New York, August 26, 2026 – One set down, then the turnaround: Otto Virtanen took on Jack Pinnington Jones in the men's singles qualifying semifinal for the 2026 US Open on Court 7, eventually coming through 2-6, 7-6, 6-3. The Finn, who entered the tournament seeded ninth in the qualifying draw, punched his ticket to the main draw of the season's final Grand Slam on the New York hardcourts.
Pinnington Jones takes a dominant first set
Virtanen struggled to find his footing from the outset. Pinnington Jones, who had come through his opening qualifying round against Trevor Svajda, controlled proceedings from the very first game. The Briton won 79 percent of his service games across the match and proved sharp enough on return to keep the Finn under constant pressure. He took the first set 6-2 — a clear statement of intent from the 23-year-old from Kingston upon Thames, who had drawn attention with two Challenger titles in 2025 and reached a career-high ranking of 132.
Virtanen turns it around in the tiebreak
In the second set, Virtanen grew increasingly into the match. The Finn, who is ranked number one in his country and had already advanced to the qualifying semifinal without dropping a set against Ugo Blanchet, began to impose himself on serve. He fired seven aces and won 67 percent of first-serve points. But with Pinnington Jones refusing to yield, a tiebreak was needed to separate them. Virtanen kept his nerve and claimed the second set 8-6 in the tiebreak — the turning point of the contest.
Virtanen takes a commanding deciding set
In the deciding third set, Virtanen pulled away convincingly, 6-3. Pinnington Jones accumulated 33 unforced errors across the entire match and converted only 43 percent of the break points he faced. Virtanen, meanwhile, converted 43 percent of his own break point opportunities — enough to settle the set and the match in his favour. The fact that Virtanen himself committed 47 unforced errors underlines just how open and fiercely contested large stretches of the match were. In the end, Virtanen sealed victory 2-6, 7-6, 6-3 — a comeback that paved his way into the 2026 US Open main draw.
