Semifinals: Carlos Alcaraz vs. Novak Djokovic
Arthur Ashe Stadium — Not Before 3 p.m.
- Friday's 2025 US Open semifinals will begin with the ninth meeting between Alcaraz and Djokovic, both former champions in New York. Alcaraz won his first major title here in 2022, before Djokovic claimed his 24th Grand Slam title in 2023.
- Djokovic leads Alcaraz 5-3 in their head-to-head, including wins in their two most recent meetings: last year in the Paris Olympics gold medal match and this season in the Australian Open quarterfinals. This will be their first US Open matchup.
- Alcaraz is seeking his sixth major title overall and his second of this season after Roland Garros. In 2022, Alcaraz ascended to world No. 1 by finishing first in Flushing. With two more wins (or with a semifinal defeat for current No. 1 Jannik Sinner), Alcaraz would again leave New York as the ATP's leading man.
- Djokovic already owns a record 24 Grand Slam men's singles titles, outpacing his great rivals Rafael Nadal (22) and Roger Federer (20). While his 24 trophies are an Open Era record for men and women, a 25th would break a tie with Australia's Margaret Court for the all-time record.
- Alcaraz has cruised into the semifinals without losing a set; never before has the Spaniard progressed as far as the quarters without dropping a set at a major. Even more impressive: He's only been pushed to a tiebreak once in five matches, against Arthur Rinderknech in Round 3. Alcaraz booked his semifinal spot with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 cruise past 20th seed Jiri Lehecka on Tuesday.
- Djokovic has had a tougher slog through the Flushing field, going four sets in three of his five victories. His longest match came in the quarterfinals, a 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 win against Taylor Fritz that lasted three hours, 24 minutes.
- Djokovic has spent a total of 12 hours, 59 minutes on court this fortnight, compared to nine hours, 33 minutes for Alcaraz.
- Awaiting Alcaraz or Djokovic in the US Open final, to be played Sunday at 2 p.m., will be Sinner or Felix Auger-Aliassime, who are set to square off at 7 p.m. on Friday evening.
- While many fans and experts are expecting a Sinner vs. Alcaraz final for the third straight Grand Slam, Djokovic has other ideas: "We know that they are the two best players in the world. Everybody is probably expecting and anticipating the finals between two of them," he said after his quarterfinal victory. "I'm going to try to, you know, mess up the plans of most of the people."
