Three of the four players who have booked their places in the US Open men’s quarterfinals have tied or exceeded their best ever Grand Slam performances so far. Young guns Felix Auger-Aliassime and Carlos Alcaraz will face off, while Daniil Medvedev is the favorite against Botic van de Zandschulp, an unheralded Dutch qualifier who has made a massive run. Our panelists offer their predictions for every match.
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Carlos Alcaraz
Andrew: It’s tempting to simply look at Alcaraz’s five-setters in the last two rounds and assume he won’t have enough in the tank for this. He will certainly come out firing here and could win by running on adrenaline and smoking groundstrokes as he is so good at. However, the movement of Auger-Aliassime and his own ability to turn up the pace when he needs to should do a decent job of counteracting the Spaniard. I think the Canadian holds the edge here and I will back him to reach the semifinals. Auger-Aliassime in 4
Damian: A matchup we’re likely to get a lot more of in the future. At this point in time, Auger-Aliassime seems to be a pretty clear favorite. He’s gotten rid of most of the inconsistency of the youth and has a lot more experience at this level than Alcaraz. Another important aspect of this matchup will be the serve difference, which should allow the Canadian to rack up a lot more free points than his opponent. It should be highly entertaining, but I’m fairly confident it’s Auger-Aliassime who’ll fight his way to the semifinals. Auger-Aliassime in 4
Anish: Felix Auger Aliassime always looked like the most eligible candidate to make the last eight from his section, due to his top form and Rublev crashing out. Now he faces the prospect of making his first Major semifinal. In his way, stands the celebrity kid Carlos Alcaraz, who upset seeded players like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Cam Norrie. Alcaraz made it clear that he is very much the Next Big Thing in tennis. But I feel that Auger Aliassime is in excellent form right now, and he won’t stop. He has also been serving exceptionally well. Alcaraz deserves all the praise for his performance till now, but he has to bow out. Auger-Aliassime in 5
Yesh: Alcaraz didn’t play well in his fourth round match. It’s understandable, but it almost cost him. At just 18, I wouldn’t worry about his fitness. He’ll be ready for this match, and he has the baseline game to throw back anything Auger-Aliassime can send at him. Alcaraz in 4
Steen: Auger-Aliassime was the better known player entering the tournament, as he also reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. but Alcaraz has been the talk of New York City after he backed up a five set win over Stefanos Tsitsipas with a five set win over Peter Gojowczyk in the next round. Auger-Aliassime needed four sets to get past American favorite Frances Tiafoe in his round of 16 match. The Canadian has a bigger game and should be slightly fresher, given the surface I’ll back him against Alcaraz in this young gun battle. I expect to see this pair play more often in big matches in the future. Auger-Aliassime in 4
Botic van de Zandschulp vs Daniil Medvedev
Andrew: I’m sure that Daniil Medvedev wouldn’t have expected to face the Dutchman to reach the semifinal here. Van de Zandschulp has played exceptional tennis though, proving once more that there is tremendous depth in the men’s game. Surely Medvedev will have too much class in this encounter though, he has barely been forced into a sweat so far and I don’t see that changing now. Medvedev in 3
Damian: The tenacity that van de Zandschulp has shown to get here was absolutely outstanding, but losing nine sets and playing for over 19 hours and 30 minutes across seven matches will take its toll on him physically at some point. Especially as he’s about to face one of the most taxing matchups in tennis that is Medvedev. The Russian has been both incredible on the defense, and just as good in controlled aggression from the baseline. It’s been a fantastic run for the Dutchman, but he’s going to face a real title contender here. Medvedev in 3
Anish: Medvedev is enjoying a superb patch at the moment, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. His straight-set win over Dan Evans only strengthens the fact. His fourth round performance has to be his best so far. Not only did he serve well, but it was his low error count that will please him more. On the other side of the net, we have the least expected Quarter-Finalist, Botic van de Zandschulp. Zandschulp has worked his way through the draw, defeating Casper Ruud and Diego Schwartzman. He plays a superb attacking game, and is serving well. However, his spirited campaign should stop here against Medvedev. Medvedev in 3
Yesh: Medvedev looks absolutely dominant this tournament, and he’s been gifted with a relatively easy draw for this stage of a Major. van de Zandschulp has been incredible so far, but his counterpunching game will be eviscerated by the Russian. Medvedev in 3
Steen: It’s not often you see a Grand Slam quarterfinal where the underdog faces such long odds, van de Zandschulp gritted his way past Schwartzman and has never played a match as big as this. Medvedev made easy work of Dan Evans and still hasn’t dropped a set. van de Zandschulp is amazing story but this is likely the final chapter of his US Open journey, Medvedev should prove to be too good and maintain control of this match. Medvedev’s quarterfinal appearance makes it the first time since 2001 that Russian men have made the quarterfinals of all four Grand Slams in a calendar year. Medvedev in 3
Main Photo:
