Alcaraz falls to Shelton in late-night thriller, Sabalenka survives at US Open
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NEW YORK, Sept 9 : Ben Shelton sent defending champion Carlos Alcaraz packing from the U.S. Open quarter-finals in the early hours of Wednesday, the pair slugging it out in the latest-finishing match in tournament history, while Aryna Sabalenka was pushed to the limit but kept her title defence alive.
Spaniard Alcaraz had defied concerns over his long layoff due to a wrist injury but came undone against American eighth seed Shelton, who plays countryman Frances Tiafoe for a place in the final.
Alcaraz, 23, struggled with accuracy, making an uncharacteristic 53 unforced errors, and was dragged into a punishing four-hour and 28-minute battle, where Shelton sealed a 6-7(5) 6-1 6-3 1-6 7-6(10-7) victory at 3:33 a.m. on Wednesday.
"Carlos is one of the greatest champions in our sport already," Shelton said of the seven-times Grand Slam champion.
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"It's always fun being on the court against him. It's ridiculous some of the stuff he comes up with sometimes, but it's the most enjoyable match I've had in my career."
While Shelton and Tiafoe continue their quest to become the first American men's Grand Slam champion since Andy Roddick's 2003 triumph at Flushing Meadows, Alcaraz departed with a smile on his face.
"I think everyone could see it on court," he said.
"We left the court smiling, happy. At the end of the day, when matches are that close, that tight, and you end up losing after 4-1/2 hours, well, it's never pleasant.
"But you have to look at the bigger picture, we played some absolutely brilliant tennis. The crowd really enjoyed it. There were loads of people in the stadium supporting us."
SABALENKA PUSHED
Sabalenka had not dropped a set this year in New York but found herself pushed to the limit in a 7-6(1) 3-6 7-6(10-7) win over Linda Noskova to reach her sixth consecutive U.S. Open semi-final.
The highly anticipated meeting between the Czech Wimbledon winner and the U.S. Open champion lived up to expectations and the Belarusian clinched victory with a second-serve ace.
"I felt at some point in the third set she was definitely serving better than me and putting so much pressure on me, but I'm glad that threw that thought away and I was able to focus point by point," said Sabalenka.
U.S. fan favourite Tiafoe came back from two sets and a break down to defeat compatriot Alex Michelsen 5-7 3-6 7-5 6-3 7-6(6), flinging his racket to the court in a scene of joy after sealing the win with a signature forehand.
The marathon match pushed Tuesday's evening programme to a later start, and third seed Jessica Pegula came from behind to see off fellow American Emma Navarro 3-6 6-4 6-3 in a contest that was dubbed by local media as the "Battle of the Billionaires".
Pegula, daughter of Buffalo Bills and Sabres owner Terry Pegula, is among three women who could overtake Sabalenka as the world number one at this tournament.
She extended her record over Navarro, the daughter of billionaire businessman Ben Navarro, to 5-0.
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