Rafael Nadal feared he had broken his nose after being struck by his own racquet in the second-round win over Fabio Fognini at the US Open.
The Spaniard, seeking a 23rd grand slam title, once again recovered from losing the opening set to claim a 2-6 6-4 6-2 6-1 triumph at Flushing Meadows.
He will now face Richard Gasquet after extending his winning streak at majors in 2022 to 21 matches.
But he will hope the pain from a nasty-looking injury has subsided by then, with Nadal's racquet having bounced off the court and into his nose while he was stretching to make a return in the fourth set.
The world number three needed a medical timeout and treatment, returning with a plaster on his face as the incident ultimately did little to slow his momentum.
"It was just a strong hit," said Nadal. "At the beginning I thought I had broken the nose because it was a shock at the beginning. It was very painful.
"I lost a little bit of the feeling in my head. It was like being a little bit out of this world.
"I don't know, it seems like it is not broken. I am not sure yet. I don't know. I think it's getting bigger and bigger."
For the second match in succession, Nadal had to come from a set behind, having also lost the opener to first-round opponent Rinky Hijikata.
Having struggled to find his rhythm early on, the 36-year-old was pleased that his persistence paid off.
"I'm happy after a terrible start. I don't understand yet how I started that bad because the feeling before the match was good," he said, the win having secured his spot at the ATP Finals for a 17th time.
"But these kind of things sometimes happen, so you need to accept and keep going. That's what I did.
"I'm lucky that Fabio made some mistakes and I was able to start putting some balls in and finish the match playing obviously better, much better."
With matchday six just around the corner, fresh off the first midweek Premier League fixtures of the season, now is when things can start to get tricky.
Some regular starters will likely be rested, and some new faces could emerge and force their way into the calculations going forward.
In a sink-or-swim week, it will be important to focus on players considered too important to their respective side to leave out – but who are those players?
Using Opta data, Stats Perform is here to help, with four suggestions of players that are in form that is impossible to ignore.
David Raya (Brentford v Leeds United)
Brentford's David Raya produced one of the more unlikely goalkeeping performances of the season in his side's 4-0 win over Manchester United – although maybe it should not have been unexpected.
The Spain international has only the one clean sheet to his name this season, but he ranks second in saves-per-90-minutes, and since the start of last season, he ranks second in save percentage.
Only Jose Sa (75.7 save percentage) has a higher save percentage than Raya's 74.2, and only Dean Henderson (five saves per 90 minutes) stops more shots per game this campaign than Raya's 4.4.
Joao Cancelo (Manchester City v Aston Villa)
Manchester City's Portuguese full-back has established himself as one of the most reliable fantasy picks as a crucial part of one of the Premier League's best defences, while also proving to be a consistent source of goals.
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Cancelo ranks fourth out of all defenders for goal involvements with two goals and seven assists, while only Virgil van Dijk (22) is credited with more clean sheets than Cancelo's 21.
He gets a friendly matchup against Aston Villa as well, who this season have scored four goals and conceded nine from their five matches, placing them in the bottom-five in both categories.
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal v Manchester United)
Arsenal are enjoying their best start to a Premier League season since 2003-04, with five wins from five matches, and 20-year-old winger Bukayo Saka is a big reason they are such a threat going forward.
Among Arsenal players, Saka ranks second in both assists (two) and chances created (10) – and it is no product of a small sample size.
Since the beginning of last season, only Kevin de Bruyne (102), Mohamed Salah (84) and Son Heung-min (80) have created more chances than Saka (78) – with a gap back to Mason Mount in fifth (66).
Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham v Tottenham)
It should never be a surprise to see Aleksandar Mitrovic scoring goals, but to be going at a goal-per-game in a newly promoted side is evidence of the special talent the Serbian possesses.
Only Erling Haaland has more goals than Mitrovic's five so far, and he is tied with the Norwegian for the Premier League lead in both shots (22) and shots on target (12).
Mitrovic's hot start follows his Golden Boot win in the Championship last season, where he netted 43 goals in 44 appearances. Out of England's top four leagues, Mitrovic is 19 goals clear of any other player since the start of that campaign.
