Ben Shelton defeated Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set U.S. Open quarter-final at Arthur Ashe Stadium that stretched into the early hours of Wednesday. It finished at 3:33 a.m., setting a tournament record for the latest-ending match.
Shelton won 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) after 4 hours, 28 minutes on court. The match began just after 11 p.m., and thousands of fans remained in the stadium to see its final points.
The result put Shelton into the semi-finals and stopped Alcaraz’s 18-match winning streak in Grand Slam tournaments. Alcaraz had entered the match as defending champion. He had previously featured in the U.S. Open’s latest finish, beating Jannik Sinner in the 2022 quarterfinals in a match that concluded at 2:50 a.m.
Shelton and Alcaraz traded momentum across five sets. Shelton lost the opening set in a tiebreak, then claimed the second and third sets. Alcaraz levelled the match by taking the fourth before Shelton won the deciding-set tiebreak.
For Alcaraz, the defeat brought his run of 18 consecutive Grand Slam victories to an end. He won his first Grand Slam title at 19. His earlier contest with Sinner had already held the U.S. Open’s late-night record before Shelton’s victory moved it later still.
Shelton will face No. 11 seed Frances Tiafoe, a fellow American, in the next round. Their meeting guarantees the U.S. a representative in Sunday’s final.
The semi-final also gives American men’s tennis another opportunity to end a long wait for a major title. The U.S. is seeking its first men’s major title since Andy Roddick lifted a grand slam title at the U.S. Open in 2003. Shelton’s win has kept that prospect alive after a quarter-final that ran until Wednesday morning.
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