Highlights: US Open 2024: Sabalenka Powers Into Semis, Fritz Shocks Zverev

Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen attributed her quarter-final exit at the US Open to a lack of sleep following a record late finish in her previous match. Despite the disappointing result, she expressed optimism for her upcoming matches in China, predicting she’ll be in top form.

Zheng faced world number two Aryna Sabalenka on Tuesday evening after finishing her last-16 match against Donna Vekic at 2:15 am the previous night. The 21-year-old revealed she didn’t get to bed until 5:00 am and was unable to practice on Monday due to exhaustion.

“I couldn’t sleep after finishing the match so late. I felt terrible and couldn’t even wake up in time to practice,” said Zheng after her 6-1, 6-2 defeat to Sabalenka. She acknowledged that if she had been able to practice, it might have improved her performance but added, “Sometimes the schedule is like this, and it’s fine.”

Zheng’s loss to Sabalenka was a repeat of her quarter-final exit at the 2023 US Open, as well as her defeat in the Australian Open final earlier this year. Despite these setbacks, Zheng is now heading to China for the Asian swing of the season, hoping that her rising profile will lead to more favorable scheduling, especially during the WTA event in Wuhan in October.

Meanwhile, in another US Open match, Taylor Fritz achieved a milestone by reaching his first Grand Slam semi-final after defeating Alexander Zverev in a hard-fought match on Tuesday. Fritz, seeded 12th, overcame the fourth-seeded Zverev, the 2020 US Open runner-up, with a 7-6 (7/2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3) victory.

Fritz will face either fellow American Frances Tiafoe or Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov in the semi-finals on Sunday. Zverev’s loss leaves Jannik Sinner, world number one, as the only top-four player still in the draw, following the early exits of Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.

Reflecting on his progress, the 26-year-old Fritz, who fired 12 aces and recorded 45 winners, said, “I’ve had a few shots at Grand Slam quarter-finals over the years, so I felt it was my time to go further.” He added that while his serve has always been strong, he has worked on enhancing his game with drop shots and more net play to better compete at the highest level.