NEW YORK -- Top-seeded Alexander Zverev beat No. 21 Luciano Darderi 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (3) on Monday night to reach the quarterfinals of the US Open.
Zverev, who has won his past two matches in straight sets after opening the tournament with a pair of five-set marathons, will next face Botic Van De Zandschulp, who is coming off his own five-set thriller. Van De Zandschulp outlasted Arthur Gea 3-6, 6-7 (0), 7-6 (7), 7-6 (3), 6-4 in 5 hours, 13 minutes, the fourth-longest match in US Open history.
Gea, a Frenchman who got into the tournament when 2022 runner-up Casper Ruud pulled out with a back injury, had a match point in the third-set tiebreaker in a bid to become the first lucky loser to reach the quarterfinals of a men's major.
Also going five sets -- though a mere 3 hours, 50 minutes -- was Karen Khachanov's 7-5, 4-6, 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-4 victory over No. 14 Learner Tien. Tien was trying to give the host country four men in the US Open quarterfinals for the first time since five made it in 1995. No. 8 Ben Shelton, No. 11 Frances Tiafoe and Alex Michelsen all advanced Sunday, along with defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Khachanov will play No. 28 seed Alexander Blockx, who beat No. 24 Francisco Cerundolo 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 to become the first man from Belgium to reach the US Open quarterfinals.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
