It is a day of remembrance for people around the world and especially those in the United States and New York City.
The fans will be arriving at Flushing Meadows with many memories of a painful day twenty-five years ago, but New Yorkers felt sporting events resuming back then was a reminder that the City would not be beaten by terrorists.
Friday will be an emotional day from morning until evening and it is perhaps fitting that the all-American Semi Final is going to be played in the Evening Session.
The Men's Final will be set by that second Semi Final featuring Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe and it is going to be a real test for both players to keep themselves in check, which is going to be a key to earning a spot in a first Grand Slam Final for one of them.
Earlier in the day, Alexander Zverev will face Karen Khachanov in the other Semi Final and the top Seed is the favourite to reach his second US Open Final.
Dealing with the intensity of the day will not be easy, but the four players going out on court will also be very keen to give the watching public plenty of entertainment in these two Semi Finals.
Ben Shelton - 1.5 sets v Frances Tiafoe: It is going to be an emotional day in New York City as the entire world will remember the events of 9/11 twenty-five years after the terrorist attacks in the United States.
This City was impacted more than any other and New Yorkers will be remembering those who were lost.
The US Open has two Men's Semi Final matches scheduled to take place on Friday and it is fitting that two popular American players are facing one another in the bid to reach a maiden Grand Slam Final. Fans will come out to support Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe and the two players will be very glad that they have had an extra day of recovery between the Quarter Final and the Semi Final Rounds.
Both Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe came through Quarter Final matches in five sets- the former won a final set tie-breaker against defending Champion Carlos Alcaraz, while Frances Tiafoe came from two sets behind to beat Alex Michelsen.
Frances Tiafoe reached the Cincinnati Masters Final prior to the US Open, and he has always enjoyed playing at this tournament where his most consistent Grand Slam results have been achieved. The belief is clearly in a healthy place as Tiafoe has come through a couple of matches in five sets, while that belief is only enhanced with the amount of big points the World Number 12 has continued to win.
He may also feel he is playing with 'house money' after being a game away from a straights set loss in the Quarter Final before Alex Michelsen blinked and failed to stem the tide of momentum moving against him.
Recovering from that kind of position against Ben Shelton would be a lot more difficult for Frances Tiafoe, although Shelton has to show he can back up what feels like the biggest Grand Slam win of his career. Being able to bounce back from dropping the fourth set in the manner he did and still beating Carlos Alcaraz is as impressive a result as Ben Shelton could have produced and he is serving at a really high level.
Ben Shelton will be the first to admit that his game is based around being dominant on that shot, but he looks to have improved on the return of serve and that will be the key to winning multiple Grand Slams.
He has forced plenty of breaks of serve throughout this run at the US Open and Ben Shelton is the Montreal Champion and experienced enough to have competed in a couple of Grand Slam Semi Finals before. That experience can be a real help for someone looking to back up a big win, although Frances Tiafoe can call upon plenty of that having played in two previous Semi Final matches in New York City.
This is the third time Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe are facing each other at the US Open- the first in 2023 was won by Shelton in a big upset, but Frances Tiafoe was the lower Ranked player when beating Ben Shelton in five sets in 2024.
The most recent match saw Ben Shelton beat Frances Tiafoe in straight sets in Washington in 2025, and it does feel like the World Number 9 has improved on this surface this season.
Both will know the key here is to serve well, but Ben Shelton looks to have the edge in that department and he looks the more likely winner. Dismissing Frances Tiafoe's chances would be a mistake and he has had time to recover from the Quarter Final exploits, but Ben Shelton feels like the stronger player right now and he can earn revenge for the Third Round defeat to his compatriot here two years ago.
Alexander Zverev - 5.5 games v Karen Khachanov: Despite winning the French Open earlier this year and also having played in a number of other Grand Slam Finals, you can sense there is some tension in the Alexander Zverev game right now. A big opportunity has opened up to quickly pick up another Grand Slam title with the big names all falling around him, but that can also build up pressure knowing such a chance has come up.
He goes into this Semi Final after a relatively comfortable Quarter Final win and Alexander Zverev has not had to exert too much physicality in the last three Rounds after opening up with consecutive five set wins. That should mean there is more than enough left in the tank to win the US Open, but physical issues have long been less of a concern than the mental challenges he faces.
Next up for Alexander Zverev is a match against an opponent who has reached the Quarter Final at all four Grand Slams, but who has never really found the consistency to become a feature of the top ten of the World Rankings.
These days Karen Khachanov is playing as the World Number 50, although the run in New York City is going to push him back into the Seeding spots for future Grand Slam events.
In 2022, Karen Khachanov reached the Semi Final here in New York City, but that is an outlier as to how his tournament has tended to progress at the US Open. In nine other main draw appearances, Karen Khachanov had not been beyond the Third Round, although he is in the final four again in 2026 and can use the experience of four years ago in his bid to go one better.
He lost in four sets to Casper Ruud in 2022 and this is a much tougher test for Karen Khachanov, especially as he had shown no real form ahead of this final Grand Slam of the season. All three hard court matches in the lead up to the US Open had ended in defeat, but Karen Khachanov has upset two top 20 Ranked opponents in his run to the last four.
Learner Tien will really be kicking himself for letting Khachanov off the hook in the Fourth Round, but the latter is unlikely to be given such a helping hand in this match. It also should be noted that the performance level had been declining before facing an injured Alexander Blockx in the Quarter Final and Karen Khachanov is going to have to find a step up in level to earn the upset.
He should take confidence from the fact he beat Alexander Zverev at the Canadian Masters last year, although Karen Khachanov has lost four of the five hard court matches against this opponent around that victory.
Alexander Zverev had not exactly piled up the wins in preparation for the US Open, but he will be happy enough with this match up and his level has been a lot more consistent than Karen Khachanov's in this tournament.
Out of the two players, Alexander Zverev may be the one who can rely on his serve a little more than Karen Khachanov, while the World Number 2 has been the superior return player. These are factors that should end up giving Alexander Zverev the decisive edge needed in this Semi Final and the French Open Champion can reach a second US Open Final with a relatively convincing victory when all is said and done.
MY PICKS: Ben Shelton - 1.5 Sets @ 1.72 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Alexander Zverev - 5.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet365 (2 Units)
US Open Update: 31-21, + 7.72 Units (104 Units Staked, + 7.42% Yield)
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