New York: Top seed Alexander Zverev stormed into the US Open semifinals for the third time in his career after defeating Botic van de Zandschulp 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 in the quarterfinals.
The German needed just over two hours to dispatch the Dutchman and became the only player in 2026 to reach the semifinals at all four Grand Slam tournaments. Zverev had reached the Australian Open semifinals, won his maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros and finished runner-up at Wimbledon earlier this season.
Van de Zandschulp offered his strongest resistance in the second set. He earned his first break point at 3-2, but Zverev held firm after a gruelling 33-shot rally. The Dutchman later had a set point while serving at 5-4, but failed to convert as Zverev broke serve and closed out the set 7-5.
The third set was largely one-way traffic, with Zverev racing to a 6-1 finish to complete the straight-sets victory. The 29-year-old has now reached his 13th Grand Slam semifinal and is seeking a second major title of the season.
Zverev will face Karen Khachanov in the last four. The German leads their head-to-head record 6-3 and defeated the Russian in the gold-medal match at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Khachanov reached the semifinals after Alexander Blockx retired while trailing 2-6, 5-7, 2-3.
Zverev has recorded 51 ATP Tour match wins this season, the most on tour, while his 23 Grand Slam victories in 2026 have surpassed Boris Becker’s previous German record of 22 in a single season. He is also only the ninth different men’s player in the Open Era to reach the semifinals at all four Grand Slam tournaments in one year.
Zverev, a 25-time tour-level champion, will be looking to go one step further in New York after finishing runner-up at the US Open in 2020. The other men’s semifinal will be an all-American clash between Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton. Both semifinals are scheduled for Saturday at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
