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Four-panel full-color tennis comic with cartoon stand-ins, not player portraits. Panel 1: cartoon Spanish champion in bright kit wins in straight sets. Panel 2: cartoon world No. 1 complains about a smell drifting onto court then wins. Panel 3: cartoon sister doubles duo lose a long tiebreak. Panel 4: LAST 16 banner with trophies and sunset stadium.
Four panels: Alcaraz rolls through Wu, Sabalenka holds serve through a stadium smell interruption, the Williams sisters lose a marathon tiebreak, and a Last 16 banner under Flushing Meadows lights. · Comic: Topics / Drew’s Comic Newsroom. Source: Al Jazeera, Sept. 5, 2026.

Sports

Alcaraz and Sabalenka book US Open last 16; Williams sisters fall in thriller

What happened

Defending US Open singles champions Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka both reached the last 16 on Friday in New York, Al Jazeera reported. Alcaraz, back from a four-month injury absence, beat China’s Wu Yibing 6-3, 6-4, 6-1. Sabalenka dismissed Kamilla Rakhimova 6-3, 6-4, did not face a break point, and still paused play at one point to flag a strong cannabis smell drifting onto Louis Armstrong Stadium—an increasingly familiar Flushing Meadows distraction she asked fans to keep away from the court.

The evening session belonged to a different kind of drama. Serena and Venus Williams partnered in a Grand Slam doubles event for the first time since 2022 and lost 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (10/7) to 14th seeds Chan Hao-ching and Maya Joint in a three-hour battle. The sisters leveled after the second-set tiebreak and led 5-0 in the third-set breaker before Chan and Joint erased the deficit. Elsewhere, Jessica Pegula rallied past Leylah Fernandez, Emma Navarro upset Karolina Muchova, Frances Tiafoe and Daniil Medvedev advanced, and Stefanos Tsitsipas reached a US Open fourth round for the first time.

Alcaraz next faces American Tommy Paul. Sabalenka next faces Taylor Townsend. The strip is the straight-sets roll, the smell interruption that did not stop a hold-heavy win, the sisters’ near-escape, and a Last 16 stamp under the lights.

Why it matters

A September Friday at the US Open is a bracket fact, not a coronation. Alcaraz’s level comment—that he is finding competition rhythm again after months out—matters for how dangerous he looks in week two. Sabalenka’s path still runs through a title defense if she wants to protect the No. 1 ranking math, and the cannabis complaint is a tournament atmosphere note players keep repeating, not a morality play. The Williams return delivered what Flushing Meadows crowds come for: a long fight, a 5-0 breaker lead that vanished, and a first-round exit that still felt like an event.

For a sports desk strip, the useful frame is simple. Defending champions are still in. The most famous doubles partnership in the draw is out. The cartoons stay stand-ins, the colors stay loud, and the source stays the match report.

Conclusion

Alcaraz and Sabalenka booked the last 16 on Friday; the Williams sisters fell in a marathon doubles return; Pegula, Navarro, Tiafoe, Medvedev, and Tsitsipas filled out a busy Flushing Meadows slate. Full-color strip, cartoon stand-ins. Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/9/5/alcaraz-sabalenka-into-us-open-last-16-as-williams-sisters-lose-on-return

Source: Al Jazeera