Home favorite Coco Gauff and world number two Elena Rybakina have advanced to the US Open quarterfinals, joining China’s Zheng Qinwen after she produced a stunning comeback to defeat six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek. In the men’s draw, top seed Alexander Zverev also progressed by beating Italian Luciano Darderi.
Zverev defeated Darderi 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (3) at Arthur Ashe Stadium, expressing surprise at finishing before midnight after navigating several five-set matches earlier in the tournament. “I think after 10 hours on court, I just maybe found my rhythm a little bit better,” Zverev said. “I think I’m going in the right direction.” The German, seeking a second Grand Slam title following his French Open victory in June, avenged his earlier loss to Darderi at the Italian Open in Rome.
Gauff dominated fourth-seed compatriot Iva Jovic 6-1, 6-4, setting up a semifinal clash with French Open champion Mirra Andreeva. “Mirra is someone that I always have tough matches with,” Gauff noted. She becomes the sixth American player to reach the quarterfinals, alongside Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro, Frances Tiafoe, Alex Michelsen, and Ben Shelton.
Rybakina continued her pursuit of a third major title with a 6-1, 6-4 win over former US Open champion Naomi Osaka, whose Achilles tendon injury flared up during the previous round. The victory places second seed Rybakina one win away from becoming world number one for the first time, with Olympic champion Zheng set to face her in the next round. Rybakina acknowledged her preparation was not ideal after retiring from the Cincinnati Open, but stated, “It’s an amazing progress. I’m really glad how everything worked out.}
Zheng established herself as a resilient competitor at Flushing Meadows. After overcoming a 0-5 deficit in the deciding set against Madison Keys in the third round, she again showed heart by losing the first five games of her match against Swiatek before mounting a dramatic rally. She collapsed onto the court in disbelief after securing the win on her fourth match point. Zheng is the first qualifier since Emma Raducanu in 2021 to reach the women’s quarterfinals, doing so while recovering from a chronic elbow injury.
In other action, Andreeva’s quarterfinal berth was secured despite a setback; she defeated Anastasia Potapova 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 after the Austrian withdrew injured in the final game. On the men’s side, Karen Khachanov fought back to beat American Learner Tien 7-5, 4-6, 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-4 at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Meanwhile, Botic van de Zandschulp won a grueling five-hour match against Arthur Gea, who had been one point away from becoming the first lucky loser to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal. Van de Zandschulp claimed a 3-6, 6-7 (0), 7-6 (7), 7-6 (3), 6-4 victory. Earlier in the day, Belgium’s Alexander Blockx reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal by defeating 24th-seed Francisco Cerundolo 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5.
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