia/M9pojLqi/"]Bellucci[/a] open his account in the next set, but it was all Fritz from there as the 28-year-old home favourite reeled ‌off games to double his lead in ​the match.[/p][embed guid="f4cd4a99-d68a-4d9a-9a70-a6eb38fdf71c" url="https://x.com/usopen/status/2095601122643722685" social-type="twitter" /][p]Bellucci was unable to alter the pattern ‌of the clash in the third set as Fritz remained in control, sealing another easy win to set up a meeting with 24th seed [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/cerundolo-francisco/lWQ3G6gB/"]Francisco Cerundolo[/a] and keep his bid ⁠for a maiden ⁠Grand Slam title ‌on track.[/p][infobox id="3dc51b3a-107f-482b-9173-a97d347ef1b3" /]