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US Open 2026: Frances Tiafoe’s dream runs comes to crashing end as Ben Shelton sets up finale meeting with Alexander Zverev
Ben Shelton came from a set down to beat fellow American Frances Tiafoe, who was on a dream run, by 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 in the US Open 2026 semi-final and book his place in his first-ever Grand Slam final.
The all-American clash at Arthur Ashe Stadium lasted for more than three hours with Tiafoe making the better start before Shelton gradually took control of the match. Shelton finished with 18 aces and used his serve to put Tiafoe under pressure in the final three sets.
Tiafoe looked comfortable in the opening set. He took his chances when they came and managed to break Shelton to move ahead. Shelton, however, responded immediately in the second set. He found more consistency from the baseline and began winning the shorter points behind his powerful first serve. tr-sport.click
After levelling the match at one set apiece, Shelton continued to apply pressure. He broke Tiafoe in the third set and did enough on his own serve to move within one set of the final.
The moment Ben Shelton beat Frances Tiafoe to reach his first Slam final at the U.S. Open
Frances immediately walked over the net to congratulate his friend 🥹
Ben is the youngest American man to reach a Grand Slam final since Andy Roddick in 2005
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 12, 2026
The fourth set was the closest of the match. Both players held their serves for long periods, but Shelton kept forcing Tiafoe into difficult positions with his pace and aggressive returning. At 5-5, Shelton finally got the breakthrough. He then served out the match to complete the comeback.
The victory also continued Shelton’s impressive run through the tournament. The eighth seed opened his campaign by beating Tallon Griekspoor in four sets. He then got past Hubert Hurkacz in four sets before overcoming Denis Shapovalov in another four-set contest. Shelton defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 in the fourth round.
His biggest win came in the quarter-finals, where he defeated defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set thriller. Shelton won 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7), with the match finishing at 3:33 a.m.
Shelton’s win over Tiafoe now sets up a final against Alexander Zverev. The German defeated Karen Khachanov in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6(7), 7-6(6), in the other semi-final.
The final will be Shelton’s first Grand Slam title match. Zverev, meanwhile, will be playing in his third straight Grand Slam final. Shelton has lost all five of his previous meetings with Zverev, but this will be their first meeting at a Grand Slam.
After coming victorious in the all American semi-final, Ben Shelton will be hoping to emulate Andy Riddock and become the first from the USA to win an US Open title since 2003. Riddock was the last one to clinch the Grand Slam title 23 years ago. The finale will take place tomorrow on Sunday, September 13 at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
US Open 2026: Germany’s Alexander Zverev comfortably beats Karen Khachanov to reach third straight Grand Slam final
Alexander Zverev is through to the US Open 2026 final after beating Karen Khachanov in straight sets on Friday. The German, who is the top seed in New York, won 6-3, 7-6(7), 7-6(6) to book his place in another Grand Slam final.
The result also gives Zverev his third consecutive Grand Slam final appearance. He won the French Open earlier this year and then reached the Wimbledon final before making it to the championship match at Flushing Meadows. This is also his sixth Grand Slam final overall.
Zverev had to work hard to get to this stage. His campaign began with a five-set win over Lorenzo Sonego before he was pushed to five sets again by Quentin Halys in the second round. From there, however, he settled down and became much more convincing.
The German beat Alejandro Tabilo in straight sets before getting past Luciano Darderi 6-2, 6-2, 7-6(7-3) in the fourth round. He then defeated Botic van de Zandschulp 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 in the quarter-finals to reach the last four.
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Khachanov was his toughest opponent in New York so far, but Zverev handled the big moments well. The first set was decided by a single break, with Zverev taking his chance at 4-3 before serving out the set 6-3.
The second set went all the way to a tie-break. Zverev made the most of his serve and eventually took it 7-6(7). Khachanov refused to go away in the third set and even moved 5-2 ahead in the tie-break. He then had two set points at 6-4, but Zverev produced his best tennis when it mattered most.
The top seed will compete for the US Open title!
