Carlos Alcaraz has been back for four matches after five months out with a wrist injury, and he's dropped one set.

The defending champion is on an 18-match winning streak at Grand Slams and an 11-match streak at Flushing Meadows.

Ben Shelton is the eighth seed, the American No. 1, and 0-3 against him, having won one of the eight sets they've played. Asked on court what it would take on Tuesday, Shelton said "special tennis". He's not wrong.

Before we get to the full preview, the key details:

Competition: US Open, men's singles quarter-final

Venue: Arthur Ashe Stadium, New York

Date: Wednesday 9 September 2026 (Tuesday night in New York)

Start Time: night session from 9:00am AEST

Quick Picks

Our Pick: Match Betting: Carlos Alcaraz

Alternative Pick: Set Betting: Carlos Alcaraz 3-0

Alcaraz Came Back Like He'd Never Left

Nobody had seen him since Barcelona in April. He's now beaten Roman Safiullin, Jaime Faria, Yibing Wu and Tommy Paul, the last of those 6-4 6-3 6-4 with 33 winners and no sign of the wrist.

That's a 26-3 season despite the layoff, a 15th Grand Slam quarter-final, and a run at majors that takes in last year's title here and the Australian Open in January that completed the career Grand Slam. 

Shelton called the comeback "superhuman" and he was being generous to himself: this is a player who has been better than everyone for a year and a half, minus the months he wasn't playing.

Shelton Is Hot, and He Finally Gets This Match at Home

The 23-year-old won back-to-back Canadian Masters titles in August, lost his first match in Cincinnati, and has been the loudest player in New York since.

His fourth round was the best of it: 6-2 6-3 6-4 over Stefanos Tsitsipas, a win that ended a 149-year run of at least one one-handed backhand reaching the semi-finals of every Slam. The earlier rounds against Tallon Griekspoor and Denis Shapovalov were rougher.

The year has been a roller coaster by his own description. Quarter-finals in Melbourne, titles in Dallas, Munich and Stuttgart on three surfaces, then a second-round loss at Roland Garros and a first-round exit at Wimbledon he called one of the toughest of his career.

The three previous meetings with Alcaraz were all abroad: Toronto 2023, Laver Cup 2024, Roland Garros 2025. This is the first one on American soil, and the crowd is the one variable Alcaraz hasn't yet faced this fortnight.

Shelton's Serve Against Alcaraz's Backhand Is the Whole Match

Shelton's route past Shapovalov and Tsitsipas was straightforward: lefty serve, forehand, attack the one-hander

Alcaraz has a two-handed backhand that has never been troubled by Shelton's power, which is why the head to head reads the way it does. The one set Shelton has taken came at Roland Garros last year.

Set betting is the market to think about. Alcaraz in straight sets has been the outcome in two of three meetings and in three of his four matches here.

Shelton's serve gives him a tiebreak in most matches he plays, so first-set correct-score lines at 7-6 have logic behind them, and aces markets favour the American at every line. For the latest Shelton vs Alcaraz odds and markets, check out the dedicated odds page at Sportsbet.

Shelton vs Alcaraz Prediction

Alcaraz in straight sets. The form line is one dropped set in four matches, the head to head is 3-0 with seven sets from eight, and the matchup problem for Shelton hasn't changed since Toronto three years ago.

At the same time, a night session on Ashe, an American crowd, a serve that can steal a set on its own. If it goes to a tiebreak Shelton can take it. But he'll need two of them, and Alcaraz has been through three sets in the tiebreaks they've played without losing one, Alcaraz 7-6 6-3 6-4. 

Whoever comes through, the winner sits a round closer to the rivalry that defines the men's game, and the Alcaraz versus Sinner head to head is worth a look before the business end.