Taylor Fritz and Alexander Zverev set for quarterfinals rematch at US Open after their epic Wimbledon showdown and rumored beef over American’s influencer girlfriend, Morgan Riddle

They meet again.

Taylor Fritz and rival Alexander Zverev are booked for a US Open quarterfinal on Tuesday in Queens, where the two have faced off since the round of 16 at Wimbledon. Fritz overcame a sluggish start to eventually dominate eighth-seeded Casper Ruud 3-6 6-4 6-3 6-2 on Sunday, while Zverev defeated American Brandon Nakashima 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2.

In July, Fritz won in five sets at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club against fourth-ranked Zverev. He later came under fire from Fritz’s girlfriend Morgan Riddle over allegations of domestic abuse in 2020.

Riddle, a social media influencer with 17.2 million likes on TikTok, has since deleted an Instagram video with the caption: ‘when your man wins 4 the girls.’

Zverev agreed in June to a settlement of about $240,000 with his accuser, the mother of his child. However, he has never been convicted of a crime and maintains his innocence.

Riddle later claimed she was not referring to Zverev, as many of Fritz’s fans believed.

“Regarding my stories yesterday… I immediately deleted them when I realized the misunderstandings and how much the media had blown them out of proportion,” she said in a subsequent video.

‘It wasn’t about anything that happened off the tennis court and there is no animosity between the two.

‘Super proud of T [Taylor] for yesterday’s game, thanks to the crowd for the support and I look forward to tomorrow.’

There were more problems between Fritz, Riddle and Zverev.

After the five-set match at Wimbledon, there was a tense exchange of words at the net between the two players.

The German said afterwards that he was angry with some of the people in Fritz’s box who ‘may not come from the tennis world.’

Riddle was in Fritz’s box that day.

“His team is extremely respectful. I think his coach, his physiotherapist, and also his second coach, are extremely respectful,” Zverev said.

“I think there are other people in the box who may not be from the tennis world, who may not have watched every match. They were a little bit over the top.”

Zverev and Fritz have since spoken to each other, the American told reporters at Wimbledon.

“I think he was a little bit angry that my teammates were cheering me on when he was injured, but he said, ‘It’s nothing to do with you. You’re all good…’ Whatever, it’s all good.”

Fritz on Sunday became the first American to reach the quarterfinals of the US Open since 2007, when Andy Roddick did so.

“I think as you get better, your expectations go up,” Fritz, who is 0-4 in Grand Slam quarterfinals (including last year’s US Open), said afterwards. “Whatever satisfies you, whatever makes you happy in terms of ranking and results, that goes up too.

“I think in the past I was very, very excited and very happy to get to the quarterfinals at Slams. I think I’m at the point now where I’m still happy to get to the quarterfinals, but I wouldn’t be happy if it ended here.”

There were certainly moments on Sunday when Fritz’s confidence was tested. Before he could reach a second (and successful) set point to level the match, and with Louis Armstrong Stadium at its loudest, he shot into the net after a long rally and dropped his racket in frustration (he explained afterward that he was unhappy with the ball bouncing poorly off the line).

But instead of letting the opportunity slip by, Fritz shook himself off and quickly seized his first chance of the afternoon, eventually winning the match convincingly.

Zverev reached the final of the US Open in 2020, when he lost to Austrian Dominic Thiem, and earlier this year he reached the final of Rolland Garros.