The 9th day of the US Open has the first quarterfinal matches ready for us. Novak Djokovic kicks out local hero Taylor Fritz. Meanwhile, Coco Gauff doesn’t give Iga Swiatek’s conqueror, Jelena Ostapenko, a chance.
US Open, Day 9: Djokovic reaches 47th Grand Slam semifinal
Novak Djokovic has reached the semi-finals of the US Open in a sweaty and exhausting match. In extreme external conditions, the Grand Slam record champion defeated the American Taylor Fritz 6:1, 6:4, 6:4. The 36-year-old Serb is in the round of four for the ninth time in Flushing Meadows and has won the tournament three times, most recently in 2018.
With his 47th semi-final appearance in a major, Djokovic is now the sole record holder, previously he shared the record with Roger Federer.
The 2:34 hour match was a sweaty affair. At temperatures of 33 degrees Celsius and humidity of 50 percent, Djokovic stuck his shirt to his body after just a few games in the first set. “It’s like tennis in the sauna,” commented Boris Becker sportdeutschland.tv“Djokovic is physically at the limit,” he observed in the second sentence.
The conditions didn’t contribute to the level of the match either: both players acted very erroneously. Djokovic, however, managed to divide his forces well, lurking for his break chances and using them with great efficiency. On the other hand, Fritz, who had made it into the quarter-finals for the second time in one of the four Grand Slams without losing a set (after Wimbledon 2022), left too many chances, especially in the third set, to be able to turn the match around.
US Open, Day 9: Gauff in the semifinals
Local hero Coco Gauff was the first player to reach the semifinals at the US Open with a show of force. The 19-year-old American defeated Jelena Ostapenko from Latvia 6-0, 6-2, making the world number six in the last four of one of the four Grand Slams for the second time since the 2022 French Open.
After only 67 minutes, Gauff used her third match point in the long one-sided encounter. However, Ostapenko, who had defeated the defending champion Iga Swiatek from Poland in three sets in the round of 16, was completely lost, especially in the first set. The number 21 in the world rankings made 15 so-called unforced mistakes, in the end it was 36 points that she more or less gave Gauff.
After the disastrous first set, which lasted only 20 minutes, Ostapenko recovered a bit. In phases in which she could have turned the match around again, she didn’t stand a chance against Gauff, who was very concentrated and consistent. The American will meet Soreana Cirstea (Romania) or Karolina Muchova (Czech Republic) on the way to her second Grand Slam final after the French Open last year, where she failed in the fight for the title at Swiatek.
US Open, day 9: Zverev against Alcaraz again at a late hour
After his five-set thriller against Jannik Sinner from South Tyrol, Alexander Zverev has to put in a late shift again. His quarter-final duel against number one seeded defending champion Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) will again take place as the second match in the night session at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
From 7 p.m. local time on Wednesday (Thursday, 1 a.m. CEST/sportdeutschland.tv), Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova from the Czech Republic will play her quarterfinals against Madison Keys from the USA.