US Open quarter-final: Borna Coric v Alexander Zverev – live!

Third set: *Coric 6-1, 6-7, 5-5 Zverev

Coric leaves the court for a wardobe change yet again. This time with Zverev due to serve. At 4-5 in the third set of a major quarter-final no less. Dubious. If it’s gamesmanship, it doesn’t appear to have worked. Zverev holds comfortably, sealing the hold with a 136mph ace down the pipe.

Third set: Coric 6-1, 6-7, 5-4 Zverev*

Another solid hold for Coric, who’s played a far cleaner set in the third after a loose second: 11 winners against six unforced errors.

Third set: *Coric 6-1, 6-7, 4-4 Zverev

Zverev goes down love-15 after getting passed by a perfect forehand winner on a net approach. But he wins four quick points from there, including a 132mph ace into the corner.

Meanwhile, the order of play for Wednesday is out with Pironkova v Serena and Rublev v Medvedev slated for the afternoon and Azarenka v Mertens and DeMinaur v Thiem set to play under the lights.

Third set: Coric 6-1, 6-7, 4-3 Zverev*

Coric cruises to a drama-free hold. He’s won eight of 10 points on his racket since getting broken while serving at 1-all.

Third set: *Coric 6-1, 6-7, 3-3 Zverev

Zverev gets it back to deuce on his serve from love-30 down, saving a break point at 30-40. He then rips a 135mph ace down the center, but Coric pushes it back to deuce with a drop-shot winner to cap a 22-stroke rally. After saving another break point, Zverev crushes his 11th ace of the match to escape with the hard-won hold.

Third set: Coric 6-1, 6-7, 3-2 Zverev*

A brisk service game for Coric, who punctuates the hold with a 111mph ace out wide.

Coric breaks in fourth game of third set!

Third set: *Coric 6-1, 6-7, 2-2 Zverev

Zverev needs to consolidate the break to take this match by the scruff and he starts out miserably with back-to-back double faults, followed by an unforced error off a forehand for triple break point. Coric makes a pair of unforced errors to squander two of them, but Zverev misses an overhand badly on the next point to give the break right back. Not exactly highlight-reel stuff on either side at the moment.

Zverev breaks in third game of third set!

Third set: Coric 6-1, 6-7, 1-2 Zverev*

Coric falls behind love-15, then 15-30, then 30-40 to give Zverev a break-point chance. And he makes the most of it, converting with backhand winner from the baseline to nose ahead in the match for the first time.

Third set: *Coric 6-1, 6-7, 1-1 Zverev

Zverev holds from love-15 and 15-30 down, crushing a pair of blistering service winners along the way.

Third set: Coric 6-1, 6-7, 1-0 Zverev*

Coric holds comfortably to open the third set, capping it with an overhand forehand winner at the net.

Second-set tiebreak: Coric 5-7 Zverev

Both men hold their serves over the first four points of the breaker. It’s Zverev who blinks first, mixing in his seventh double fault of the afternoon to go down a minibreak. Coric to serve at 3-2. A grueling 30-stroke baseline rally ensues, ending when Coric sprays a backhand. We’re back on level terms at 3-all as the players change ends. They continue to hold serve with one short point after another until Coric makes a cruciial unforced forehand error for 4-6, giving Zverev double set point. Coric saves the first, but the second is on Zverev’s racket and he converts it with an assist from Coric, who goes for a winner on a backhand and sends it into the net!

Second set: Coric 6-1, 6-6 Zverev

Coric is pushed to 30-all in a tense 12th game as Zverev gets within two points of squaring the match at one set apiece. But Coric responds with a pair of clutch serves that Zverev can’t return into the court and we’re headed to a second-set tiebreaker.

Second set: *Coric 6-1, 5-6 Zverev

A quick hold by Zverev to put the pressure right back on Coric.

Second set: Coric 6-1, 5-5 Zverev*

Coric holds comfortably, taking all four points at the net. Speaking of, he’s come to net 18 times in this set alone (winning 11 points).

Second set: *Coric 6-1, 4-5 Zverev

Zverev follows with a commanding love hold to consolidate the break and now Coric will serve to stay in the set after the change of ends. But before he does, Coric has left the court for yet another wardrobe change. It’s the second time he’s left the court for a change of clothes in the span of four games … and Zverev is not happy about it.

Zverev breaks in eighth game of second set!

Second set: Coric 6-1, 4-4* Zverev

A whisper of a chance for Zverev as Coric misfires on a backhand to fall behind love-15 on his serve. Coric rattles off three quick points, but Zverev forces it to deuce with a drop shot that Coric can’t retrieve followed by a sharp backhand from the baseline that Coric returns well over the baseline. Coric then misfires badly on a backhand and Zverev will have just his third break-point opportunity of the day … and he squanders it after pushing an easy backhand long. Another break-point chance surfaces moments later and this time Zverev converts it with a forehand passing winner at the end of an 18-shot exchange.

Second set: *Coric 6-1, 4-3 Zverev

Zverev rolls through his service game, capping a love hold with his eighth and ninth aces of the day. But he will need to make headway on Coric’s serve, and soon, if he hopes to avoid falling into two-sets-to-none hole.

Second set: Coric 6-1, 4-2 Zverev*

Coric pops his second ace of the day for 40-love. He then misfires on forehand before making his first double fault for 40-30, but Zverev complies with another unforced error on the next point, allowing Coric to back up the break.

Coric breaks in fifth game of second set!