For a moment it seemed Rafael Nadal was in danger of a premature exit from the US Open against Fabio Fognini on Thursday but he steadied to improve his 2022 grand slam record to 21-0.
Nadal won the Australian Open and French Open titles earlier this year, but an abdominal injury forced him to withdraw from Wimbledon at the semi-final stage, handing Nick Kyrgios a passage to the decider won by Novak Djokovic.
The 22-time major champion is on a mission to make it three from four grand slam titles this calendar year in Djokovic's absence in New York.
The 36-year-old Spaniard will take on veteran Richard Gasquet next in the third round, whom Nadal boasts a remarkable 17-0 head-to-head record against.
Nadal's 2-6 6-4 6-2 6-1 win over Fognini also meant he became the first player to qualify for the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin too.
But the current world number three has bigger fish to fry, needing to maintain his perfect 2022 record at majors for a fifth US Open crown.
If he succeeds, Nadal will not quite claim a calendar Grand Slam - achieved only by five players in singles history in Don Budge (1938), Maureen Connolly (1953), Rod Laver (1962, 1969), Margaret Court (1970) and Steffi Graf (1988) - but he would have achieved a staggering 26-0 record at majors for 2022.
For a moment it seemed Rafael Nadal was in danger of a premature exit from the US Open against Fabio Fognini on Thursday but he steadied to improve his 2022 grand slam record to 21-0.
Nadal won the Australian Open and French Open titles earlier this year, but an abdominal injury forced him to withdraw from Wimbledon at the semi-final stage, handing Nick Kyrgios a passage to the decider won by Novak Djokovic.
The 22-time major champion is on a mission to make it three from four grand slam titles this calendar year in Djokovic's absence in New York.
The 36-year-old Spaniard will take on veteran Richard Gasquet next in the third round, whom Nadal boasts a remarkable 17-0 head-to-head record against.
Nadal's 2-6 6-4 6-2 6-1 win over Fognini also meant he became the first player to qualify for the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin too.
But the current world number three has bigger fish to fry, needing to maintain his perfect 2022 record at majors for a fifth US Open crown.
If he succeeds, Nadal will not quite claim a calendar Grand Slam - achieved only by five players in singles history in Don Budge (1938), Maureen Connolly (1953), Rod Laver (1962, 1969), Margaret Court (1970) and Steffi Graf (1988) - but he would have achieved a staggering 26-0 record at majors for 2022.
Rookie right-hander Spencer Strider made history with a franchise-record 16 strikeouts in the Atlanta Braves' 3-0 win over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday.
The 23-year-old's 16 K's was the most ever by a Braves pitcher in a nine-inning game, bettering John Smoltz's previous record of 15, coming in only his 17th career Major League start.
Strider, who had 79 strikes from 106 pitches, allowed two hits and did not walk a batter, with a mix of fastballs and sliders across eight innings.
The 16 strikeouts were the most in the majors since Walker Buehler had 16 against the Rockies in June 2019.
"I lost track after five [innings]," Strider said about his strikeouts count. "I came out of the game and Kyle [Wright] was telling me something about John Smoltz or whatever. It didn't make any sense.
"It's pretty wild, the guys who've thrown in this organization, it's a long, incredible list. I'm just grateful to be here and having success."
Austin Riley and Michael Harris II hit solo home runs for the Braves, who improve to 81-51 to be three games behind the New York Mets (84-48) in the National League East.
Kershaw shakes off the rust in Dodgers defeat
Clayton Kershaw returned from the injured list with an efficient display but he could not inspire the Los Angeles Dodgers to victory, losing 5-3 to the New York Mets.
After a rusty start, Kershaw had six strikeouts across five innings, allowing one hit, one earned run while walking three batters.
Francisco Lindor was the hero with a tying RBI double in the sixth inning before scoring the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh, while Edwin Diaz struck out Gavin Lux to escape a jam in the eighth.
