The men take center stage at the U.S. Open on Friday, with both semifinals on the schedule. As expected, the nightcap is the feature match between fellow Americans Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe. That is preceded by Alexander Zverev vs. Karen Khachanov.
Here are my picks for Friday’s two semifinal matches.
(11) Frances Tiafoe vs. (8) Ben Shelton
This marks their fifth encounter. Shelton leads the head-to-head series 3-1 after most recently getting the job done 7-6(2), 6-4 at the 2025 Washington, D.C. tourmament. These two compatriots have split their two U.S. Open tilts; Shelton prevailed 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-2 in the 2023 quarterfinals before Tiafoe won 4-6, 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-3 in the 2024 third round.
Each man’s passage into the SFs could not have been more dramatic. A wild Tuesday at the BJKNTC saw Tiafoe come back from two sets down to defeat Alex Michelsen 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6(10-6) on Tuesday. That was part of the reason why Shelton and Carlos Alcaraz did not start their match until 11:05 pm. It was also decided by a fifth-set ‘breaker, with Shelton triumphing 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(10-7) after four hours and 28 minutes for the latest finish in U.S. Open history at 3:33 am. The good news for Shelton is that he has two days to recover. Tiafoe is 0-2 lifetime in the U.S. Open semis; Shelton is 0-1. I will lean toward Shelton to advance and play on Sunday with a chance to become the first American man to win a Grand Slam singles title since Andy Roddick at the 2003 U.S. Open.
Pick: Shelton in 4
(1) Alexander Zverev vs. Karen Khachanov
Zverev and Khachanov will be facing each other for the 10th time in their careers. The head-to-head series stands at 6-3 in favor of Zverev, who has taken four of their last five meetings dating back to a 6-3, 6-1 triumph in the gold-medal match at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. They most recently squared off twice during the 2025 hard-court summer, when Khachanov survived a thriller in a third-set tiebreaker at the Toronto Masters before Zverev advanced via retirement while leading 7-5, 3-0 at the Cincinnati Masters.
Although Khachanov has a history of success in majors (seven times reaching at least the quarters), his presence in the SFs this time around comes as a surprise. After all, the 30-year-old had been 16-18 for the season prior to arriving in New York. He is playing well this fortnight…but not as well as Zverev. After getting through two scratchy five-setters, the top-seeded German raised his level to dismiss Alejandro Tabilo, Luciano Darderi, and Botic van de Zandschulp all in straight sets. Khachanov will probably present a tougher test than those three opponents, but Zverev should advance to his third consecutive slam final.
Pick: Zverev in 4
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.