The men’s draw at this year’s US Open has produced an unexpected final eight, with several leading names already out of the tournament much earlier than many had projected. Novak Djokovic was eliminated in the opening round, while Felix Auger-Aliassime, Alex de Minaur, and Lorenzo Musetti all exited in the following round.

Carlos Alcaraz’s return from a wrist injury has drawn plenty of attention, but the tournament has also delivered a notable result for American men’s tennis on home soil. Three Americans have reached the quarter-finals, even though Taylor Fritz, Learner Tien, and Tommy Paul are not among them.

Here are Tennis365’s official predictions for all four men’s quarter-final matches at this year’s US Open.

Alexander Zverev vs Botic van de Zandschulp

Alexander Zverev has put together an impressive season and has repeatedly benefited from injuries and below-par form among top seeds. The German lifted his first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros earlier this year, after Djokovic went out early and Alcaraz withdrew.

Zverev has looked less secure in New York. He needed five sets to defeat Lorenzo Sonego and Quentin Halys in his first two matches, before producing straight-sets wins over Alejandro Tabilo and Luciano Darderi.

Van de Zandschulp has reached his second Grand Slam quarter-final by beating Jan Choinski, de Minaur, Zizou Bergs, and Arthur Gea.

Prediction: Zverev will have too much for the Dutchman and should progress in straight sets.

Karen Khachanov vs Alexander Blockx

Few would have expected Karen Khachanov and Alexander Blockx to be in this round, yet both have impressed. Khachanov arrived having lost three matches in a row, but he has beaten Felix Auger-Aliassime and Learner Tien.

Blockx has defeated Flavio Cobolli and Francisco Cerundolo, though injury concerns remain. He said he was close to retiring in his round of 16 match with Cerundolo.

Prediction: Khachanov is the clear pick, although Blockx’s physical condition could decide matters before the match is finished.

Frances Tiafoe vs Alex Michelsen

An all-American quarter-final was possible, but this pairing would still have been difficult to predict. Tiafoe is the more established name at this stage, having reached the semi-finals in 2022 and 2024.

Michelsen, however, is on his best run at a Grand Slam and remains the only player in the men’s draw not to lose a set on the way to the quarter-finals. He has also taken advantage of an opening section of the draw that offered limited resistance, with only two seeded opponents and none from the top 15 of the ATP Tour rankings.

Prediction: Tiafoe should win, but Michelsen is likely to make him work hard for it.

Ben Shelton vs Carlos Alcaraz

The standout match of the round is Shelton against Alcaraz. It is the highest-ranked quarter-final by combined rankings, and Alcaraz’s lack of match fitness after his wrist injury gives Shelton some hope.

That said, Shelton has never beaten Alcaraz, losing all three of their previous meetings. He has, however, handled his own path well, defeating Tallon Griekspoor, Hubert Hurkacz, Denis Shapovalov, and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Prediction: Shelton’s serving should be enough to carry him through, with Alcaraz still building after four and a half months away.

The US Open has delivered its usual mix of drama and frustration, but this year much of the irritation has centered on ticket prices at Flushing Meadows.

Base prices have risen only marginally compared with 2025, yet fans have felt the sharpest impact through secondary sales and surge pricing. Alex Eala’s matches have climbed notably in value, while $65 ground passes have reportedly appeared on secondary sites for as much as $300 during the tournament.

That backdrop has not gone unnoticed by the Laver Cup, which is preparing for Carlos Alcaraz’s next event. Working with the London Mayor, the competition has announced lower prices for every session at this year’s edition, staged at The O2 Arena from September 25th to 27th.

“London is the undisputed sporting capital of the world and I am delighted we are hosting the Laver Cup at The O2 later this month,” said Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

“I want every Londoner to have the opportunity to experience world class major sporting events in our city,” he continued. “That is why I am proud to be teaming up with the Laver Cup to provide free and reduced cost tickets for Londoners to experience world class tennis and see some of the sport’s biggest stars in action.

“This renowned tennis competition has featured many of the greats of the game and it’s an honour for London to become the first city to stage the event twice.

“We look forward to staging another fantastic competition as we work together to build a better, more prosperous London for everyone.”

“We’re delighted to work with the Mayor of London and the LTA to give more Londoners the opportunity to experience the Laver Cup when we return to The O2 later this month,” said Laver Cup CEO Steve Zacks.

“London holds a special place in Laver Cup history, and we want our return to have an impact beyond the three days of competition. By making a limited number of tickets available at a special price and welcoming more than 2,000 young Londoners to Open Practice Day, we hope to introduce new audiences to the Laver Cup and build on the community legacy we established here in 2022.”

This year’s teams will feature Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, Rafael Jodar, Flavio Cobolli, Jakub Mensik, and Casper Ruud for Team Europe, against Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton, Alex de Minaur, Learner Tien, Alexander Bublik, and Tommy Paul for Team World.

The event returns to The O2 Arena for the first time since 2022, when Roger Federer made his final competitive appearance.

Tennis Australia’s new chief executive has suggested the sport should be open to major change, including the possibility of moving away from best-of-five Grand Slam matches and revisiting the scoring format.

Andrew Abdo, who recently replaced Craig Tiley, is already looking at ideas that could alter the shape of the Australian Open. Tiley has since become chief executive at the United States Tennis Association, while Abdo has inherited a tournament that set a new attendance mark in 2026, when more than 1.3 million people went through the gates.

The record crowd has not slowed his ambition. Abdo wants tennis to become Australia’s leading sport, and he believes that could happen within roughly five years. At present, Aussie Rules and Rugby League sit ahead of tennis in participation and popularity, but Abdo sees room for the order to change.

Questions around five-set tennis have been around for some time, largely because of the demands placed on players and fans. Abdo has now spoken publicly about exploring alternatives in order to broaden the game’s reach.

He told the Herald Sun, “Maybe in the future, slams at the different rounds or at different lengths of duration, you know, maybe we’re not playing best of five all the way through, maybe the point scoring system changes.

“Maybe there are different permutations to how we engage and entertain audiences without losing the fabric, and what really makes the sport special.

“I think those are the questions that we need to explore and discover, and I think there’s a place for evolving that. If you listen to the purists, they’ll say, ‘don’t touch that’.

“But actually… if you look at sports around the world, if you’re not thinking about that product in a way that’s contemporary, in a way that’s going to connect with young people, then I think you’re going to be left behind.”

His thinking aligns with comments made by Novak Djokovic in early August, when the 39-year-old called for tennis matches to be shortened and for the ‘advantage’ rule to go.

Abdo added, “There’s a lot to be proud of, but we can’t sit still. We’re No. 3 in Australia at the moment in terms of participation and I think we can get to No. 1 over the next five years.

“We have to be restless, we have to be curious and we have to find new ways to connect to audiences.

“In a couple of months’ time the AO27 will be the best grand slam that we’ve put on… and the vision we have to have is to be not only the best slam in the world, we want this to be one of the most iconic events in the world.”