Alexander Zverev defeats Khachanov in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6, 7-6. pic.twitter.com/3HxgWDkFyv
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 11, 2026
The German won five points in a row to take the tie-break 8-6 and close out the match in three sets.
It was another sign of the composure Zverev has shown during the second half of the tournament. After spending more than 16 hours on court across his first five matches, he finished the semi-final without dropping a set.
Zverev will now face either Ben Shelton or Frances Tiafoe in Sunday’s final. He will be looking for his second Grand Slam title of the year and his first US Open crown. He had previously reached the final in New York in 2020, where he lost to Dominic Thiem.
‘Can’t open Pandora’s box’: Delhi HC denies Vinesh entry to World Championships trials
The Delhi High Court has refused to allow Olympian Vinesh Phogat to participate in the selection trials for the Senior World Wrestling Championships by granting her a special exemption from the Wrestling Federation of India’s eligibility rules, holding that carving out an exception for one athlete could be unfair to others and open a “Pandora’s box”.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma declined Phogat’s plea for interim relief, saying the court could not effectively bypass the WFI’s September 7 selection policy in her individual case without first deciding whether the policy itself was legally valid.
The trials begin on September 14, while the World Championships are scheduled to be held in Astana, Kazakhstan, from October 24 to November 1.
At the heart of Phogat’s challenge is her absence from competitions prescribed by the WFI as qualifying events, an absence she says resulted from pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum recovery.
The court acknowledged that her maternity-related circumstances would have to be examined while deciding the larger challenge to the selection framework. But that, it held, was not sufficient to give her a direct route into the trials at the interim stage.
Until the validity and applicability of the policy were adjudicated, the eligibility conditions could not simply be disregarded for one wrestler, the Bench said.
The court reasoned that other athletes across the country could be facing comparable circumstances but were not before it seeking exemptions.
Granting Phogat alone a special dispensation could therefore result in unequal treatment and prompt other athletes to seek similar departures from the selection criteria.
Such an order, Justice Sharma said, risked opening a “Pandora’s box”.
The court consequently refused interim relief without expressing any final view either on the validity of the September 7 circular or the merits of the disciplinary proceedings pending against Phogat.
The ruling came despite the Bench having raised larger concerns during arguments over how sporting bodies deal with women athletes returning after maternity breaks.
During the hearing, Justice Sharma had orally called upon the WFI to consider guidelines enabling women to return to competitive sport after pregnancy and childbirth, observing that a balance had to be struck between the interests of an athlete and those of the country.
In its order, however, the court emphasised another side of that balance, the country’s interest in ensuring that athletes representing India are selected through a fair, uniform and performance-based process.
The WFI’s September 7 circular makes eligibility dependent upon participation in specified competitions held during 2025 and 2026.
Phogat argued that she could not compete in some of those events because she was away from the sport during pregnancy, childbirth and subsequent recovery. She also contended that she had been prevented from participating in the Senior Open Ranking Tournament at Gonda after the WFI issued a show-cause notice declaring her ineligible.
The High Court examined Phogat’s recent competitive history as well.
A Division Bench had earlier permitted her to participate in the Asian Games selection trials in May. Phogat competed in the 53kg category and reached the semifinals but was ultimately not selected for the Asian Games.
A subsequent show-cause notice concerning allegations of misconduct during those trials remains pending.
Justice Sharma noted that the latest eligibility criteria were applicable uniformly to wrestlers and had
not been framed specifically to exclude Phogat.
'As exciting as occasion will be of playing India...': Japan's skipper Kendel
Japan is set to lock horns with Team India in a historic T20I clash on September 22. The match is scheduled to be played at the Sano International Cricket Ground.
Ahead of the clash against the "Men in Blue", Japan's skipper Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming stated that the Japanese team will not just celebrate the occasion of playing against Team India, but will also display their skills as a men's team.
"It's very exciting. And I think a massive development for cricket in Japan to have countries like Afghanistan and Nepal coming here is something that we probably would have thought was very difficult to manage even a couple of years ago," he said.
