Craig Tiley, the newly appointed chief executive of the United States Tennis Association, has publicly confirmed that the tournament’s signature format of two daytime matches and two evening matches will remain unchanged for the 2027 edition at Flushing Meadows. Tiley, who stepped into the USTA’s top role earlier this year after a decade‑long tenure steering Tennis Australia, told Sky Sports Tennis that he sees no reason to alter the schedule that fans have come to expect. The announcement follows a marathon quarter‑final that saw Ben Shelton battle Carlos Alcaraz for five grueling sets, a contest that finally concluded at 3:33 a.m. local time on Wednesday.
The near‑five‑hour showdown left only a handful of spectators awake to witness the dramatic finish on one of tennis’s grandest stages. The match joined a growing list of late‑night finishes that have sparked debate among players, officials and fans alike.
Historically, the allure of night tennis under the bright lights of New York City has been a major draw. Yet the 2026 US Open already set a record with three matches ending after 2 a.m.
in the first six days, and two additional contests pushed past the 1 a.m. mark. These extreme hours have become a flashpoint in broader discussions about player welfare, prize‑money distribution and the overall working conditions on the professional tour.
Other Grand Slam events have taken steps to curb excessively late finishes. Wimbledon, for instance, enforces an 11 p.m.
curfew, while the French Open limits night sessions to a single match per day. The Australian Open, however, has faced similar criticism for its late endings, illustrating that the US Open is not alone in grappling with this issue. One proposed remedy—starting evening sessions earlier than the current 7 p.m.
kickoff—runs into logistical challenges. Many New Yorkers travel to Flushing Meadows after a full day’s work, and the tournament must accommodate both daytime and nighttime crowds. Adjusting the start time could disrupt the delicate balance that allows fans to enjoy a full day of tennis followed by a thrilling night session.
Tiley addressed these concerns directly, acknowledging the complaints while emphasizing the practical limits of match length control. He explained, “I hear from a lot of people that it finishes too late and then I say, okay, and your suggestion is?
I don’t get anything. You can’t control the length of the match.” He noted that while the time between points has remained relatively stable over the past decade, men’s matches have grown by roughly 25 minutes on average. The increase, he said, is largely due to the introduction of the shot clock, longer towel breaks and a more measured pace of play.
Despite these extensions, the average duration of men’s matches today does not rank among the longest of the past ten years. Tiley continued, “While it feels really late, the reality is you’ve got to go and look at the data. But that being said, no one wants to finish at 3:30 a.m.
in the morning, although the rest of the world in the daytime saw a pretty amazing match.” He reaffirmed his commitment to the two‑day, two‑night schedule, stating, “We really like the two days and two nights. Two full sessions and you get a women’s match and a great men’s match, and that’s what our fans are telling us.
They can come out and see three, four, five hours of entertainment and if it goes really long like the other night, that’s a great sporting ticket so I will keep it.” The tournament’s social media channels responded with humor, posting a fill‑in‑the‑blank template that invited fans to ask their employers for a day off after the late‑night spectacle. The tweet read, “We understand how important showing up is, but sometimes you have to make time for things you’re passionate about. Carlos Alcaraz and Ben Shelton put on an absolute stellar performance during their US Open quarter‑final, and ______ was a fully committed fan who was completely locked in from start to finish.” Beyond scheduling, another recurring suggestion has been to shorten men’s matches in the early rounds from best‑of‑five sets to best‑of‑three. This idea remains contentious, as many purists argue that five‑set battles are a hallmark of Grand Slam drama.
US player Frances Tiafoe weighed in, saying, “I think for the men we should stick with three out of five. I don’t know where the conversation is going, what people are leaning to. Everyone is going to have an opinion, everyone is different. We’ve seen so many epics in five‑setters.
Do I love five‑setters? Absolutely not. There’s a lot of times where I’m up two sets to love and I’d love to shake hands and go home. But it’s tennis, man.” As the 2026 US Open continues to stream on Sky Sports from August 30, the debate over late finishes underscores a larger conversation about the future of professional tennis.
Balancing fan excitement, player health, and logistical realities will remain a central challenge for tournament organizers. For now, Tiley’s pledge to retain the day‑night format signals continuity, even as the sport grapples with evolving expectations and the ever‑present desire to deliver unforgettable moments under the New York lights.