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09/09/26 09:34:00
Printable Page
09/09 21:32 CDT No. 1 Zverev reaches US Open semifinals and will face Khachanov
after Blockx's injuries
No. 1 Zverev reaches US Open semifinals and will face Khachanov after Blockx's
injuries
By BRIAN MAHONEY
AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --- Alexander Zverev's rocky road to start the U.S. Open turned
into smooth sailing to the semifinals.
The No. 1 seed beat Botic van de Zandschulp 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 on Wednesday night,
putting him into the final four of every Grand Slam tournament this season.
The French Open champion and Wimbledon runner-up will play Friday against Karen
Khachanov, while Americans Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe meet in the other
semifinal.
Zverev became the first men's No. 1 seed to play five-set matches in each of
the first two rounds of a major in the Open era, which began in 1968. But he
won his last three matches in straight sets and is the only man to reach all
four major semis this year.
His opponent Friday got at least to the third round of all of them and this
time has gone three rounds further.
Khachanov was prepared to go through a tough test to get back to the semifinals
but Alexander Blockx's body wasn't up for one.
Blockx stopped playing in the third set because of injuries to his leg, ribs
and back, sending Khachanov to his third Grand Slam semifinal.
"I think my body just gave up," Blockx said.
Khachanov won the first two sets 6-2 and 7-5, and the No. 28 seed from Belgium
decided it was time to stop after Khachanov broke his serve to take a 3-2 lead
in the third.
"I was preparing really, really well for that matchup. It's not easy really to
play because from one side I was feeling I was dominating from the beginning,
then I started to feel like he was struggling more and more," Khachanov said,
adding he saw that Blockx was "suffering all over his body."
Khachanov is seeking his first major final. The Russian got to the semifinals
of the U.S. Open in 2022 and the Australian Open in 2023.
Khachanov was unseeded in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since 2018
after a strange season. He reached at least the third round of all four majors
for the first time but is just 10-15 in other events, with losses in the
opening rounds of all three hard-court events before coming to New York.
Blockx said he nearly stopped in his last match because of his injuries. As he
got treatment for multiple body parts Wednesday, he said ne was neither upset
nor angry.
"To be honest, during the match, it was quite funny to me. I just had to laugh
it off, because it was just something new the whole time," he said. "I think it
was just my body that started compensating as well. I was starting to do
different motions than I usually do just to avoid the pain."
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See AP's full tennis coverage here
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