Red Sox rally wth Refsnyder career-first walk-off
Rob Refsnyder's single clinched a walk-off win for the Boston Red Sox who rallied with a four-run ninth inning to win 9-8 over the Texas Rangers.
The Red Sox, who had been behind 8-3 in the eighth, trailed 8-5 entering the ninth with Rafael Devers hitting a two-run double to narrow the deficit before Kike Hernandez's RBI single tied it up.
Refsnyder walked it off for the first time in his career with a line shot that drove home Devers.
Rafael Nadal's quest for a 23rd grand slam title remains alive after overcoming a slow start to defeat Italian veteran Fabio Fognini in four sets on Thursday.
Nadal lost the opening set and trailed 4-2 in the second frame before responding in trademark fashion, winning 16 of the next 19 games, to set up a third-round meeting against Richard Gasquet.
The Spaniard won 2-6 6-4 6-2 6-1 in two hours and 42 minutes, having also lost the opening set in the first-round win over Rinky Hijikata.
This year's Australian Open and French Open champion's surge to victory was momentarily halted in the fourth set when his racquet bounced off the hard court and into his nose when stretching for a shot.
Nadal needed a medical timeout and treatment but would return to play on, appearing relatively untroubled despite wearing a bandage over his nose, to complete the win.
The four-time US Open champion found himself in a spot of bother after losing the first frame with Fognini converting both of his two break points, before a wild second set that included seven breaks of serve.
Fognini appeared on course for a two-set lead at 4-2 but 23 unforced errors in the second set let him down with Nadal's pressure rising.
The Spaniard's game went up a level in the third, improving his first serve percentage to 75 per cent and only omitting five unforced errors and he carried that momentum through the fourth where he broke Fognini in the second and sixth games, before serving it out.
Data Slam: Breaks galore as Rafa gets revenge
Way back at the 2015 Open playing in a similarly late evening match past midnight, Fognini came from two sets down to defeat Nadal but the Spaniard reversed that this time around. Back in 2015 there were 17 breaks of serve for the match, while in 2022, with a set less played, there were 15 breaks for the match. Almost half of those were in a crazy second set.
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Nadal – 20/37
Fognini – 24/59
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Nadal – 4/2
Fognini – 1/9
BREAK POINTS WON
Nadal – 9/14
Fognini – 6/10
Rafael Nadal's quest for a 23rd grand slam title remains alive after overcoming a slow start to defeat Italian veteran Fabio Fognini in four sets on Thursday.
Nadal lost the opening set and trailed 4-2 in the second frame before responding in trademark fashion, winning 16 of the next 19 games, to set up a third-round meeting against Richard Gasquet.
The Spaniard won 2-6 6-4 6-2 6-1 in two hours and 42 minutes, having also lost the opening set in the first-round win over Rinky Hijikata.
This year's Australian Open and French Open champion's surge to victory was momentarily halted in the fourth set 3-0 up in the fourth game when his racquet bounced off the hard court and into his nose when stretching for a shot.
Nadal needed a medical timeout and treatment but would return to play on, appearing relatively untroubled despite wearing a bandage over his nose, to complete the win.
The four-time US Open champion, who amassed 37 unforced errors for the match, found himself in a spot of bother after losing the first frame with Fognini converting both of his two break points, before a wild second set that included seven breaks of serve.
Fognini appeared on course for a two-set lead at 4-2 but 23 unforced errors in the second set let him down with Nadal's pressure rising.
The Spaniard's game went up a level in the third, improving his first serve percentage to 75 per cent and only omitting five unforced errors and he carried that momentum through the fourth where he broke Fognini in the second and sixth games, before serving it out.
Data Slam: Breaks galore as Rafa gets revenge
Way back at the 2015 Open playing in a similarly late evening match past midnight, Fognini came from two sets down to defeat Nadal but the Spaniard reversed that this time around. Back in 2015 there were 17 breaks of serve for the match, while in 2022, with a set less played, there were 15 breaks for the match. Almost half of those were in a crazy second set.
