Carlos Alcaraz and Ben Shelton have shattered US Open records with the tournament’s latest ever finish in an epic five-set quarter-final blockbuster.
Wrapping up with a remarkable Shelton victory via a crushing ace at 3:33am local time, the classic ended a dramatic day at Arthur Ashe Stadium which featured 16 of a possible 16 sets and three match tie-breaks in four matches.
All that and more in the US Open Wrap.
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TENNIS WORLD STUNNED BY FIVE-SET EPIC IN LATEST EVER FINISH
Ben Shelton has shattered records with an extraordinary five-set win over reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz, with the American shattering a slew of records along the way.
The pair took New York’s “city that never sleeps” moniker literally, producing the US Open’s latest ever finish in a four-hour, 28-minute blockbuster that had a rapidly thinning crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium hanging on every point.
It was 3:33am when a thundering Shelton ace secured a dramatic fifth set tie-break, and secure a semi-final berth with a 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (7) victory.
“I always say that this is the sports city in the world, I say that this is the greatest stadium in the world,” an exhausted Shelton said post-match.
“I’m just hoping that my best friend and my sister over there don’t have to be at work at 6am in three hours.
“It’d be huge from their employers to let them have the day off today!”
Shelton will face American Frances Tiafoe in the last four, who produced a heroic comeback from two sets to love down against compatriot Alex Michelsen earlier in the day.
His recovery will be boosted by consecutive days off, with the two men’s semi finals being played on Thursday (New York time).
Shelton looked set for the biggest win of his career after taking a two sets to one lead after an uncharacteristically poor second set from the reigning US Open champion led to a 6-1 scoreline, after a dramatic first set tie-breaker was clinched by the world No.2.
The eighth seed then defied an Alcaraz break point when serving for the third set with a series of brilliant backhands to take it 6-3.
But the Spaniard fought back to force a decider by taking the third set 6-1, despite clearly feeling the effects of the lengthy match.
In his first tournament after a long injury layoff that saw him miss both the French Open and Wimbledon, Alcaraz was captured vomiting into his towel at the change of ends.
The match became the latest ever finish at the US Open midway through the fifth set as the clock ticked past 2:50am, surging past the previous benchmark – set by Alcaraz himself in a five-set epic against Jannik Sinner in 2022.
Shelton appeared to have one foot in the semi-finals after earning three break points – including two consecutively – when 4-3 up in the decider, only for Alcaraz to save them all with tremendous defence.
But an Alcaraz backhand miss midway through the deciding tie-break with the court at his mercy to squander a mini-break opportunity would prove a crucial blow.
Already a point of controversy at the 2026 tournament after a series of late finishes, the extraordinary hour saw an exodus of fans at around 1am, with those who remained struggling to keep their eyes open by the end.
Veteran US broadcaster Jason Page took to X to bemoan the tournament’s “ridiculous scheduling”.
“I get that today’s matches have basically all gone long, but you can’t have the biggest match of the tournament so far beginning at 11 PM ET at the earliest,” he wrote.
“The US Open has to do better.”
Tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg captured vision showing the stadium’s late-night cleaners had already begun work before the match was close to finishing.
The match, however, fell well short of the Australian Open’s latest ever finish – 4:34am, set by Lleyton Hewitt against Marcos Baghdatis in 2008, after a series of lengthy matches saw the encounter begin at 11:47pm.
EMOTIONS POUR OUT IN ALL-AMERICAN CLASH
American Frances Tiafoe has produced the unthinkable at the US Open, coming back from two sets down.
His opponent and fellow American, Alex Michelsen, served for the match in the third set with a semi-final spot on the line.
Michelsen shot out of the gates, winning the first two sets in commanding fashion, 7-5 and 6-3 with Tiafoe going a break down in the third set.
Tiafoe refused to go away as he fought back to win that set 7-5.
He then took the following two sets, 6-3 and 7-6, sealing the match by taking the tiebreaker 10-6 to complete the comeback.
Tiafoe lifted in the fourth and fifth sets, converting three of six break points and 12 of 17 net points across them.
Michelsen had entered the match without dropping a set on his way to the quarterfinals.
The comeback now sends Tiafoe to his third US Open semi-final.
Tiafoe closed out the fifth set with a spectacular forehand winner which rocketed past Michelsen as he approached the net.
The post-match scenes were truly emotional as both players embraced.
Cutting his celebrations short, Tiafoe rushed over to Michelsen, with Michelsen unable to contain his emotions.
A devastated Michelsen was seen crying into Tiafoe’s shoulder at centre court as the New York crowd cheered on the two Americans after a gruelling near-five-hour match.
Jim Courier summed up the emotional moment post-match.
“It’s a big brother moment, Michelsen in tears in Frances’ arms,” Courier said.
Tiafoe also reflected on the embrace post-match.
“Man I know. I’ve been there … I know how much that hurts,“ he said.
Tiafoe will now face the winner of American Ben Shelton and Carlos Alcaraz in a semifinal matchup.
Sabalenka survives Noskova scare | 01:19
‘SPEECHLESS’ SABALENKA ADVANCES
Aryna Sabalenka has advanced to the semifinals after a three-set thriller against Linda Noskova.
The pair were neck and neck throughout the contest with Sabalenka winning the match after a near two and a half hour battle.
Sabalenka was able to close the first set in the tiebreaker winning 7-6, taking the tiebreak 7-1.
In the second set, Czech Noskova hit back to win 6-3 heading into the final set.
Again, with the match on the line, it was Sabalenka who showed the poise late winning the set 7-6 after taking the tiebreak 10-7 to advance to the semifinals.
She finished the match with a stunning ace as she recovered from a 2-4 deficit in the deciding tiebreak.
Following the match Sabalenka spoke about the toughness of the contest.
“Oh my god guys, what a battle,” Sabalenka said.
“What an incredible player she is.
“I’m speechless right now because I was pushing myself to the limit.”
The two-time US Open winner will face the winner of Americans Jessica Pegula and Emma Navarro.
RIVALARY SET TO RESUME IN SEMIFINALS
Jessica Pegula booked a third straight US Open showdown with Aryna Sabalenka, grinding out a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over Emma Navarro on Tuesday to set a semi-final clash with the two-time defending champion.
Sabalenka beat Pegula in the 2024 final in Flushing Meadows and beat her again in the semis last year on the way to a second crown.
Third-seeded Pegula needed two hours and 20 minutes to get past Navarro, recovering an early break in the third set of a tense baseline battle on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“It was really tough,” Pegula said after a match featuring nine breaks of serve.
“It was physical, humid. I wasn’t exactly serving my best and I was fighting a lot of demons out there today.”
Pegula improved to 5-0 against Navarro, a former world number eight who is on the rise after an extended break to focus on health issues, winning her first title in more than a year at Strasbourg in May.
Pegula, who has won two titles this year, is among the trio of players who arrived at Flushing Meadows with a chance to supplant Sabalenka atop the world rankings in New York.
The 32-year-old would have to go all the way to a first major title to have a shot at claiming the top spot.
But the number one issue could be moot by the time Pegula and Sabalenka square off on Thursday.