By The Epoch Times | Created at 2026-09-09 19:48:23 | Updated at 2026-09-09 20:36:40
56 minutes ago
USA's Ben Shelton (R) shakes hands with Spain's Carlos Alcaraz after winning the men's singles quarter-final tennis match at the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City on Sept. 9, 2026. Leonardo Munoz/AFP via Getty Images
Eighth-seeded American Ben Shelton knocked out defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a four-and-a-half-hour quarterfinal thriller at the U.S. Open on Aug. 9.
A 146-mph ace sealed the 6(5)–7, 6–1, 6–3, 1–6, 7–6 (7) match that ended at 3:33 a.m.—the latest match in tournament history.
“I’m tired. It was a war,” Shelton said after the match. “Carlos is one of the greatest champions of our sport. It was the most enjoyable match I’ve had in my career, for sure.”
The match featured incredible shotmaking and highlights and is the 23-year-old’s biggest career win.
Shelton entered the quarterfinal having lost all three of his previous matches against Alcaraz, whose 18-match win streak at the Grand Slams was broken.
“I mean it was close, it was really close, so I was disappointed I didn’t get the win at the end,” the second-seeded Alcaraz said after the match.
“But I’m happy, I am proud of myself about how I fought. As I said, physically I was really tired, but I found a way to push myself.”
Alcaraz was coming off a wrist injury that sidelined him for four months.
The last time the Spaniard failed to make the final of a Grand Slam he competed in was last year’s Australian Open.
The American enters his second U.S. Open semifinal—having lost last time to Novak Djokovic in 2023.
He will face fellow American 11th-seeded Frances Tiafoe, guaranteeing that an American will play for the title on Sunday.
Tiafoe also needed four hours and a fifth-set tiebreak in his quarterfinal against another American, Alex Michelsen, which is why the Shelton-Alcaraz match started at 11 p.m.
Coming back from down two sets, Tiafoe set up his third U.S. Open semifinal, though he has yet to make the finals.
Shelton has a 3–1 career record against Tiafoe, including a four-set win at the 2023 U.S. Open quarterfinals in their first matchup.
Tiafoe got his revenge against his friend in a five-set match at the third round of the 2024 U.S. Open.
An American has not won the tournament—or any Grand Slam—since Andy Roddick won the U.S. Open in 2003.
The only time an American has made the U.S. Open final in the past 20 years was Taylor Fritz in 2024. He lost in a lopsided straight-sets match against Jannik Sinner.
With world No. 1 Sinner out due to injury and the reigning champion Alcaraz knocked out, this year is a prime opportunity for an American to win in New York and capture the home trophy.
The favorite to come out of the other side of the bracket is first-seeded Alexander Zverev, who has a 5–0 career record against Shelton and a 9–1 career record against Tiafoe.
