World No 1 Carlos Alcaraz makes light work of Alexander Zverev to book his spot in the US Open semi-final and set up a showdown with No 3 seed Daniil Medvedev on Friday
- Carlos Alcaraz looks in formidable form as he enters the last four at US Open
- He thrashed a tired Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 on Arthur Ashe on Wednesday
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Carlos Alcaraz took less than two and a half hours to dispatch of a drained Alexander Zverev in straight sets and book his place in the semi-finals of the US Open in New York.
The world No 1 was once again in sparkling form to make light work of his German opponent, and the players even got off court before midnight in the Big Apple – a rare feat over the past fortnight.
Alcaraz saw out the match 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 and will play No 3 seed Daniil Medvedev for a spot in Sunday’s final – a clash between the last two Flushing Meadows champions.
There were questions about how prepared Zverev would be to face the energetic Alcaraz after playing the longest match of the tournament – a near five-hour, five-set marathon in punishing conditions on Monday against Jannik Sinner.
A U.S. Open finalist in 2020, Zverev showed up ready to fight but the tank emptied quickly, the 12th seed unable to keep pace as Alcaraz stepped on the gas to pull away for a straightforward win.
Carlos Alcaraz roars his approval after beating Alexander Zverev in straight sets in New York
The Spanish world No 1 is in formidable form as he heads towards the semi-finals on Friday
The weather has been sweltering in New York and Zverev was no match for Alcaraz’s talent
Alcaraz had only four break point chances throughout the entire contest but made each one of them count.
‘He (Zverev) was struggling a lot, he was working really hard to come back at his best and finally we all see him showing his best tennis,’ said Alcaraz.
‘We enjoy his game so we are really happy to have him back.’
On another hot, steamy day, with temperatures in the mid-90s Fahrenheit (32 Celsius), Medvedev reached the last four by beating eighth seed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 but was unhappy about playing in such difficult conditions.
‘You cannot imagine, one player is going to die and then they’re going to see,’ he said to the camera while wiping off sweat in the third set.
By the time Alcaraz and Zverev appeared on Arthur Ashe for the late match much of the sting had been taken out of the brutal conditions.
Zverev, with his booming serve finding the mark, was able to keep pace with Alcaraz through the early part of the first set.
Zverev came into the quarter-final off the back of the tournament’s longest match
Alcaraz celebrates during his victory over Zverev in the US Open quarters in New York
Alcaraz will now face off with Daniil Medvedev on Friday for a place in the tournament’s final
Alcaraz capitalised on his one break chance of the opener to go up 5-3 and then quickly held serve to take control.
As Zverev’s resistance dropped Alcaraz broke again early in second, delighting the crowd with some highlight reel shot-making and twirling his racquet like a baton.
Another break to get in front 5-2 and a hold of serve left Alcaraz with a big smile and Zverev calling for a medical time out.
He returned for the third set with a heavily strapped groin and fought on bravely until Alcaraz grabbed another late break before serving out for the win.
