Former world No. 1 Iga Swiatek was in tears after a shock loss to Chinese qualifier Zheng Qinwen bundled her out of the US Open in the fourth round.
In the men’s singles, Frenchman Arthur Gea was one point away from grand slam history against Alex de Minaur’s conqueror Botic van de Zandschulp – only to cop a brutal comeback.
A win would have seen him become the first lucky loser in the Open Era to reach the quarter-finals at a major, having lost in the final round of qualifying before an injury to Norwegian star Casper Ruud opened the door into the main draw.
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Gea was on the brink of victory, holding a match point in the third set tie-break after claiming the first two sets 6-3, 7-6 (0), before a series of errors let the Dutchman claim the tie-break 9-7 and keep the contest alive.
He’d then serve for the match at 5-4 in the fourth set, before again being broken by van de Zandschulp, who would go on to win the tie-breaker 7-3 to level the match at two sets apiece.
In a tense, topsy-turvy final set, the Dutchman would break early before being instantly broken back, before at last outlasting Gea to take the set 6-3 and end a brutal five hour and 13-minute battle.
The match was the longest of the tournament so far, as well as the fourth-longest in US Open history.
“Wasn’t going my way in the beginning,” van de Zandschulp said post-match.
“For me, it was looking for my form – I haven’t found it yet, but hopefully in a few days I’ll find it.
“It was a crazy comeback … still standing, so that’s a good thing!”
He will face top seed and French Open champion Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals, who crushed Italian Luciano Darderi 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (3).
Eighth seed and six-time major champion Swiatek looked set for a dominant win after taking a 5-0 lead in the first set.
But remarkably, Zheng, who has battled injury and a slide down the rankings since winning Olympic gold and making the Australian Open final in 2024, would turn things around.
Her 7-5 first set win, claiming seven games in a row, was remarkably the second time in successive sets she had pulled off the feat, having done likewise when trailing 5-0 in the deciding set of her third-round clash with American Madison Keys.
Ranked 121st in the world, Zheng’s 7-5, 6-3 win was her seventh consecutive win at Flushing Meadows, having come through qualifying.
It sets up a third consecutive US Open quarter-final for the 23-year old, having made it to the last eight in 2023 and 2024 before missing the 2025 tournament due to injury.
“I would say I start(ed) the match really slow. That’s why she’s able to lead 5-0,” Zheng said.
“After that, I start to play more freely because I think I need to try to find my rhythm at least for the second set.
“I think that’s the key for me to come back – I didn’t expect that today, but somehow it’s just happening again.”
For Swiatek, who left the court in tears, it completes the worst grand slam year since making her main draw debut in 2019.
She has managed just one quarter-final appearance, at the Australian Open in January, having won at least one major in every year since 2021.
“I didn’t have good timing,” Swiatek said.
“I wasn’t hitting the ball right.
“Maybe I could have played more safe or something, but I also didn’t feel like I had space with Qinwen to do that.”
Zheng was already the first qualifier to reach the US Open women’s fourth round since Emma Raducanu – who went on to win the title in 2021.
She will next face world number two Elena Rybakina, who cruised past two-time US Open winner Naomi Osaka 6-1, 6-4.
Rybakina leads their head-to-head 4-1 and has won both meetings this year, in Doha and Madrid. She’ll also have even more than a semi-final berth at stake since she’s assured of climbing to world number one if she makes it to the final four.
Swiatek wasn’t the only competitor left emotional after tasting defeat, with American Learner Tien falling in a brual five-set encounter with Karen Khachanov.
The Russian, who entered the tournament unseeded but is a two-time major semifinalist, recovered from a two sets to one deficit to win 7-5, 4-6, 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-4 to reach the last eight.
The 20-year old Tien, who was previously 4-0 in fifth sets, was left on the verge of tears immediately after the loss.
Khachanov’s deep run at the year’s final slam comes just weeks after a shock straight-sets loss to controversial Australian Bernard Tomic at an ATP event in Mexico in late July.
FEUD ERUPTS IN SPICY END TO AUSSIE’S DOUBLES LOSS
Australian Maya Joint found herself at the centre of a long-standing tennis feud after she and doubles partner Chan Hao-ching were knocked out of the US Open women’s doubles draw.
Having reached the round of 16 after beginning the tournament with a win over legendary duo Venus and Serena Williams, Joint and Chan were no match for Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko, losing 6-4, 6-4 to the fourth seeds.
Taiwanese compatriots Hsieh and Chan have endured a years-long rivalry, with Hsieh having accused Taiwan’s tennis administration of repeatedly favouring Chan and her family.
Among other dramas, the feud ignited at the 2016 Rio Olympics, when Chan was permitted to take her father as coach while Hsieh’s brother was denied the same request, with the amount of coaches that could be taken to the Games limited per nation.
Hsieh responded by withdrawing from the Olympics and immediately retiring from representing the country at all international events, which she later rescinded.
Ten years on, and the stoush was again on full display at Flushing Meadows, with Ostapenko, who is known for her fiery on-court demeanour, and Hsieh both furiously celebrating their win in the direction of Chan’s team.
The post-match handshake then saw Chan shake only Ostapenko’s hand and not even acknowledge Hsieh.
BELGIAN SPARKS WITHDRAWAL FEARS AFTER ‘MAGICAL MEDICATION’ IN WIN
Alexander Blockx beat Francisco Cerundolo in four sets on Monday to become the first Belgian man ever to reach the US Open quarter-finals – but his tournament remains on a knife’s edge.
The 21-year-old Blockx, seeded 28th in his Flushing Meadows debut, outlasted 24th-seeded Cerundolo 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5.
The Belgian, who upset fifth-seeded Flavio Cobolli in the third round, backed up that win with a determined performance during which he received “magical medication” from the doctor to combat a “sharp pain in my rib.
“I was just holding on to be honest,” Blockx said.
“Even though I won that first set 6-3, it could have been the other way round.”
The win marks the latest stepping stone for the 21-year old, who began the year outside the top 100 and had to qualify for the Australian Open.
After splitting the first two sets, Blockx and Cerundolo stood level at 5-5 when the Belgian fell behind 0-40 on his serve.
Blockx worked his way back with big serves and booming strokes, holding serve and breaking Cerundolo in the next game to take the third set.
A tight fourth set went with serve until Blockx gained the winning break in the final game, falling to the ground in delight when a shot from the Argentine landed out.
“This morning I stepped onto this court for the first time to warm up and that felt unreal, so to play a match here and win a match here is even crazier,” Blockx said Blockx next faces the winner between unseeded Russian Karen Khachanov and 14th-seeded Learner Tien of the United States.