The 2026 US Open set a new late-night record when Ben Shelton's five-set victory over Carlos Alcaraz finished at 3:33 a.m. in New York. The extraordinary ending has renewed a recurring question: why can a major tennis match still be underway when most of the city is asleep?

The answer is a mix of unpredictable match length, television-friendly night sessions and the structure of tennis itself.

Tennis has no fixed game clock

Unlike football or basketball, a tennis match does not end after a set number of minutes. A best-of-five men's match can finish quickly in straight sets or extend for four or five hours. Long games, deuce battles, medical timeouts and tiebreaks add more uncertainty.

Tournament organisers therefore cannot know exactly when the first night match will end. If it runs long, the second match starts late.

Why night sessions exist

Night sessions are commercially valuable because they place marquee matches in prime viewing hours and allow fans to attend after work. Arthur Ashe Stadium can also host separate daytime and evening ticket sessions, increasing attendance opportunities and revenue.

The downside appears when the first evening match is lengthy. A second match scheduled for roughly 8:30 or 9 p.m. can be pushed toward midnight before the players even warm up.

Why not simply move the match?

Moving a match sounds easy but creates new problems. Another court may not have the same ticket allocation, broadcast setup or spectator capacity. Players also prepare around announced schedules, and a last-minute switch can create fairness concerns.

Grand Slam organisers can introduce policies such as earlier starts or cut-off rules, but rain delays and unexpectedly long matches can still break the plan.

What happened in 2026

Shelton and Alcaraz played for roughly four and a half hours before the American completed the upset with a 146-mph ace. AP reported that it was the latest finish in tournament history and part of a broader pattern of post-2 a.m. conclusions during the event.

Players including Venus Williams have publicly questioned extreme late starts and finishes because recovery, sleep and the following round can be affected.

Could the US Open change the system?

Possible fixes include starting night sessions earlier, using only one singles match in the late window, or creating a firm latest-start policy. Each solution carries trade-offs for television, ticket holders and scheduling capacity.

The 3:33 a.m. record makes the issue harder to dismiss. The core problem is simple: tennis sells fixed session times for a sport whose duration is fundamentally unpredictable.

Source: Associated Press.