Ben Shelton outlasted Carlos Alcaraz 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7) in the US Open quarterfinals overnight, a five-set marathon that did not end until 3:33 a.m. Wednesday — the latest finish in tournament history and the signature result so far of the year's final Grand Slam.
The No. 8 seed needed 4 hours and 28 minutes to get past the No. 2-seeded Alcaraz, breaking a record that had stood since 2022, when Alcaraz himself outlasted Jannik Sinner in a quarterfinal that finished at 2:50 a.m. and helped launch his run to his first major title. Shelton closed out Wednesday's rematch with the record book by winning a 10-7 tiebreak in the fifth set, striking two 146 mph aces along the way, according to NBC News.
It was the first win of Shelton's career over Alcaraz, who had taken their previous three meetings, including a fourth-round match at this year's French Open. The American had never beaten a top-five seed at a major before Tuesday night, and the match swung wildly to get there: Alcaraz took the opening-set tiebreak, Shelton reeled off the next two sets 6-1 and 6-3, and Alcaraz answered by winning the fourth set 6-1 to force a decider that stretched to nearly midnight before either man had secured it.
A record-breaking test of endurance
Alcaraz, the defending champion chasing back-to-back US Open titles, was playing his first tournament since April because of a right wrist injury that had also cost him the French Open and Wimbledon. He appeared to labor physically as the match stretched deep into the New York night, with television cameras catching him vomiting into a towel during a changeover, according to CBS News. He still pushed the match to a fifth set and held serve through all 12 games before the deciding tiebreak turned away from him.
The loss ended an 18-match Grand Slam winning streak for Alcaraz, who had won his seventh major title at this year's Australian Open before the injury layoff, and closed the door on his bid to defend the title he won in New York a year ago. Both players' full tournament runs are tracked on the official US Open site.
Reaction and what's next
Shelton, addressing the diehards who stuck around Arthur Ashe Stadium into the small hours, seemed as struck by the time on the clock as by the result itself.
It's incredible. I always say that this is the greatest sports city in the world, I say that this is the greatest stadium in the world. I'm just hoping that my best friend and my sister over there don't have to be at work at 6 a.m. in three hours.
Ben Shelton
Alcaraz, who conceded he had nothing left in the tank by the end, put the loss on his opponent's level rather than his own recovering body.
I was playing against someone who on the day is a beast. Shelton is an unbelievable player, very powerful. He managed to play really, really well in every situation.
Carlos Alcaraz
The win sends Shelton into an all-American semifinal against No. 11 seed Frances Tiafoe, who completed his own five-set escape earlier Tuesday, rallying from two sets down to beat Alex Michelsen 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6(10-6) — the first comeback from two sets down in a US Open men's quarterfinal since Roger Federer managed it in 2014, per ESPN.
The pairing guarantees an American man will reach the US Open final for the first time since Andy Roddick won the title in 2003, ending a two-decade wait for the sport's most tennis-mad market. Shelton and Tiafoe meet Friday for a place in Sunday's championship match, each working with barely two days to recover from quarterfinals that combined for nearly nine hours of tennis and finished within roughly two hours of each other in the middle of the night. Tiafoe, a US Open semifinalist in 2022 and 2024, and Shelton, who made the final four here in 2023 and at last year's Australian Open, are both still chasing the first Grand Slam final of their careers.
