We will find out which two men will compete in the final of the US Open on Friday night when the two semi-finals get played out on a tantalising evening of action on the Arthur Ashe Stadium out in New York.
We already know that someone will be winning a Grand Slam for the first time for the third year in succession in this tournament and on Friday evening we will go a step closer to determining who that will be.
Karen Khachanov vs Casper Ruud
If you had said at the start of the tournament that the opening semi-final would have seen Karen Khachanov taking on Casper Ruud you would either have been psychic or lying but it turns out you’d have been telling the truth because that is the two men who will compete for a place in the final.
So much has happened in this tournament since Khachanov saw off Nick Kyrgios in that wonderful contest that it is easy to have forgotten about it but the Russian played some good tennis in that match and kept his nerve well and that bodes well for him here because while Ruud has been cruising through the draw he has stumbled at a couple of winning lines and with him getting closer to the final and the number one ranking which he would achieve should he win the final, I just wonder if the nerves will build in the Norwegian. The obvious concern with Khachanov is the activity in recent days having gone five sets with Pablo Carreno Busta and Nick Kyrgios. They weren’t overly taxing matches though and this half of the draw have had two complete days off so given where we are in the tournament you would hope and think the Russian will find enough to be competitive throughout. These two have only met once in their career and that was on clay which Ruud won in a deciding set and I can see this one being a close contest too. I’m not sure if it will go the full five but I do expect four sets and a couple of close ones in there so the 39.5 game line looks like one which can be attacked here.
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Carlos Alcaraz vs Frances Tiafoe
The second semi-final was a little less difficult to predict given that it contains the only man left in the draw who was seeded to make it through to this stage when Carlos Alcaraz takes on the home star Frances Tiafoe in what could be a real battle of athleticism.
Alcaraz has been the late night king this week having finished his last two matches, both five set thrillers, at gone 2am local time and you sense if he is to come through here he is going to have another late night on his hands. Tiafoe has only dropped one set in the entire tournament and that had Rafael Nadal at his best to win that so there is no doubt he is the fresher man going into this match. The only thing you would say is Tiafoe hasn’t sampled the night conditions on Ashe this week whereas Alcaraz has owned them but even so you can only go to the physical well so many times and unless he is completely superhuman Alcaraz just has to slow down here at some point. Tiafoe won’t just be the fresher man but he’ll be roared on by a passionate home crowd too and to be fair to him he won’t need to find too much more than the level which beat Nadal and broke the spirit of Andrey Rublev to come through here. This is the first time Alcaraz has been an emphatic favourite in the second week of this Slam and that combined with the jaded legs he must be on can see Tiafoe home in a match which could still turn into something of a classic.
Tips
Back K.Khachanov vs C.Ruud – Over 39.5 games for a 3/10 stake at 1.85 with William Hill
Back F.Tiafoe to beat C.Alcaraz for a 3/10 stake at 2.60 with 888sport
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