NEW YORK: Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz have set up an all-American semi-final at the US Open with victories on Tuesday, guaranteeing that a US player will feature in the final of the country’s Grand Slam tournament for the first time in 18 years.
The 20th-seeded Tiafoe reached the final four at Flushing Meadows for the second time in three years after his quarter-final opponent, Grigor Dimitrov, stopped playing due to an injury in the fourth set. Tiafoe was leading 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 4-1 when Dimitrov retired from the match, providing an anticlimactic ending to a contest that was not necessarily of the highest quality.
“It’s not the way I want to get through,” Tiafoe said, “but obviously happy to get through. Another semi-final here. Incredible.”
A glimpse of the uneven play from both players: Dimitrov held three set points in the tiebreaker at 6-3. On the first, he double-faulted. On the second, he double-faulted again. On the third, Tiafoe double-faulted, handing over that set.
Earlier in the day, Fritz advanced in a far more satisfying manner, watching as his higher-ranked, more accomplished opponent's final errant forehand landed wide. Fritz dropped his neon-coloured racket, clenched both fists, and screamed, “Come on!” He gathered himself and his equipment, walked to the net for a hug with the No. 4 seed, Alexander Zverev, who has twice been a Grand Slam runner-up, then stepped to the centre of Arthur Ashe Stadium, spread his arms wide, and yelled again, “Come on!”
After years of climbing the rankings, becoming the top American man in tennis, and coming close to making a breakthrough at one of the sport's four most important events, Fritz finally succeeded on home soil, beating Zverev 7-6 (2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to reach a major semi-final for the first time.
The 12th-seeded Fritz, a 26-year-old from California, entered the day with an 0-4 record in Slam quarter-finals. Now, on Friday, he will take on longtime friend Tiafoe, a 26-year-old from Maryland who lost to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz in the 2022 US Open semi-finals. Fritz holds a 6-1 head-to-head edge over Tiafoe as professionals.
“It’s the biggest match of mine and Taylor’s lives. We’ve known each other for so long. I’ve been playing against him since the 14-and-under tournaments,” Tiafoe said during an on-court interview. “So to be able to play him here… is going to be awesome. I know we’re two Americans, but I hope you’re all with me come Friday.”
The Fritz-Tiafoe showdown—“That could be crazy,” Fritz said before he knew who he’d face next—is the first semi-final between a pair of American men at any major since 2005, when Andre Agassi defeated Robby Ginepri in New York. No American man has won a Grand Slam singles title since Andy Roddick triumphed at the US Open in 2003; Roddick was the last US player in the US Open final, losing to Roger Federer in 2006.
Dimitrov, who was seeded No. 9, had played a five-setter in the fourth round and appeared to be fading late in the third set against Tiafoe, grabbing at his left hamstring, walking gingerly between points, and hitting serves much slower than earlier in the evening. After that set, Dimitrov was visited by a trainer and then headed to the locker room for treatment. He returned to the court for the start of the fourth set but wasn’t able to move properly and eventually retired.
Dimitrov, a 33-year-old from Bulgaria who has appeared in three major semi-finals, wouldn’t say afterwards exactly what was wrong, only that it was an accumulation of issues. “Just a disappointing moment for me,” Dimitrov said. “I need to reassess a couple of things.”
The other men’s quarter-finals will be played on Wednesday: No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. No. 5 Daniil Medvedev, and No. 10 Alex de Minaur vs. No. 25 Jack Draper.
In the women’s bracket, No. 13 Emma Navarro of the US reached her first Grand Slam semi-final by taking the last six games in a 6-2, 7-5 victory over No. 26 Paula Badosa, and next faces No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka.
Fritz used his usual blend of big serving—winning 20 of 21 points when his first serves landed in during the fourth set—and big forehands, but he was also effective at the net, winning 16 of 24 points when he pushed forward, and returned well enough to accumulate 10 break points. Even though Fritz only converted two of those break chances, it meant he constantly put pressure on Zverev, a German who made it to the final of the US Open in 2020 and the French Open this year.
Fritz’s latest quarter-final loss came in July at Wimbledon against Lorenzo Musetti. The other three? Two came against 24-time Slam champion Novak Djokovic; the other against 22-time Slam champion Rafael Nadal. One was at last year’s US Open against Djokovic, who went on to win the title. Djokovic was eliminated this time in the third round last week; Nadal sat out the tournament.
Fritz’s coach, Michael Russell, said those past stumbles were not a topic of conversation before this quarter-final. “It’s cool I’m in the semis. But I very much have the mindset of the job’s not done,” Fritz said.