Taylor Fritz becomes first American in a U.S. Open final since 2006 after beating Frances Tiafoe
On September 7, 2024, at 8:02 in the morning, the Associated Press released a new article.
U.S. Open women's championship match: What you can anticipate
When Taylor Fritz, a 26-year-old hailing from California, and Frances Tiafoe, a 26-year-old from Maryland, made their way onto the court under the bright lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium on Friday night for the first U.S. Open semifinal featuring two American men in nearly two decades, the audience may have found it difficult to choose who to cheer for.
The audience erupted into applause just before the beginning of the game, a fitting introduction to the exciting event that was about to unfold. As the competition progressed, the frequent changes in momentum made it difficult to pick a winner between two longtime friends who have been competing against each other since they were teenagers.
Finally, Fritz received cheers from the crowd as he won six consecutive games against Tiafoe, who was losing momentum. Fritz won the match 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1, earning a spot in his first Grand Slam final.
"I work hard because of my fans," Fritz confessed in a post-game interview, his voice breaking. "They are the motivation behind everything I do."
Fritz, seeded 12th, won his seventh out of eight professional matches against Tiafoe, who is seeded 20th. This victory sets up a final match against the top-seeded Jannik Sinner on Sunday for the championship.
Fritz explained that his opponent was very strong hitting the ball from the back of the court. He was close to losing in the fourth set, but he encouraged himself to keep going and not give up. Fritz knew that if he didn't put all his effort into the game and hoped that his opponent would make mistakes, he would regret it later.
He will be the first American male player to reach a major final since Andy Roddick's defeat to Roger Federer at Wimbledon in 2009. If he defeats Sinner, Fritz would be the first American man to claim a Slam title since Roddick won the U.S. Open 21 years ago.
"This is like a dream come true for me. I made it to the final, so I am going to go all out and give it my all," Fritz expressed. "I am really excited and looking forward to it."
After tying at 4 in the fourth set, he took charge. Tiafoe's thoughts and muscles failed him, as he experienced cramps, possibly due to nervousness thinking the end was near and he was on his way to compete for the championship.
Tiafoe expressed that he felt as though his body suddenly stopped working. He mentioned that he has a record of 7 wins and 14 losses in five-set matches. Tiafoe admitted that he may have become too focused on the outcome and lost sight of the present moment.
At the end of five sets and over three hours of play, Tiafoe made a costly mistake with a double-fault, giving his opponent a break and a 4-0 lead. Frustrated, Tiafoe threw his racket in anger. Fritz, in return, made a similar error with a double-fault in the following game. However, he quickly regained the advantage by breaking Tiafoe's serve again. Eventually, Fritz emerged victorious. The two players shared a respectful embrace at the net after the match.
At times, things just don't work out as we hoped, Tiafoe acknowledged.
A 23-year-old player from Italy, named Sinner, was cleared of wrongdoing in a doping investigation just under three weeks ago, triumphed in a match against No. 25 Jack Draper on Friday. The match included both players receiving treatment from trainers at the same time during the 1 1/2-hour second set.
"It was a tough game, as we witnessed," stated Sinner, the champion of the Australian Open earlier this year. "I simply focused on staying strong mentally throughout."
After slipping and winning a point, he had his left wrist massaged; Draper had to get medical help after vomiting two times in a match with hot weather conditions. While taking a break, a vacuum was used to clean up the mess behind the baseline that Draper had tried to clean himself with a towel.
There was no unnecessary drama outside of the game during Tiafoe vs. Fritz.
"In the end," Tiafoe stated, "it was a fantastic evening, with two Americans competing against each other."
The individual player boxes appeared to mirror the different personalities of the players. Tiafoe, who is very enthusiastic, would react to important moments by raising his fist, clenching his teeth, shaking his racket, or nodding while walking to the sidelines. His group of supporters, which included coach David Witt, who previously worked with Venus Williams, and Jessica Pegula, the American player in the U.S. Open women's final against Aryna Sabalenka, would stand and cheer loudly after each point.
The team in Fritz's quieter corner was more particular in deciding when to celebrate.
Fritz had never made it past the quarterfinals in one of the top four events in his sport, until now. During this journey, he defeated three opponents who had a total of six runner-up finishes in Slam tournaments: Casper Ruud, Alexander Zverev, and Matteo Berrettini.
Fritz had a strong start on Friday, hitting serves at speeds up to 135 mph. However, Tiafoe managed to gather himself and win five games in a row. In the following set, Fritz played almost flawlessly, winning 24 out of 25 service points and succeeding in all 8 net points. Tiafoe quickly regrouped and broke to start the third set, which was all he needed to secure the win as he never allowed Fritz a break chance.
Tiafoe seemed to run out of energy after losing a long 31-stroke point in the middle of the fourth set. He described it as a very intense rally. After that, he made two double faults and hit a drop shot into the net, costing him the final game of the set.
"This is going to be extremely painful," Tiafoe remarked.
