Alexander Zverev Reaches US Open Semi-Finals After Thrilling Quarter-Final Win

Alexander Zverev has made a habit of suffering in New York. This year, the pain is paying off again.

The German marched into his third US Open semi-final with a 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 win over Botic van de Zandschulp, a straight-sets scoreline that hides the mileage in his legs and the nerves he had to choke down on Arthur Ashe.

This will be his 13th Grand Slam semi-final. It might be one of the hardest-earned.

Zverev survives the grind, then accelerates

Zverev arrived at this quarter-final having already played two five-set epics in the opening rounds. He has spent 16 hours and 40 minutes on court in New York — more than any other man to reach the US Open semi-finals since records began in 1991.

The tank, somehow, is not empty.

Against van de Zandschulp, though, he began like a man still shaking off the residue of those marathons. Five double faults flew off his racket in the opening stages. The serve that so often anchors his game wobbled, the timing looked off, and the Dutchman had a glimpse of vulnerability to attack.

Zverev shut the door quickly.

He broke in the fifth game of the first set, snapped into rhythm, and never handed the advantage back. The opener went 6-2, the scoreboard suggesting routine while his service motion still betrayed tension.

The second set told a different story. Van de Zandschulp, who had been on the back foot for long spells, finally pushed. He edged closer to levelling, dragged Zverev into longer, more physical rallies and threatened to tilt the match into a dogfight.

Just when the Dutchman seemed ready to pounce, Zverev tightened the screws.

From the business end of the set, the German reeled off three games in a row, ripping through the closing stretch to snatch it 7-5. The pressure that had been building on his own serve flipped instantly to the other side of the net.

The third set felt like a verdict. Zverev broke early, stepped inside the baseline, and began to dictate with a freedom that had been missing at the start. Van de Zandschulp, forced to chase, could not keep pace. The 6-1 finish was clinical, almost ruthless.

A historic Grand Slam run

This season, Zverev has done something no other player has managed: he has reached the semi-finals at all four Grand Slam tournaments.

In an era dominated by specialists and surface debates, that kind of across-the-board consistency stands out. Clay, grass, hard courts — the settings have changed, his presence in the last four has not.

New York, of course, carries extra weight. Zverev was a point away from the title here in 2020, when he lost a five-set final. This run marks his third US Open semi-final and offers another crack at a tournament that has given him both opportunity and regret.

Now he stands two wins from rewriting that story.

Khachanov advances as Bloxs breaks down

Waiting for him is Karen Khachanov, a man who knows how to punch holes in a draw and who arrives in the last four by a very different route.

The Russian led Belgian Alexander Bloxs 6-2, 7-5, 3-2 when the quarter-final ended abruptly with a retirement. It was a match that looked painful from the first ball.

Bloxs came in carrying a rib injury and his body told the rest of the tale. A brace strapped his right ankle. A bandage wrapped his thigh. During the contest he repeatedly turned to the medical staff, searching for a way to manage the mounting discomfort.

He could not find it. At 3-2 down in the third, he stopped.

Khachanov, who had been in control on the scoreboard, moved through to his first US Open semi-final since 2022. It is also his first appearance in the last four of a Slam since the 2023 Australian Open, a reminder that his power game still has a place on the sport’s biggest stages when the draw opens and his body cooperates.

Power against resilience

So the semi-final is set: Zverev, the ironman of this year’s majors, against Khachanov, the heavy-hitting disruptor back in the deep end of a Slam.

One has logged more court time than anyone in this US Open era of record-keeping. The other arrives fresher, spared a full-distance battle in the quarters by an opponent’s injuries.

Zverev’s serve, shaky early against van de Zandschulp, will face a barrage from Khachanov’s return and baseline weight. Khachanov’s own delivery, one of the biggest in the game when it lands, will test the German’s movement after nearly 17 hours of hard-court grind.

For Zverev, this is a chance to turn a season of relentless semi-finals into something more. For Khachanov, it is an opening to crash a final that few predicted he would reach.

New York has its contrast: endurance versus explosiveness, scars versus opportunity. Only one of them will walk back onto Arthur Ashe Stadium with a shot at the title.