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New York, Sept 10:

Ben Shelton ended defending champion Carlos Alcaraz’s US Open title defence in a dramatic five-set quarter-final that finished at 3:33 a.m., the latest-ending match in the tournament’s history. Shelton prevailed 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) after four hours and 28 minutes.

The defeat ended Alcaraz’s 18-match winning streak in Grand Slam tournaments. The Spaniard, returning to competition after a right-wrist injury, fought back after Shelton had won nine consecutive games during the second and third sets.

Alcaraz also struggled physically, vomiting before the start of the deciding set, but continued to fight. Shelton held his nerve in the match tiebreak to reach his third Grand Slam semi-final, having previously reached the last four at the 2023 US Open and 2025 Australian Open.

Shelton will meet fellow American Frances Tiafoe in the semi-final. Tiafoe rallied from two sets down to beat Alex Michelsen 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6), ensuring an American man will feature in Sunday’s final.

Meanwhile, Aryna Sabalenka kept her bid for a third consecutive US Open title alive after edging Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova in a tense quarter-final. The top seed won 7-6 (1), 3-6, 7-6 (10-7) in a match that went down to a deciding-set tiebreak.

Sabalenka admitted she felt the match was slipping away before producing a strong finish. She needed the victory to maintain her hopes of retaining the world No. 1 ranking and eventually sealed the contest with a second-serve ace.

The victory sent Sabalenka into the US Open semi-finals for the sixth consecutive year. She will face No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula, who recovered from losing the opening set to beat Emma Navarro 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.  

Sabalenka has beaten Pegula in both their recent US Open meetings, winning the 2024 final and last year’s semi-final after dropping the opening set.