The stakes are high and the pressure is mounting in the bottom half of the U.S. Open draw, where Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz will battle for a semifinal spot on Tuesday.
It is a rematch of a recent Wimbledon fourth-round showdown, which Fritz won 4-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(3), 6-3. That match could not have been more competitive and the entire head-to-head series is as close as possible through nine meetings. Zverev leads it 5-4, although Fritz is ahead 3-2 on hard courts (it is tied 2-2 on outdoor hard).
This one promises to be another thrilling encounter between two red-hot players.
Zverev is 56-16 this season with a title in Rome and a runner-up performance at Roland Garros, falling to Carlos Alcaraz. That marked the fourth-ranked German’s second Grand Slam final appearance and the second in which he lost in five sets, having previously come out on the short end of a decisive tiebreaker against Dominic Thiem at the 2020 U.S. Open. Zverev is two wins away from a return trip to the title match after defeating Maximilian Marterer, Alexandre Muller, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, and Brandon Nakashima. Only the result against Muller was a straight-setter.
Fritz is 42-16 for his 2024 campaign with titles in Delray Beach and Eastbourne in addition to quarterfinal showings at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. The 12th-ranked American is back in the last eight of another slam–and for the second straight year at Flushing Meadows–following victories over Camilo Ugo Carabelli, Matteo Berrettini, Joao Comesana, and Casper Ruud. Only Ruud managed to take a set, and even then the world No. 8 got erased 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 in the last three.
Although Zverev was dealing with a knee problem at the All-England Club earlier this summer, Fritz had already taken control of that match in the fifth set before the injury started to be a real factor. As that result indicates, this has not been a bad matchup for Fritz in the past even though he is the perennially lower-ranked player.
On Tuesday, the No. 12 seed should arguably be the favorite. He has been in dominant form this fortnight and will benefit from a significant home-court advantage.
Pick: Fritz in 5