"As exciting as the occasion will be of playing India, we're not there to just celebrate the occasion. We're there to show what we can do as a men's team. Obviously, a team like India have all bases covered, whether it's fast bowling, batting or spin. So it's just going to be great to be able to watch world-class players and the best team in the world in that format go about it," added Kadowaki-Fleming.
The skipper also sees Team India's clash as a first step in competing against full member teams.
"Hopefully this is the first step in a long history of playing against and competing against full member countries," he said.
The clash against the "Men in Blue" will be the first event under "Sport 75", an initiative arising from an agreement reached during a summit between Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The initiative aims to strengthen people-to-people exchanges and cooperation between the two countries through sport.
Japan will also face Hong Kong in two T20Is on September 19 and 20 before beginning their Asian Games campaign against Afghanistan on September 24 and Nepal on September 26. They will need to finish in the top two to advance to the quarter-finals.
IND vs JPN T20I: Full squads
India: Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
Japan: Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming (C), Charlie Hara-Hinze, Benjamin Ito-Davis, Alester Kadowaki-Fleming, Kohei Kubota, Jake Kusuda-Nairn, Wataru Miyauchi (wk), Reo Sakurano-Thomas, Alex Shirai-Patmore (wk), Shoma Sugaya-Slater, Declan Suzuki-McComb, Tsuyoshi Takada, Ibrahim Takahashi, Makoto Taniyama, Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake.
(With PTI Inputs)
‘Drop Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’, says star India cricketer ahead of 1st T20 vs Afghanistan, Sanju Samson should…
Former India batter Ajinkya Rahane believes Sanju Samson should get another opportunity at the top of the order in the upcoming T20I series against Afghanistan. Rahane feels young Vaibhav Sooryavanshi can wait for his chance, while Samson should return to the opening combination alongside Abhishek Sharma.
India are set to play three T20Is against Afghanistan on September 13, 15 and 17 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. The team has made several changes to its top order since winning the 2026 T20 World Cup.
During the World Cup, Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan formed India’s top three and produced strong performances for the team.
Rahane wants World Cup top three back
Samson was dropped after a few low scores during the England series, while 15-year-old Sooryavanshi was handed his T20I debut. However, the youngster could not make a major impact in his three matches.
Samson later returned for the final T20I against England but was not included in India’s squad for the Zimbabwe tour. The BCCI had said that the wicketkeeper-batter was rested.
Rahane believes India should go back to the combination that worked during their World Cup campaign.
“I feel the top 3 who played in the World Cup should be the top 3,” Rahane said.
‘Sanju Samson to get another chance’: Rahane
Rahane also backed Samson despite his recent struggles. He feels the experienced batter deserves a longer run instead of losing his place after just a few failures.
“Sanju Samson did very well. After that, he was dropped — maybe two or three bad innings — but after that, he was dropped. But I want Sanju Samson to get another chance. Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan, who did well for us, should get chances. Sooryavanshi will get his chance; his time will come. But for now, I feel the top 3 should be Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, and Ishan Kishan — the ones who were our contributors in the World Cup,” he added.
Sooryavanshi and Kishan return from red-ball cricket
Ishan Kishan and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi were both part of the recent Duleep Trophy final. Their involvement in red-ball cricket means they will have limited time to switch back to the T20 format before India’s opening game against Afghanistan.
India have retained the Asian Games squad for the Afghanistan series, meaning both Samson and Sooryavanshi remain available for selection.
India face selection call at the top
Rahane’s comments have added another angle to the debate over India’s opening combination. While Sooryavanshi is one of the most exciting young batters in the team, Rahane believes there is no need to rush him into a regular role.
The former India captain feels the World Cup-winning top three should get priority for now. According to Rahane, Sooryavanshi has plenty of time to build his career and will get several opportunities in the future.
For the Afghanistan series, Rahane’s preferred combination would see Samson return alongside Abhishek, with Kishan completing the top three. The final decision, however, will be taken by India’s team management when the three-match series begins in New Delhi.