We are down to the final four competitors in the men’s draw at the US Open with the last three title winners involved in the semi-finals.
The last three winners of the US Open men’s singles remain in contention as the 2025 semi-finals begin but at least one of them has to go out when they do battle at Flushing Meadows on Friday night.
Four-time winner Novak Djokovic won his first US Open title way back in 2011, but it’s only two years since the 38-year-old’s last New York success and he will be looking for an upset win when he takes on second seed and 2022 US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Top seed, world number one and defending champion Jannik Sinner is a hot favourite to progress from the second semi-final, in which he faces Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.
The underdog will be making only his second appearance in a Grand Slam semi, having gone out at this stage at Flushing Meadows four years ago.
Selections
Carlos Alcaraz to win 3-1 @ 5/2
Felix Auger-Aliassime total games over 11.5 @ 17/20
Semi-final curse may strike Djokovic again
Novak Djokovic has underlined his class in the face of a new generation of tennis stars by making the semi-finals of all four Grand Slam events this season but he has yet to make it to a final and his hopes may end in the last four yet again.
The Serbian star has already outperformed his seeding of seventh by knocking out fourth seed Taylor Fritz in four sets in his quarter-final and he has lost just three sets in the tournament so far.
Djokovic leads Alcaraz 5-3 in their all-time meetings and has won four of the last five, with the exception being the Spaniard’s win in the 2024 Wimbledon final.
The older player came out on top in the Olympic final last season and knocked out Alcaraz in the Australian Open quarter-finals after losing the first set.
The favourite has taken his game to a new level since, though, winning the French Open and finishing runner-up to Sinner at Wimbledon. Alcaraz has won all five of his matches in straight sets in this tournament, needing to win seven games in only two of his 15 sets.
Djokovic can be backed to at least end that impressive statistic, but winning one set may be all he can achieve against the young sensation.
Tip: Carlos Alcaraz to win 3-1 @ 5/2
Underdog can avoid humiliation against sublime Sinner
Felix Auger-Aliassime is at double-figure odds to upset world number one Jannik Sinner in the second US Open semi-final but the progressive Canadian should be able to go out of the tournament with his head held high.
The 25-year-old has had some impressive results in New York, winning his first two matches in straight sets before taking four to eliminate third seed Alexander Zverev.
He has since dispatched two more capable performers in Andrey Rublev and eighth seed Alex di Minaur, so merits plenty of respect.
The head-to-head record offers hope to fans of either player, with Auger-Aliassime leading 2-1, while Sinner crushed the Canadian 6-0 6-2 in the Cincinnati quarter-finals in their latest meeting earlier this year.
A result somewhere between the two extremes looks likely this time, with Sinner progressing to his fifth successive Grand Slam final but Auger-Aliassime perhaps even enhancing his reputation by winning at least 12 games in the match.
Tip: Felix Auger-Aliassime total games over 11.5 @ 17/20