US Open 2017: Marin Cilic's third-round exit assures first-time finalist from bottom half of men's draw

Even before the US Open started, this Grand Slam was considered to be one of the most unpredictable ones in recent times, especially for the men. Andy Murray’s late withdrawal to join the list of Novak Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka, Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori as the big players missing left the men’s draw top heavy. Top seed Rafael Nadal and 19-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer are still on track to meet in the semi-finals, but it’s the bottom half that’s been been left wide open after just five days. [caption id=“attachment_4002019” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Diego Schwartzman and Marin Cilic shake hands after their match at the US Open. Reuters[/caption] Marin Cilic, the 2014 champion and the fifth seed, was beaten 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-4 on Friday by 25-year-old Diego Schwartzman from Argentina. Another blow was delivered to the decimated draw when American hope and 10th-seeded John Isner was knocked out by No 23 seed Mischa Zverev by the scoreline of 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (5). These upsets have left World No 19 Pablo Carreno Busta, seeded 12th, as the highest-ranked player in the lower half. Among the eight players left — Schwartzman, Zverev, Carreno Busta, Sam Querrey, Paolo Lorenzi, Kevin Anderson, Denis Shapovalov and Lucas Pouille — only Querrey has reached the semi-final of a Grand Slam once (Wimbledon 2017), and they only have five Grand Slam quarter-finals appearances between them. In comparison, Nadal and Federer together have 81 Major quarter-finals appearances between them. Welcome to US (Wide) Open! Sam Querrey The 17th seed big-serving Querrey is the last American left in the men’s draw, and is playing some of the best tennis of his career over the last two months. After a breakthrough Grand Slam at Wimbledon, where he lost in the semi-finals to Marin Cilic, Querrey won the title at Los Cabos in Mexico (his second of 2017) to start off the North American hardcourt season. Querrey has never made it past the fourth round at Flushing Meadows but could not have asked for a better chance to make a deep run at his home Slam. He faces Zverev in the fourth round, which will be their first ever career meeting. Mischa Zverev Fourth seed Alexander Zverev was one of the favourites to win the US Open title before the tournament started, but it’s his brother Mischa who has outlasted him at a Major for the second time in the year. Thirty-year-old Mischa is enjoying a surprise breakthrough season , which started with an unexpected run into the quarter-finals at the Australian Open. The German, whose career had been sidelined by injuries, has found a way to maximise his vintage serve-and-volley technique in a sport which is now dominated by baseline returners. Zverev’s great hands at the net will work to his advantage as he aims to oust Americans in back-to-back rounds. Paolo Lorenzi Thirty is the new 20 in tennis, and in a season where Federer has been amazing fans with his age-defying performances, Italy’s Lorenzi is another player who is recording some of his best results at the age of 35. The World No 40 is in the fourth round of a Grand Slam event for the first time, where he will face South African Anderson. Lorenzi, who is more at home on clay courts than hard, has been a late bloomer and only reached his first ATP final at 32; he lifted his first ATP title in 2016 at Kitzbuhel. Lorenzi scored an upset win over 19th seed Gilles Muller in four tight sets en route the fourth round. Kevin Anderson Two years ago, Anderson made his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Flushing Meadows with wins over Dominic Thiem and Murray. On Sunday, he will aim to replicate that run with a win over Lorenzi, against who he has a 3-0 winning record. The 17th seed had a topsy-turvy ride in 2016 due to injuries and ended the year ranked 67. He was forced to miss Australian Open, but made the last-16 at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Anderson reached the final at Washington and quarter-final at Montreal to get his ranking back in the 30s. His recent red-hot form now makes him one of the favourites to reach US Open final. Denis Shapovalov Canadian teenager Shapovalov has been the fairytale sensation of the US Open so far. The 18-year-old came through qualifying, beat fellow NextGen member Daniil Medvedev, shocked eighth-seeded Jo-Wilfired Tsonga in straight sets and then became the youngest man to reach the fourth round at the US Open since 1998 after Kyle Edmund was forced to retire with neck and back issues. Shapovalov, who defeated Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro at Montreal three weeks ago, has dazzled with his blistering one-handed backhand, vicious lefty serve and confident, attacking play. He meets Carreno Busta in the last-16 and will be aiming to become the youngest US Open quarter-finalist since Andre Agassi in 1988. Pablo Carreno Busta Carreno Busta has not dropped a set at the US Open so far in his three easy victories over qualifier Evan King, qualifier Cameron Norrie and qualifier Nicholas Mahut. When he takes on Shapovalov in the fourth round, he will create history as it will be the first time in the Open Era that a player faces four qualifiers at a Grand Slam. The 26-year-old Spaniard delivered his best Grand Slam result on clay – the quarter-finals of Roland Garros in June. However, he has proven that he can excel just as easily on hardcourts as well, with titles at Winston-Salem and Kremlin in 2016. Carreno Busta has steadily improved over the last 16 months, and will be aiming to do one better at Flushing Meadows. Lucas Pouille Pouille’s breakout year came in 2016 when he reached the quarter-finals of Wimbledon and US Open and won the season-ending Most Improved Player of the Year Award. His run into the last-16 last year included a famous five-set victory over Nadal. The 23-year-old Frenchman has had a relatively quiet season so far but that could quickly change in the next week in New York. The 16th seed will take on Schwartzman in the last-16, and has a great chance at making his maiden Major semi-final. Pouille has a solid, complete game but it’s his backhand that can inflict a lot of damage. Diego Schwartzman Until a month ago, Schwartzman had a 0-13 record against top-10 opponents. Then, at Montreal, he dispatched Thiem and followed it up with an even bigger win in New York against Cilic. At 5’7, the Argentine is the shortest man in the fourth round of a Slam since Olivier Rochus at Australian Open in 2005. While he might be at a disadvantage when it comes to serving because of his height, Schwartzman has evolved into a returning giant . He has one of the best returns of serve on the tour, and could cause an upset or two more in the coming week.