Ram and Salisbury Oust Defending Champions to Reach US Open Semifinals

Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury advanced to the US Open men's doubles semifinals by defeating defending champions Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-4, 6-4 in New York. BBC Sport reported the quarterfinal result early Thursday, while an EFE report published by ABC Color confirmed that the match lasted one hour and 27 minutes.

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The straight-sets victory removed the No. 2 seeds from the draw and ended their attempt to retain the championship they won in 2025. Ram, an American, and Salisbury, a Briton, claimed one break in each set and did not need a deciding set to eliminate one of the tournament's most established partnerships.

Granollers and Zeballos entered the match with considerable recent Grand Slam success. They won the 2025 US Open men's doubles title by beating Salisbury and Neal Skupski in a three-set final, and they successfully defended their Roland Garros crown in June 2026. Their run in New York this year ended two victories short of another final.

For Salisbury, the quarterfinal also reversed part of last year's outcome. He had been on the losing side of the 2025 final alongside Skupski, when Granollers and Zeballos recovered to win 3-6, 7-6, 7-5. This time Salisbury partnered Ram, with whom he previously won three consecutive US Open men's doubles titles from 2021 through 2023.

The pair's record in New York gives their semifinal appearance added weight. Ram and Salisbury were the tournament champions in each of those three seasons, making this their latest deep run together at the same major. The win over the reigning champions guarantees that the 2026 men's doubles trophy will change hands.

The result also brought an abrupt finish to Granollers and Zeballos's defense after they had reached the quarterfinals as the second-seeded team. Ram, 42, and Salisbury now move within one victory of the championship match, carrying a 6-4, 6-4 win over the holders into the final four. No semifinal result had been reported at the time of publication.