Four quarterfinal spots fell on Sept. 6 at the US Open, as Sabalenka, Alcaraz, Tiafoe and Shelton advanced and ESPN and ABC prepared TV and streaming windows for the next rounds.

4 quarterfinal places were decided on Day 8, Sept. 6, at the 2026 US Open.

Those four results were Aryna Sabalenka's 6-4, 6-3 win over Taylor Townsend; Carlos Alcaraz's 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Tommy Paul; Frances Tiafoe's 7-6(7-1), 6-4, 7-6(8-6) upset of Daniil Medvedev; and Ben Shelton's 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 defeat of Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Broadcasters have mapped out daytime and primetime windows around those matches: Day 8 coverage ran Sept. 6 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on ESPN with a 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. primetime block, Day 9 coverage is scheduled Sept. 7 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on ESPN, and quarterfinals begin Tuesday, Sept. 8. Streaming options include full-match access for ESPN Unlimited subscribers and select action on Disney+, with ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes providing additional linear channels; Aryna Sabalenka is set to face No. 6 Linda Noskova in a women's quarterfinal on Tuesday, Sept. 8.

What Happened

The Round of 16 turned decisive on Sept. 6 as four quarterfinal spots were sealed and the tournament left with a mix of expected progress and American breakouts. Day 8 sent two defending champions through and handed the men's draw a pair of homegrown headlines.

  • Aryna Sabalenka beat Taylor Townsend, 6-4, 6-3, becoming the first player into the quarterfinals and drawing No. 6 Linda Noskova in the women's quarterfinals on Tuesday, Sept. 8.
  • Carlos Alcaraz defeated Tommy Paul, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4, in his first match back after a wrist injury that sidelined him in April.
  • Frances Tiafoe upset Daniil Medvedev, 7-6(7-1), 6-4, 7-6(8-6), handing the Russian a straight-sets loss.
  • Ben Shelton beat Stefanos Tsitsipas, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.

Tiafoe's victory was the clearest moment of the day, as he dominated the first-set tiebreak 7-1 and then saved a set point in the third-set tiebreak en route to the straight-sets win.

Broadcasters for the event include ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, with Spanish coverage on ESPN Deportes; full-match streaming is available to ESPN Unlimited subscribers and select action appears on Disney+.

Quarterfinals begin Tuesday, Sept. 8.

The Key Moment

Frances Tiafoe's upset of Daniil Medvedev was the defining moment of Day 8, a win that reshuffled the draw and kept the American run alive.

Tiafoe closed it out in straight sets, 7-6(1), 6-4, 7-6(8), dominating the first-set tiebreak 7-1 and later saving a set point in the third-set tiebreak. He took the big points when they mattered and denied Medvedev the foothold he usually finds in tight matches.

Mastheads

For full match details and Day 8 context, see the match coverage.

Tiafoe now faces Alex Michelsen in the quarterfinals, a pairing that guarantees at least one American in the semifinals.

By The Numbers

Day 8, Sept. 6, delivered four quarterfinal spots: Aryna Sabalenka d. Taylor Townsend 6-4, 6-3; Carlos Alcaraz d. Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-3, 6-4; Frances Tiafoe d. Daniil Medvedev 7-6(7-1), 6-4, 7-6(8-6); Ben Shelton d. Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.

Tiafoe won the first-set tiebreak 7-1 and saved a set point in the third-set tiebreak before closing out the straight-sets upset.

The tournament is airing across ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, with Spanish coverage on ESPN Deportes and full-match streaming available to ESPN Unlimited subscribers; select action streams on Disney+.

Key broadcast windows around Sept. 6-8:

  • Day 8 (Sept. 6): 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on ESPN, and a 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. primetime block.
  • Day 9 (Sept. 7): 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on ESPN.
  • Quarterfinals: daytime and primetime windows listed for Sept. 8, with the quarterfinals set to begin Tuesday, Sept. 8.

Sabalenka will meet No. 6 Linda Noskova in the women’s quarterfinals on Tuesday, Sept. 8. See the tournament's full order of play.

What's Next

Quarterfinals begin Tuesday, Sept. 8, and the tournament pivots from Round of 16 drama to a compact, high-stakes two-day slate that will land in both daytime and primetime TV windows. Sabalenka, Alcaraz and the American contenders move from wins into matchups that matter for the draw and for broadcast schedules. The next round will decide who gets the late-night network spotlight and who is left fighting for the remaining Grand Slam spots.

Key quarterfinal matchups

  • Aryna Sabalenka, the No. 1 seed, will face No. 6 Linda Noskova on Tuesday, Sept. 8.
  • Carlos Alcaraz advances to a quarterfinal that projects as a marquee men's match; Ben Shelton, fresh off his win over Stefanos Tsitsipas, is lined up to meet him.
  • Frances Tiafoe, No. 11, will play Alex Michelsen after Tiafoe’s straight-sets victory over Daniil Medvedev and Michelsen’s run to his first Grand Slam quarterfinal.

TV and streaming

  • ESPN will carry daytime coverage and a primetime block. On Sept. 6, Day 8 windows ran 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. ET and 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. ET on ESPN; Day 9 coverage on Sept. 7 was scheduled 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. Quarterfinal daytime and primetime windows are listed for Sept. 8.
  • The tournament will air across ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, with Spanish-language coverage on ESPN Deportes.
  • Every match is available to stream for ESPN Unlimited subscribers, and select action will appear on Disney+.

Expect the next two days to sharpen the scoreboard and the TV schedule. Sept. 8 is the date that will land in broadcasters’ prime-time plans and on ESPN Unlimited and Disney+.

Originally reported by USA Today.

Daniel Ortiz covers the technology industry and American sports for USA Daily Report. On the tech beat, he reports on artificial intelligence, major product launches, antitrust actions against Big Tech, and the startups and business decisions reshaping Silicon Valley and beyond. On the sports side, he covers the NFL, NBA, MLB, and college athletics - with a focus on the business of sports, front-office strategy, and the stories that extend beyond the box score.

Daniel grew up in Austin, Texas, where he started writing about high school football for a local community blog while still in college. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Computer Science - a combination that made him the default person in every newsroom he worked in when something broke on deadline. After graduation, he spent three years at a Texas-based digital news outlet covering the state's growing tech corridor, writing about semiconductor manufacturing, defense contracting, and the expansion of major tech campuses outside of California.

He joined USA Daily Report because he wanted to cover both of the beats he cared about without having to pick one. His technology reporting has covered everything from chip supply chain disruptions to app store antitrust cases, and his sports coverage leans toward the analytical - why teams make the moves they make, and what the numbers say when the narratives stop making sense.

Daniel is a firm believer that the best stories are at the edges where industries overlap. He still argues that print is not dead, though he has not purchased a physical newspaper in some time.

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This article was created with AI assistance.