Ben Shelton Stuns Defending Champion Carlos Alcaraz In Latest-Ever US Open Finish In New York

NEW YORK — Ben Shelton outlasted defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set marathon that stretched into the early morning hours Tuesday, defeating the second-seeded Spaniard in the latest-ever finish in U.S. Open history to reach the tournament's semifinals.

The eighth-seeded American won 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) in a match that lasted 4 hours and 28 minutes, finally ending at 3:33 a.m. Eastern time, shattering the tournament's previous late-night record, a 2:50 a.m. finish set during a 2022 Alcaraz-Frances Tiafoe semifinal.

Alcaraz, who missed much of the season with a wrist injury and was bidding for his eighth career Grand Slam title and third U.S. Open championship, claimed the opening set via a tense tiebreak. Shelton responded emphatically, taking the second and third sets 6-1 and 6-3 to push himself to the brink of a stunning upset. Alcaraz refused to fold, ruthlessly claiming the fourth set 6-1 to force a decisive fifth set.

The match's late start time played a significant role in the record-setting finish. The quarterfinal began after 11 p.m. Eastern time, following a lengthy day of marathon matches at Flushing Meadows, including Frances Tiafoe's own five-set win over fellow American Alex Michelsen earlier in the evening.

In the fifth set, Shelton rallied with a gutsy hold to lead 4-3, then created two break points in the eighth game to threaten Alcaraz's serve. The first opportunity slipped away after a Shelton backhand drifted long, and Alcaraz answered with a forehand winner at the net to reach deuce. Shelton, serving powerfully throughout the match at speeds routinely exceeding 130 mph, held to love to delight the home crowd and force Alcaraz to serve to stay in the match. Alcaraz did so, and Shelton held again at 5-6 to push the set into a deciding tiebreak.

Alcaraz grabbed the early initiative in the tiebreak, securing a mini-break to lead 5-3, but Shelton refused to fade, leveling the score before surging ahead 7-6 with an unreturned 146 mph serve. Shelton ultimately sealed the historic victory with an ace, closing out the tiebreak 10-7 in front of a sleep-deprived but electric Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd.

Shelton's win ended Alcaraz's 18-match winning streak across Grand Slam tournaments and advances the American to face fellow American Frances Tiafoe in Thursday's semifinals, setting up an all-American matchup on one side of the men's draw.

Shelton's path through the tournament had been anything but smooth heading into the Alcaraz showdown. The American needed four sets to get past each of his first three opponents, Tallon Griekspoor, Hubert Hurkacz and Denis Shapovalov, before raising his level significantly in the fourth round, defeating former world No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4, in just one hour and 51 minutes.

Reflecting on that win over Tsitsipas ahead of the Alcaraz quarterfinal, Shelton expressed satisfaction with his form heading into the tournament's biggest stage so far.

"I thought I played well. Good, clean match," Shelton said. "Happy to be back in the quarters here. Yeah, I'm happy with how I went about my business tonight."

That victory over Tsitsipas marked Shelton's third consecutive win over a player who has cracked the top 10 of the PIF ATP Rankings, a stretch of form that ultimately set up the historic showdown with Alcaraz.

Tiafoe, who will face Shelton in Thursday's semifinal, similarly needed to dig deep in his own quarterfinal, erasing a two-set deficit to defeat fellow American Alex Michelsen 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6) in a match that also stretched past 2:50 a.m. Tiafoe led throughout the deciding fifth-set tiebreak, pushing ahead 7-4 before Michelsen closed the gap to within a single point. Tiafoe ultimately closed out the win with a 135 mph ace, benefiting from a serve-return error before passing Michelsen up the baseline to secure victory. The two players shared an emotional embrace at the net following the match, with Michelsen visibly emotional in Tiafoe's arms.

Speaking after his own grueling win, Tiafoe praised Michelsen's performance despite the loss.

"He played a super tough game, obviously he gave me some gifts and I slowly started to getting my rhythm," Tiafoe said. "He's a helluva player. He easily could've won today."

Tiafoe acknowledged he would still find time to watch the highly anticipated Shelton-Alcaraz showdown despite his own exhausting match.

"I played for four hours, 40 minutes, but for sure I'll watch that one," Tiafoe said.

With both American semifinalists having survived punishing five-set battles just to reach Thursday's matchup, the semifinal represents a significant milestone for U.S. men's tennis, guaranteeing at least one American finalist at Flushing Meadows and continuing the sport's ongoing efforts to end the country's prolonged wait for a men's Grand Slam singles champion. Shelton's win over Alcaraz specifically marks the first career victory for the American over the Spaniard, following previous losses in their meetings at the 2025 French Open and other tour events, adding further significance to a result that also ended Alcaraz's bid to defend his U.S. Open title and continue his pursuit of an eighth career major championship.

With Thursday's semifinal now set, tennis fans and analysts will be watching closely to see whether either Shelton or Tiafoe can carry the physical and emotional momentum from Tuesday's dueling late-night marathons into a place in Saturday's men's final, a matchup that would mark the first all-American men's Grand Slam final in more than two decades regardless of which of the two advances.