 "Zheng Qinwen beat Donna Vekic in the fourth round of the US Open. It was the latest finish for a women's match in tournament history. AP")
US Open witnessed its latest finish for a women’s singles match on Monday (September 2) when China’s Zheng Qinwen beat Donna Vekic with the last ball being struck at 2:15 am local time.
Seventh-seed Zheng won 7-6 (7/2), 4-6, 6-2 against her 24th-ranked Croatian opponent who she also defeated in the Paris Olympics final four weeks ago.
The early morning finish beat the old record of 2:13 a.m. from 2021 when Maria Sakkari defeated Bianca Andreescu in a last-16 tie.
“I like to play in the night session. Here in New York it’s my first time,” said Zheng in front of a few hundred spectators in the 24,000-capacity Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“It’s two in the morning, it’s incredible. Thanks to the fans who have stayed to support me.”
The record for the latest finish at the US Open belongs to Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner who battled it out until 2:50am in 2022.
Alexander Zverev and Tomas Martín Etcheverry nearly broke that record this year when they shook hands at 2:35am on Louis Armstrong Stadium after only a four-set encounter.
Over on the Arthur Ashe Stadium, after waiting for too long, Aryna Sabalenka and Ekaterina Alexandrova stepped on to the court at 12:08am in the latest start to a match at Flushing Meadows.
This despite the US Tennis Association (USTA) introducing a policy this year to reduce the chances of players staying on court until the wee hours.
In a statement on Saturday morning, USTA said that “the Tournament Referee took into account a number of factors while making the decision as to whether to move the match, including the pace of play of the (Novak) Djokovic - (Alexei) Popyrin match, as well as weather conditions, fan accommodations, and timing considerations.”
The policy gives the tournament directors the right to move a match off a court if the longer matches that come before it push the start beyond 11pm, without asking the players if that’s what they want to do.
After coming through 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, Sabalenka said she did want to play on Ashe, the biggest stadium in the sport, but before the men (Djokovic vs Popyrin where the Serb lost in four sets).
As for the women’s singles fourth round match between Zheng and Vekic, it clocked a duration of two hours and 50 minutes after starting past the 11pm cutoff.
The powerful 21-year-old Zheng is only the second Chinese woman to appear in two quarter-finals in New York after Li Na in 2009 and 2013.
Zheng will next face world number two Sabalenka, who defeated her in the last-eight in 2023 as well as in the final of the Australian Open in January.
Late nighters not unique to the US Open
The issue with late night finishes is not unique to the US Open. Earlier at 2024 French Open, Djokovic ended a five-setter at 3:07am local time in Paris. At the 2024 Australian Open, Daniil Medvedev was on court until 3:39am in Melbourne for the latest finish in Grand Slam history.
In February 2022, Alexander Zverev and Jenson Brooksby finished their first-round match in Acapulco at 4.55am, setting the record for the latest-ever finish in tennis history. The pair had stepped up to the court at 1.30am during the Mexican Open history.
Even if a match finishes earlier than these ungodly hours, it doesn’t mean the players are in bed by 2:00 am. During the 2024 French Open, Casper Ruud provided an insight into the process than follows after a match ends.
“I just finished my match 2 hours ago,” Ruud wrote in reply to a user who queried why he was active after 3:00am. “After that I have to cool down on the bike for 15 minutes, do press/media, ice bath for 10 minutes, shower, eat and then get treatment/massage. I’m currently at the treatment stage.”
After her late win in the third round, Sabalenka said she would probably skip treatment and aim to be in bed by 4 am. Popyrin, who stunned Djokovic right before the Belarusian took court, said he didn’t expect to be asleep until 4 or 4:30 am.