US Open late finishes spark pushback

Alexander Zverev, of Germany, celebrates after defeating Quentin Halys, of France, in five sets in the the second round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, early Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

NEW YORK — Alexander Zverev wasn’t in the mood for much conversation.

With empty seats everywhere after he finished his US Open first-round match in the early morning hours, he took two questions from reporters on the court and quickly wrapped it up.

“I think everybody’s tired,” he said. “Everybody wants to go to sleep.”

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The city that never sleeps is going a little overboard this year.

Players have long loved the electricity of night matches at the US Open, where tennis under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium is a hallmark of the American Grand Slam tournament, with fans staying late and bringing plenty of energy. But with the tournament this year already setting a record with three post-2 a.m. finishes over the first six days, plus two more going past 1 a.m., concerns are bubbling up about how much after midnight is too much on such a big stage.

A fans watch Ben Shelton, of the United States, plays against Denis Shapovalov, of Canada, in the fourth set during the third round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, early Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

“I know they’re dealing with a lot of different aspects as far as broadcast and TV and making sure certain matches get done and are starting at a certain time for those reasons,” third-ranked women’s player Jessica Pegula said. ”But you have to wonder if it’s really the right thing for players to be finishing at 2 a.m., especially when it’s not — like, I’m not watching on TV. I’m sleeping. Some people stay, but there is a lot of people that need to go home.”

Wimbledon instituted an 11 p.m. curfew. The French Open schedules just one match a night. The U.S. Open is famous for going late, though this time maybe to an extreme.

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On opening night, Venus Williams was subjected to the latest start in US Open history at 12:13 a.m., after it took 4 hours, 36 minutes for Novak Djokovic to get knocked out in the first round.

Much of the crowd stuck around to see what could wind up being the 46-year-old’s final Grand Slam singles match, a loss to Sofia Kenin, but the timing itself was a challenge.

“It’s not ideal,” Williams said. “I would have preferred something else, definitely. It wasn’t great for either of us, so I think we both tried our best. I just don’t know any other sport where you have to start that late. I definitely think there’s room for improvement there.”

Zverev’s first two matches ended at 1:55 and 2:15 a.m., making him the first top-seeded man to play back-to-back five-set matches to start a major in the Open era, which dates to 1968. Ben Shelton’s second-rounder that started Friday night went until 2:07 a.m. Saturday thanks to the Williams sisters’ doubles match lasting more than three hours.

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Four of the latest 17 finishes in tournament history have occurred this year. The record is still 2:50 a.m. from when Carlos Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals in 2022 on the way to his first US Open title.

“Not easy,” Shelton said after defeating Denis Shapovalov in 3 hours, 22 minutes. “My first time experiencing playing this late.”

Shelton figured the earliest he’d get to sleep was 5 a.m.

Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka, who two years ago played what is now the fourth-latest women’s match, is not a fan of playing after midnight and the potentially lingering effects.

“When you finish late, the next day shifts a lot,” Sabalenka said. “Like, you still need to get your hours of sleep, so you start later. You just can really mess up your schedule.”