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Nadal – 20/37
Fognini – 24/59
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Nadal – 4/2
Fognini – 1/9
BREAK POINTS WON
Nadal – 9/14
Fognini – 6/10
Tennis great Roger Federer has congratulated outgoing 23-time major winner Serena Williams on an "incredible career".
The 41-year-old Swiss revealed in a video message posted by the ATP Tour that he stayed up as a teenager to watch Williams' maiden US Open triumph in 1999 and lavished praise on her impact in the sport.
Williams, 40, last month announced her intention to evolve out of tennis after the US Open, where she has remarkably progressed to the third round following her upset win over second seed Anett Kontaveit on Thursday.
"I wanted to congratulate you for a most incredible career," 20-time grand slam champion Federer said.
"You know what you've achieved. I know what you've done. You know what it is, it just beyond incredible.
"I know it's probably with mixed feelings you're leaving this wonderful sport that has given you everything and more. I wish you all the best with your family."
Williams has won six US Open titles during her decorated playing career, including her maiden Flushing Meadows triumph in 1999.
"I think back at '99 at the US Open when you played Martina Hingis, I stayed up late to watch you battle it out as that was the beginning to your incredible career that you've had ever since," Federer said.
"I think the future is going to be wonderful for you. I'm sure it is. Please return to tennis. The tennis community and family will always welcome you with open arms and always be happy to see you again, so please return.
"For now enjoy this moment, enjoy the US Open, enjoy everything that's coming this next couple of weeks even though it might be hard for you.
"But I'm thinking of you and all my respect. I wish you all the very best for your future. Take care Serena."
Federer has not played professional tennis since Wimbledon last year, but has not retired and the former world number one is hoping for a return to action soon.
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has rejected the notion that Cristiano Ronaldo needs to accept being a bit-part player after failing to secure a move away from Old Trafford.
Ronaldo had tried to engineer a move away from Old Trafford after requesting a transfer, but failed to find a suitor to satisfy his desire for Champions League football and to challenge for trophies prior to the window closing on Thursday.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner, who has another year on his United contract, was used off the bench in a 26-minute cameo in United's 1-0 win at Leicester City on Thursday. Ronaldo has only made one start this Premier League season, with four appearances off the bench.
The 37-year-old missed United's pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia for personal reasons, and Ten Hag suggested that regaining match conditioning was behind his substitute role rather than falling down the pecking order, and that he may come into the starting XI in coming weeks.
"It is really early in the season," Ten Hag said. "We have a squad, more than 11 starting XI players. That's what you see now.
"Players who are now on the bench can play in one, two or three weeks.
"We are raising a team, they are sticking together, they fight for each other, cooperate. Now we have to step up further."
Ronaldo is yet to score this term for United, but netted 24 goals from 38 appearances in all competitions last season, including a team-high 18 Premier League goals.
The Portuguese icon had been linked with Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Sporting CP, Napoli and Bayern Munich in recent weeks but nothing materialised.
Serena Williams and sister Venus were unable to advance past the first round of the doubles at the US Open, going down 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 against Czech duo Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova on Thursday.
It was the Williams' first doubles match at a grand slam since the 2018 French Open, and their first at the US Open since 2014, less than 24 hours after Serena's stunning upset of world number two Anett Kontaveit.
Leading 5-4 in the first set, the sisters had two opportunities to break and secure the first set, but ultimately let them slip, before going down in a competitive tiebreaker.
They were far from outclassed, winning 48 per cent (49-of-102) of the points in the opening set, and 45 per cent (33-of-74) in the second.
After going down 3-0 in the second frame, instead of rolling over, the Williams sisters fought back, pulling it back to 4-4, but that would be their last stand before dropping the next two games and the match.
There was no on-court interview for the Americans, although 17-year-old Noskova called it "a special moment" and said "I was really lucky" for the opportunity to play against her heroes.
Serena will continue her singles campaign in the third round on Saturday night against unseeded Australian Ajla Tomljanovic.
One of the most famous power punchers to ever live, Earnie Shavers, passed away on Thursday a day after his 78th birthday.
