US Open Semifinals Preview: American Stars Shine

The US Open semifinals are locked in, and New York has its storyline: America is guaranteed a men’s finalist and still very much alive for a home champion on both sides of the draw.

This came at the end of a brutal, history-making quarterfinal slate that stretched deep into the night and pushed one of the sport’s brightest stars out of the tournament.

Shelton fells Alcaraz in a midnight epic

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz is out. Ben Shelton did it the hard way.

In a five-set classic that became the longest match in US Open history, the American overpowered and outlasted Alcaraz in a contest that ran four and a half hours and finally ended after 3 a.m. local time. The stadium stayed, the noise stayed, and Shelton stayed calm when it mattered most.

That win does more than remove the reigning champion. It guarantees an American in the men’s final.

Shelton now runs into Frances Tiafoe in an all-U.S. semifinal that feels like a changing-of-the-guard moment and a coronation opportunity rolled into one.

Tiafoe, the Maryland native who has built a reputation on grit and shot-making flair, had his own fight to survive the last eight. He edged fellow American Alex Michelsen in a tense quarterfinal, riding his experience and composure through the key moments to book his place in the last four.

On Friday night, one of them will walk out for a US Open final. The other will be left wondering how close this chance might ever come again.

Zverev marches on as Khachanov advances

The top seed on the men’s side, Alexander Zverev, made far lighter work of his quarterfinal.

The French Open champion swept past Botic van de Zandschulp in straight sets, a controlled, clinical performance that underlined why he came to New York as the No. 1 seed. Zverev barely allowed a foothold, dictating from the baseline and moving through without the kind of physical or emotional strain that defined the other half of the draw.

Waiting for him is Karen Khachanov, who reached the semifinals in far less satisfying fashion. The powerful Russian moved through when Alexander Blockx retired due to injury in their quarterfinal, cutting short a match that had promised a real test.

Zverev now stands three sets away from adding a US Open title to his Roland Garros crown. Khachanov, still searching for a breakthrough at this level, has a shot at the upset and a first major final.

Sabalenka, Pegula set heavyweight clash

The women’s draw has its own American charge, and it runs straight through the world No. 1.

Jessica Pegula, the No. 3 seed, handled fellow American Emma Navarro in her quarterfinal, a composed display that reinforced her status as one of the tour’s most reliable deep-run performers. Pegula controlled the tempo, picked her moments, and never let the occasion rattle her.

Now comes the hardest task in the sport: Aryna Sabalenka in full flow.

The top seed and defending US Open champion powered past Wimbledon winner Linda Nosková to return to the semifinals. Sabalenka’s raw hitting and big-match presence once again proved too much, and she now stands between Pegula and a first appearance in a major final.

It’s a matchup that pits Sabalenka’s aggression against Pegula’s precision and patience, with a place in Saturday’s final on the line.

Gauff surges; Rybakina rises to No. 1

On the other side of the women’s draw, Coco Gauff is still very much alive in her title defense.

The No. 4 seed had to dig deep, rallying from behind to defeat No. 5 seed Mirra Andreeva in a quarterfinal that demanded both resilience and nerve. Gauff absorbed the teenager’s fearless hitting, then turned the match around with her athleticism and improved shot selection, leaning on the energy of a crowd that has adopted her as its own.

Next up: Elena Rybakina, and with her, a different kind of pressure.

Rybakina, the No. 2 seed, became the new top-ranked player in women’s tennis by beating Qinwen Zheng. That win didn’t just send her into the semifinals; it confirmed her ascent to the summit of the rankings, a milestone that adds extra weight to every point she now plays.

Gauff, the 2023 US Open champion, will try to ride her momentum and the backing of Arthur Ashe Stadium. Rybakina will arrive as the newly crowned No. 1, armed with one of the cleanest, most penetrating games in the sport.

Semifinal schedule

The stage is set, the names are big, and the stakes are obvious.

• US Open women’s semifinals – Thursday, Sept. 10
• • No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka vs. No. 3 Jessica Pegula, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
  • No. 2 Elena Rybakina vs. No. 4 Coco Gauff, 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• US Open men’s semifinals – Friday, Sept. 11
• • No. 1 Alexander Zverev vs. Karen Khachanov, 3 p.m. ET
  • No. 11 Frances Tiafoe vs. No. 8 Ben Shelton, 7 p.m. ET

Four Americans. Two No. 1 seeds. One defending men’s champion already gone. New York now waits to see who can turn this opening into a defining title.