New York (AFP) – Taylor Fritz and Emma Navarro reached their first Grand Slam semi-finals at the US Open on Tuesday, boosting home hopes of a double American title party this weekend. The 12th-seeded Fritz won a big-hitting battle against fourth-seeded 2020 runner-up Alexander Zverev of Germany 7-6 (7/2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3). He will face either American compatriot Frances Tiafoe or Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria for a place in Sunday’s final.
Navarro, playing in front of her home New York crowd, also broke through to a maiden Slam semi-final by defeating Paula Badosa of Spain 6-2, 7-5 after trailing 5-1 in the second set. The 13th seed will tackle second-ranked Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, who demolished China’s Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen 6-1, 6-2 for a spot in Saturday’s championship match.
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Zverev’s defeat means world number one Jannik Sinner is the only top-four player left in the men’s draw following the shock early exits of Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz. “I have had a few looks at Grand Slam quarter-finals over the years so I felt it was my turn to take a step further,” said the 26-year-old Fritz who cracked 12 aces amongst his 45 winners. “It’s cool I’m in the semis. But I very much have the mindset of the job’s not done.”
On Tuesday, Fritz saw three set points come and go in the opener before sweeping through the tie-break. Zverev, bidding to reach a ninth semi-final at the majors, levelled the tie, but Fritz dug deep, converting a fifth set point in the third. Zverev saved two break points in the sixth game of the fourth, but once Fritz won a lung-busting 24-shot rally in the tie-breaker, he had the victory momentum. “Terrible. Just absolutely terrible by me,” said Zverev. “I did nothing to deserve the win, simple as that.”
Navarro insisted she always believed she could claw her way back from her second set deficit against the New York-born Badosa. “When I got to 5-2, I had an inkling that I’d win in two sets,” said Navarro, who had lost in the first round on her only other two appearances at the tournament. “I was a complete disaster today,” admitted Badosa after committing 35 unforced errors.
Zheng was bidding to become the third Chinese woman to reach the US Open semi-finals after Li Na in 2013 and Peng Shuai in 2014. However, she was completely outplayed by Sabalenka in a 73-minute loss in which she hit just nine winners. Zheng said the record late finish to her last-16 clash, which finished at 2:15 a.m. on Monday, had impacted her performance. She said she only went to bed at 5:00 a.m. “I couldn’t sleep after I finished the match at 2:30 in the morning. I’m not able to practice yesterday because I was feeling terrible. I couldn’t wake up,” said Zheng.
The 26-year-old Sabalenka, runner-up to Coco Gauff in New York last year, will be playing in her fourth successive US Open semi-final and ninth at the Slams. Sabalenka also defeated Zheng at the same stage of the US Open in 2023 before going on to beat the 21-year-old again in the Australian Open final in January. “It was important that I got the early break; that was an advantage because it’s tough to face her,” said Sabalenka.
Tiafoe and Fritz were only five when Andy Roddick won the 2003 US Open final, a victory achieved on the cusp of the sport’s domination by the ‘Big Three’ of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Djokovic. That was the last time an American man lifted a Grand Slam singles trophy. However, with Federer long retired, Nadal injured, and Djokovic, as well as modern-day superstar Carlos Alcaraz, knocked out early this year, the final Grand Slam of the season is wide open.
World number 20 Tiafoe is in the quarter-finals for the third successive year, having made the semi-finals in 2022, where he lost in five sets to eventual champion Alcaraz. On Tuesday, under the Arthur Ashe Stadium lights, the 26-year-old takes on Dimitrov, who at 33 is the oldest man left in the draw. The Bulgarian is seeking a second semi-final spot in New York after making the last four in 2019.
© 2024 AFP
