NEW YORK — When Taylor Fritz, a 26-year-old from California, and Frances Tiafoe, a 26-year-old from Maryland, strode under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium in the first U.S. Open semifinal in 19 years, it might have been understandable that the crowd didn’t know who to root for.
A round of applause just before the first point provided a fitting opening to the show. Once the match began, the momentum shifted and it was hard to choose between the best friends, who have known each other since playing in tournaments for kids 14 and under.
In the end, the cheers went to Fritz, who defeated a fading and frustrated Tiafoe by winning six straight games 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 to reach his first Grand Slam final.
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“That’s why I do what I do,” Fritz told fans in his post-game interview, his voice trembling, “that’s why I work so hard.”
Fritz, the 12th seed, won his seventh of eight professional matches against 20th seed Tiafoe and will face top-seeded Jannik Sinner in the championship match on Sunday.
“He was so dominant from the baseline, so I told myself to hang in there,” said Fritz, who was two games away from losing in the fourth set. “I told myself I was going to regret it for a long time if I didn’t give it my all, hang in there and see if his level dropped a little bit.”
Fritz will become the first American to reach a major final since Andy Roddick lost to Roger Federer at Wimbledon in 2009. And if he can beat Sinner, he will become the first American to win a Grand Slam title since Roddick won the U.S. Open 21 years ago.
“It’s a dream come true. I’m in the finals and I’m going to give it my all,” Fritz said. “I can’t wait.”
Fritz will win his 17th major tournament in 2024, which would be the most by an American player in a single year since Roddick’s 17 in 2003.
Fritz took control at 4-all in the fourth set on Friday, but Tiafoe’s strokes and usual confidence betrayed him. When Tiafoe double-faulted to give him a break in the fifth set for 4-0 after more than three hours in the match, Fritz threw down his racket. Fritz retaliated by double-faulting to end the next game, but he was broken right back and the match was soon over. The two men embraced at the net.
Player Major Final David Ferrer 42 2013 French Open Stan Wawrinka 36 2014 Australian Open Kevin Anderson 34 2017 US Open Taylor Fritz 33 2024 US Open Kim Warwick 32 1980 Australian Open – ESPN Stats
Fritz had never previously reached the quarterfinals of one of tennis’ four most prestigious Grand Slam tournaments, but on this trip he has wins over three players who have all been Grand Slam runners-up a combined six times: Kasper Ruud, Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini.
Fritz started well on Friday, serving at up to 135 mph, but Tiafoe stepped up and won five straight games. Fritz was near-flawless in the next set, winning 24 of 25 service points and winning 8 of 8 at net. Tiafoe quickly recovered and broke early in the third set, but that was enough for the set as he never gave Fritz a break chance. Tiafoe appeared to lose steam midway through the fourth set after missing 31 stroke points, the longest of the match, and he double-faulted twice and hit a drop shot into the net to lose the final game of the set.
It was Tiafoe’s 13th five-set loss since his Grand Slam debut in early 2015, his most in five-set matches at a major tournament in that time.
ESPN Stats & Information and The Associated Press contributed to this report.