(September 7, 2026) FLUSHING MEADOWS, NY – Karen Khachanov won a five-set thriller Monday at the US Open to reach his seventh major quarterfinal.
The World No. 50 outlasted 20-year-old No. 14 American Learner Tien 7-5, 4-6, 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-4 in a slugfest battle for three hours and 50 minutes.
“It was a really crazy match,” said Khachanov. “We played for the first time against each other. I knew what to expect: One extra ball coming back, one extra ball. So many close rallies. He loves to play that defense outside the court, that’s why it makes it extremely tough, this match, because you have to stay always in the match with great intensity, hitting, hitting, pushing. In the end, I’m super happy that I could pull through.”
“I’m here in the quarterfinals. What can I say?,” Khachanov said.
“I think before the tournament, I mentioned that there was a challenging year in a way, because I was during all these years consistently solid, you know, being top 10, entering top 10, being top 15, top 20 for a consistent time.
“Yeah, there were some doubts. There were some more ups and downs this season. But look, this is the beauty of tennis in a way that if you put yourself in a good perspective, you know, you believe.
“Everything can change in one week. You have to be ready for that. Obviously it doesn’t come as a miracle. I worked for it. I earned it in a way, so that’s why I’m super happy to play another major, let’s say, deeper and further stages.”
Botic van de Zandschulp won a classic match at the US Open on Monday, when he rallied from two sets to love down and saved a match point to return to the quarterfinals beating lucky loser, Arthur Gea 3-6, 6-7(0), 7-6(7), 7-6(3), 6-4 after five hours and 13 minutes, the fourth-longest match at the American major (since 1991). Gea, 21, had a match point on serve at 6-5 in the third-set tie-break but could not close the deal.
“I have no clue, actually,” a relieved van de Zandschulp said when asked how he came back. “It wasn’t going my way in the beginning. I think it was a sloppy match a little bit, but he started to play well at some point.
“For me, I was looking for my form. Haven’t found it yet, but hopefully in a couple days I find it. It’s been a crazy comeback. Five hours, 15 minutes. Still standing, so that’s a good thing.”
He’ll be playing top seed Alexander Zverev for a place in the final four.
