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Posted on 09/10/2026 7:03:34 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
NEW YORK — Ben Shelton and Carlos Alcaraz didn’t really play a tennis match overnight Tuesday into Wednesday morning at the U.S. Open, as they set a record for the latest finish in tournament history.
Sure, there were rackets and balls and deuces and ads, but those were mere details. This was a heavyweight prize fight between two of the sport’s biggest stars: an American athletic acrobat of the highest order and an artist in the sweet science of the game, capable of playing a version of tennis familiar to no one else.
Styles make fights. So do personalities who love nothing more than performing on the biggest and brightest stages. After a day filled with drama, the two biggest characters in the tournament finally hit the first ball at 11:05 p.m. ET, on par with a pay-per-view main event. Nearly 24,000 people, in a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium, settled in to watch the fight — or at least the start of it.
When the end came, at 3:33 a.m., it was Shelton roaring to the faithful who had stayed behind, with a 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7) win sealed by a 146 mph ace. It ended on his signature shot, one he could always rely on but that had never taken him past a player of Alcaraz’s gravity.
“That was a war. Epic match. So physical,” Shelton said. “Carlos, one of the greatest champions in our sport, already at 23 years old. It’s always fun.
“The most enjoyable match I’ve had in my career.”
It began like it was supposed to, with Shelton and Alcaraz throwing haymakers at each other but unable to put together enough combinations to do any lasting damage. Then the thing happened that seemingly always does with Alcaraz, or really his opponent.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
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Go Gators!
Congratulations to Ben Shelton. But it is ridiculous to okay a tennis match at three am, for the fans and the players.
I lost interest when Novak Djokovic wasn’t allowed to play because he refused to take the novel mRNA shot.
RE: I lost interest when Novak Djokovic wasn’t allowed to play because he refused to take the novel mRNA shot.
Djokovic is the all-time Tennis grand slam winner with 24 titles ( I think ). He got royally screwed by the Australian Open and US Open organizers during the Covid scare by being banned from playing for refusing to take the Covid shot.
He could have won MORE Grand Slam titles had he been allowed to play then.
He’s pushing 40 now and although still a top 10 player, is clearly steps slower than the current crop of Young Players like Alcaraz and Shelton. I don’t think he can win another Grand Slam.
Signed,
a fellow pureblood.
I wonder if Alcaraz would have won if the damn match didn’t start at 11pm! That’s 5am in Spain where he lives.
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