| Location: Flushing Meadows, New York Day: August 29 to September 11 |
| Network coverage: Daily radio commentary on BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website and app, with selected live text commentary and match reports on the website and app |
Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz reached his first major semifinal after defeating Italy’s Jannik Sinner in a US Open thriller that ended at a record-breaking time of 2:50 a.m. at New York.
Alcaraz, 19, saved a match point before scoring an epic 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (0-7) 7-5 6-3 against 11th seed Sinner .
The third seed will face Frances Tiafoe on Friday for a spot in Sunday’s final.
The 24-year-old American also featured in her first major semifinal after a 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-0) 6-4 win over Andrey Rublev.
“I still don’t know how I did it. I played at a high level of quality tennis. It was unbelievable,” said Alcaraz, the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist since Rafael Nadal at the French Open. 2005, said.
“I always say you have to believe in yourself at all times. Hope is the last thing you use. I believe in myself, my game.”
A first-time Grand Slam champion was assured in the men’s singles at Flushing Meadows, with Norway’s Casper Ruud and Russia’s Karen Khachanov competing in the other semi-finals.
Alcaraz and 23-year-old Ruud also have a shot at becoming the new world number one as an exciting tournament draws to a close.
Tiafoe got a wish for a marathon
Tiafoe joked after his win – which ended more than 10 hours before the final quarter-final ended on Thursday morning – he hoped the match between Sinner and Alcaraz would be a “marathon and super long”.
His wish came true after an extraordinary night at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Alcaraz displayed the quality, resilience and boundless energy to defeat Sinner in a fascinating contest.
With powerful and precise strikes, incredible shots and incredible sportsmanship, the match between two of the sport’s brightest talents has surpassed all expectations. was very sublime.
After missing five set points in the second set, failing to serve the third and preventing Sinner from taking a point in the fourth, Alcaraz sealed the victory after five hours and 15 minutes with his first match point.
The teenager collapsed onto the field in excitement, covering his face and panting as he lay down to process what had just happened.
The guy stripped naked to share a warm hug with Sinner, who walked around the internet cafe to congratulate his opponent.
A grueling battle ended in the presence of a large number of devoted fans in the early hours and Alcaraz celebrated wildly with his trusted supporters, even giving a trainer for each of them.
How does an epic play out?
Alcaraz lost to Sinner in the fourth round of Wimbledon in July, but started confident at Flushing Meadows to win the excellent first set, which gives some indications that a classic could be on the way.
Sinner fought back in a tense second set that could have happened either way, with fans jumping with incredulous facial expressions at what they were seeing.
That included Alcaraz hitting a cheeky backhand that resulted in a winning point in game 12 and Sinner hitting an excellent backhand winner to level the game.
Both players saw their first serve percentage drop in the third set, with the intensity of the battle growing increasingly severe.
Sinner was broken for the second time as Alcaraz led 6-5, but he prevented the Spaniard from serving for a two-set lead—somehow staying in an exchange at the already-moving deuce amount of return in favor of him.
After a brilliant tie-break, Sinner looked even more fit and quickly broke up in the fourth round.
But this match will never have an uncomplicated end.
A shrewd Sinner failed to take the match point as he attempted to serve 5-4, resulting in the resurgent Alcaraz breaking a straight quarter, having a decider at 21 a.m. .
There is still very little idea in which direction the results will go. Sinner took the lead 3-2 seconds before the match was the latest to end in tournament history, but then failed to win a single game as Alcaraz turned the tide.
“I certainly had some tough losses,” Sinner said. “This is on the top list. I think this will hurt for a while.”
Tiafoe ‘turns the page’ as the ‘wild’ journey continues
After beating 36-year-old Nadal in the previous round, Tiafoe backed what he calls the biggest day of his life with another impressive performance against Russian eighth seed Rublev.
The 22nd seed is the first American to reach the semi-finals of the US Open since Andy Roddick in 2006.
“This is crazy, it’s crazy. I had the biggest win of my life 48 hours ago. To turn it over, it was hard to turn the page, but I did, and now I’m doing it. in the semi-finals,” Tiafoe said.
“I feel so at home in trials like this. This court is unbelievable.”
Rublev, who had played six major quarterfinals without progress, looked more dangerous in the early stages but missed an opportunity when Tiafoe controlled the first set in the tie-break.
The second set also went smoothly during serve time, but if cracks started to show in Rublev’s composure, they would have crumbled in half.
A composing Tiafoe – who has not lost a tie-break so far in the tournament – dominated and Rublev’s fury flared as he repeatedly smashed his racquet against his knee.
The third set delivered the first break of serve, leaving Rublev in tears after he let Tiafoe take a 4-3 lead.
Tiafoe withstood the pressure in the eighth game, saved two break points, then served with an 18th ace to become the first black American to reach the fourth round of the US Open since Arthur Ashe in 1972.