Second set: *Coric 6-1, 3-2 Zverev

With Zverev serving at 15-love, the line judge calls a ball out after Coric hits a return. It should have been Zverev’s point for 30-love, but instead they will replay it at chair umpire Eva Asderaki’s discretion. Zverev is furious, appealing to Asderaki and then the tournament referee in vain. His initial response is positive as he cracks back-to-back aces for 40-love. But Coric wins the next two points before Zverev double-faults yet again for deuce. A very important moment in this match. Coric wins the next point, outlasting Zverev in the longest rally of the match so far (22 strokes) for a break point. Zverev saves it with an overhead winner, but faces a second break point moments later. This time Coric converts as dumps a backhand into the net for his 20th unforced error of the afternoon. Coric leads by a set and a break as the match enters the second hour.

Second set: *Coric 6-1, 1-2 Zverev

Zverev is pushed to deuce after mixing in his fourth double fault of the afternoon, but he responds with a 137mph service winner to the body and a 134mph ace out wide to get away with the hold.

Second set: Coric 6-1, 1-1 Zverev*

Another easy hold for Coric, who has continud to cruise through his service games since getting pushed at 3-1 in the first.

Second set: *Coric 6-1, 0-1 Zverev

Zverev needs a stress-free service game after his disatrous opening set and he gets one, going backhand volley winner at the net, 120mph service winner, 136mph ace and 135mph ace to hold at love.

First set: Coric 6-1 Zverev

Coric breezes through another service game to take the opening set in a brisk 24 minutes. Three double faults (all in the fourth game) and 12 unforced errors for Zverev, who did more to lose it than Coric did to win.

Coric breaks in sixth game of first set!

First set: *Coric 5-1 Zverev

After only five games, Coric changes his shirt during the changeover. But the conditions are quite pleasant at the moment: 82F with low humidity, no wind and the shade beginning to encroach over Arthur Ashe Stadium. Meanwhile, Zverev’s game has come apart at the seams since those three double faults serving at 1-2. After quickly going down love-40 on his serve, he saves two break points before making an unforced error off the forehand side to gift another the break to Coric, who will serve for the set.

First set: Coric 4-1 Zverev*

Coric is spraying groundstrokes all over the place and suddenly he’s down 15-40 and facing double break point. A huge opportunity early for Zverev to erase an early blunder. Coric saves the first with a 123mph service winner, then the second with a sharply angled backhand early in the point that Zverev can’t handle. Moments later Coric escapes, holding from 15-40 down to consolidate the break of serve. A big moment in the early stages of this quarter-final.

Coric breaks in fourth game of first set!

First set: *Coric 3-1 Zverev

Zverev makes a couple of double faults for 15-30. Then, surprisingly, makes another for 30-40 and he will face his first break point of the day. Coric wastes no time converting it when Zverev misfires on a backhand volley at the net at the end of a 12-stroke rally. It’s the first break of the match and Zverev handed it to Coric on a silver platter with his first three double faults of the day.

First set: Coric 2-1 Zverev*

Another easy hold for Coric, who is dialed in on his serve to start the day.

This marks only the second grand slam tournament in the open era (since 1969) with no former major champions in the quarter-finals. The other was Wimbledon in 2003.

First set: *Coric 1-1 Zverev

Zverev answers with a love hold of his own: 138mph ace down the middle, 132mph ace out wide, 121mph service winner out wide and a booming forehand winner from the baseline early in the point.

First set: Coric 1-0 Zverev* (*denotes next server)

Coric holds at love to start, cracking a 124mph service winner down the pipe along the way.

Though he’s yet to crack the ATP top 10 – peaking at No 12 in the rankings toward the end of 2018 – Coric has won 14 career matches against top-10 opponents. The most recent came in the third round of this year’s US Open when he rallied from two-sets-to-one and 5-1 down in the fourth set, saving six match points to upset world No 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The players have taken the court for today’s first men’s semi-final. Coric holds a 3-1 edge in the head-to-head series with fellow 23-year-old Zverev, including a four-set upset win in the second round the 2017 US Open where he saved 10 of 11 break points.

Their history at Flushing Meadows goes back even further. They faced off as 16-year-olds in the 2013 US Open boys’ singles semi-finals with Coric winning 6-4, 3-6, 6-0 en route to the title, which vaulted him to No 1 in the world junior rankings. They grow up so fast!

Hello and welcome to Arthur Ashe Stadium for the start of today’s US Open quarter-finals. Jennifer Brady of the United States has finished off a 6-3, 6-2 win over Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva to reach her first career major semi-final. She will face the winner of tonight’s second women’s quarter between Naomi Osaka and Shelby Rogers for a place in Saturday’s final.

Next on Ashe is the first men’s quarter-final match between No 27 seed Borna Coric and fifth-seeded Alexander Zverev. The players should be on court shortly and we’ll pick it up with game-by-game coverage from there.

Bryan will be here shortly, in the meantime here are his thoughts on the Novak Djokovic saga:

A US Open bound to be remembered for oddities like empty stadiums, social distancing and bubbles within bubbles took its strangest detour yet on a sweltering Sunday afternoon in Queens when Novak Djokovic, the best player in the world and top seed in the men’s draw, was defaulted from his fourth-round match with Spain’s Pablo Carreño Busta after accidentally hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball struck in a moment of ill temper.

he shock expulsion was, as the USTA’s statement quickly clarified, the correct decision regardless of Djokovic’s intent, and one that has further rocked a tournament already compromised by absent holders and watered-down fields. We may be through with 2020, but 2020 ain’t through with us.

You can read the full story below: