Home favorite Ben Shelton registered a 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7) victory against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinal of the US Open in an epic battle, that lasted for four hours and 28 minutes, late on Wednesday night.
After losing the opening set in the tiebreaker, Shelton bounced back strongly to win the next two sets. However, Alcaraz riposted by winning the fourth set to take the match deep into the fifth.
In the final set, both players refused to give each other an inch. The match was finally decided in a 10-point tiebreaker, which Shelton won to stun the Spaniard.
“For us, it was just enjoyable to be a part of that match,” Shelton told media after his 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7) victory. “Obviously the level of tennis, how long the match was going, the fight that it was, how even of a match it was back and forth throughout, I think that that’s something that we can appreciate.
“Win or lose, we would have a smile on our face.”
Shelton entered the quarterfinal clash with a 0-3 Lexus ATP head-to-head record against Alcaraz, while he was 0-17 against Top-3 opponents overall. However, he was able to turn a corner against the Spaniard.
“[An] epic match, so physical,” Shelton reflected after securing victory at 3:33 a.m., the latest finish in US Open history. “Carlos is one of the greatest champions in our sport already at 23 years old. It’s always fun being on the court against him. It’s ridiculous some of the stuff he comes up with sometimes. But the most enjoyable match that I’ve had in my career, for sure.”
The American lost the opening set but said he gained some confidence as he broke Alcaraz’s serve before the tiebreaker.
“Yeah, I was pissed, but I broke the last game before the tie-breaker, so that kind of helped my confidence going into the second set,” Shelton said when asked about losing the opening set. “I knew that my serve was only going to get better, and if I had already dialled in the return to the point that I could break him, I thought my chances were good to get that second set.
“Once I got rolling in the second set, broke him three times in that set, it was a lot easier to just play and swing more freely.”
Shelton will face compatriot Frances Tiafoe in the semifinal of the New York Major.
