Dominant Zverev Sets Up US Open Semifinal With Khachanov

Top-seeded Alexander Zverev comfortably swept his way into the US Open semifinals, dispatching Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 in dominant fashion to return to the last four in New York for the first time in five years.

Seeded No. 1 at a Grand Slam for the first time in his career, Zverev has worn the mantle well, successfully navigating his way to a fourth consecutive last-four appearance at a major this season.

The German's run at Flushing Meadows this year has been a curious one, surviving two draining five-setters at the start of the tournament before breezing his way through the following three rounds without the drop of a set. All five of his matches have also been scheduled last on Arthur Ashe Stadium, meaning late finishes have become a hallmark of his campaign - his opening three contests all finishing in the early hours of the morning.

Because of this, Zverev has been on something of an adjusted schedule across the fortnight, as he alluded to in his admission that he'd stayed up until 03:30 in the morning to watch the exhilarating quarter-final between Ben Shelton and Carlos Alcaraz the night before he was due on court.

"I watched Shelton-Alcaraz until 3.30am last night," Zverev revealed, following his own quarter-final win over Van de Zandschulp. "I did not go to bed, I was up late, I was watching TV because I was sleeping in until 1pm anyway."

Clinical Zverev Too Strong For Van de Zandschulp

His nocturnal hours do not appear to have negatively affected Zverev in any way, as evident in his performance last night, the German breaking twice without reply to ease into a deserved one-set lead.

The second stanza proved a closer contest, with Van de Zandschulp earning himself a set point when Zverev served at 5-4 down. Three games later, however, his opponent had held twice and broken again to surge into a commanding two-set advantage. From there, it was all one-way traffic as the top seed broke a further three times en route to an emphatic straight-sets victory.

Having finally unburdened himself of the long wait for a maiden Grand Slam title in Paris earlier this summer, the reigning French Open champion has an air of lightness about him that only serves to increase his chances of rapidly doubling that single major tally.

Zverev's win yesterday means he has reached at least the last four of all the season's Grand Slams in a single year for the first time, underlining his improved consistency across the course of the past nine months.

"I think the more often that you get to that stage, the more normal it becomes, which is something that you should never take for granted," he said, when asked about this statistic. "I think it's a very special feeling when it becomes normality."

Khachanov Awaits In The Last Four

His opponent in the last four will be the supremely experienced Karen Khachanov, with the Russian easing past rising young talent Alexander Blockx in similarly comfortable fashion, whose own hopes of extending his career-best run at a major were ruined by physical issues.

A pair of breaks were more than enough for the Russian to take the opener, before another late strike in the eleventh game of the second effectively put the match out of Blockx's reach.

No fewer than three separate injuries were clearly hampering the 21-year-old, who was suffering from rib, ankle and thigh issues throughout the contest before finally withdrawing when a break down in the third.

It was a disappointing end to a promising run for the Belgian, but he has undoubtedly added some well-deserved pedigree to the early buzz surrounding his name this season with his fine finish in New York this year.

Khachanov, meanwhile, is into his first Grand Slam semifinal since the 2023 Australian Open, and only his third at this level overall, having also made the last four here at Flushing Meadows back in 2022.

Unseeded at a major for the first time in eight years, the Russian's US Open run has come as somewhat of a surprise. He was particularly impressive across two excellent victories over last year's semifinalist Felix Auger-Aliassime and surging American youngster Learner Tien, before backing that up by matching his previous best Grand Slam finish.

Yet he will face his sternest test thus far when he meets World No. 2 Zverev in Friday's semifinal. "He's been in the top five for so many years. This year he did also step forward. He won his first Grand Slam, played the final in Wimbledon, as well. He's coming up really in hot form," Khachanov said of his opponent.

Indeed, the projected favourite to lift a maiden US Open title - especially now that Alcaraz has departed a draw already absent of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic - Zverev will surely sense that the opportunity is ripe for him to add a second Grand Slam crown to his name this year, just months after ending the wait for his long-coveted first.

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