Shavers amassed a 74-14-1 record between 1969 and 1995, and he was 54-5-1 by 1977 when he earned a world heavyweight title fight against Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden.
Shavers lost a 15-round decision to Ali, who famously declared after the fight "Earnie hit me so hard, it shook my kinfolk in Africa".
Fellow heavyweights often spoke of Shavers' power, with George Foreman once telling David Letterman during a late-night talk show conversation about the hardest punchers he ever faced "I never fought Earnie Shavers, thank goodness".
Of his 74 career wins, 68 came by knockout, including 23 in the first round.
Chelsea have completed the signing of Juventus midfielder Denis Zakaria on a season-long loan deal.
The Switzerland international will spend the remainder of the 2022-23 campaign at Stamford Bridge, while it has been reported there will be an option to buy in the deal.
Chelsea were in the market for a midfielder, with Thomas Tuchel keen to bolster the area in the wake of N'Golo Kante's injury issues.
They had been linked with a move for PSV's Ibrahim Sangare, though instead turned their focus to Zakaria on Thursday.
Zakaria joined Juventus from Borussia Monchengladbach on a four-and-a-half-year contract in January, scoring on his debut in a 2-0 win over Hellas Verona.
The defensive midfielder suffered an abductor injury in February and has only made 15 appearances for Juventus across all competitions,
He has started just once in Serie A this season – that coming in the opening-day victory over Sassuolo.
"I want to say hi to all the Chelsea fans. I'm very happy and proud to be a Blue and I cannot wait to see you soon at Stamford Bridge," said Zakaria.
Zakaria was Chelsea's second arrival of the final day of the transfer window, after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Barcelona, and could make his Chelsea debut when the Blues welcome West Ham to Stamford Bridge in the Premier League on Saturday.
His arrival finishes off a busy window, with Raheem Sterling, Marc Cucurella, Kalidou Kouilbaly and Wesley Fofana joining too.
Brighton and Hove Albion have signed Billy Gilmour from Chelsea for a fee reported to be in the region of £7million, rising to £10m with add-ons.
Scotland international Gilmour was seen as one of Chelsea's brightest prospects when he broke through in the 2019-20 season under Frank Lampard.
Yet Gilmour struggled to build on that impressive early form and was loaned out to Norwich City last term. He made 24 Premier League appearances as the Canaries were relegated to the Championship.
The 21-year-old midfielder was considered surplus to requirements by Thomas Tuchel on his return to Stamford Bridge, and has now made a permanent switch to Brighton.
He has signed a four-year deal with the Seagulls, with head coach Graham Potter thrilled with the signing.
"Billy arrives with a fantastic pedigree, having played in the Premier League and Champions League as well as for Scotland at last year's Euros. He will complement our existing midfield options," said Potter.
"That experience at quite a young age shows the strength of character he has and we're really excited by his potential.
"Now it's about allowing him the time to get used to a new environment and settling in to our club. We can't wait to work with him."
Everton have signed midfielder James Garner from Manchester United in a deal reportedly worth up to £15million.
Garner spent last season on loan at Nottingham Forest, scoring four goals and providing 10 assists to help the club win promotion to the Premier League.
He was expected to be given a chance to impress new United manager Erik ten Hag, but he signed a four-year deal with the Toffees on Thursday after completing a transfer apparently worth an initial £9m.
"I'm made up to sign for Everton. It's a huge step in my career and I want to help the team get better while progressing as a player," Garner told Everton's official website.
"I think Everton is the perfect place to do that. I can't wait to get started. The manager [Frank Lampard] has got a real plan for the club and for me.
"Working with him on a daily basis is major for me. Him and his staff can take me and the team to the next level. That's what I'm hoping for."
Garner will have one less midfielder to compete with for a spot in the starting XI after Andre Gomes joined Lille on loan for the remainder of the season.
Meanwhile, there was another exit from United on deadline day, with Tahith Chong joining Championship side Birmingham City on a four-year deal.
Chong spent last season on loan at the Blues, scoring one goal in 20 appearances.
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