NEW YORK — Ben Shelton won the All-American battle against Frances Tiafoe in the US Open semifinals, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5, setting up a potential breakthrough that could end a Grand Slam drought that has lasted more than two decades.
Playing in the backdrop of the tributes and ceremonies honoring the fallen victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks 25 years ago, the two players – Shelton, who was born in Georgia and raised in Florida, and Tiafoe, from Maryland – gave a packed and enthusiastic crowd of 24,000 at Arthur Ashe Stadium what they came to see: an entertaining, yet sometimes sloppy match filled with incredible rallies and lethal forehands.
Shelton is the first Black American man to reach a US Open singles final since Ashe in 1972 and
the first Black American man to reach any Grand Slam singles final since MaliVai Washington in 1996 at Wimbledon.
There was no match point trademark "dialed-in" celebration this time by Shelton after he finished off Tiafoe, as the No. 11 seed double-faulted in the net, ending the three-hour, 17-minute duel.
“First on Foe, he’s like a big brother to me, to be honest," Shelton said in his on-court interview after the match. "Every time we get to take this court together, Arthur Ashe, and play each other is super special. This is where we want to be at the end of this tournament. This is both of our favorite tournament in the world, favorite court in the world. And to be able to light it up in front of you guys is the best feeling that there is.”
Shelton, the No. 8 seed and the highest-ranked American, will face top seed Alexander Zverev, who beat Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (6), in the final on Sept. 13, aiming to become the first American male to win a Grand Slam title since Andy Roddick’s 2003 triumph at Flushing Meadows.
Shelton will try to break another streak on Sunday: he has never beaten Zverev in five career matches, including losing in straight sets in their last meeting in November at the ATP Finals.
Both players were well rested despite surviving five-set, four-hour-plus thrillers in the quarterfinals, with Shelton ending his match against No. 2 seed Alcaraz at 3:33 a.m. Wednesday morning, Tiafoe rallied from two sets down against Alex Michelsen earlier in the day.
The match got off to a rousing start with a Shelton ace, and break chances were scarce. The crucial ninth game saw Tiafoe break Shelton’s serve, as Shelton lost the last three points on two backhand errors and a double fault, and then Tiafoe put the set away with his own flawless service game.
Shelton put that powerful left-handed serve to use to even the match, with speeds reaching over 150 miles per hour, leading to easy points, including 20 aces. The last game of the third set took more than 15 minutes to complete and finally ended with Shelton converting on his fourth attempt, on Tiafoe’s forehand volley that hit the net.
The 23-year-old Shelton will jump to No. 4 in the rankings, while Tiafoe will also earn a career-high ranking of No. 8 with his run to the semifinals.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ben Shelton makes first US Open final after outdueling Frances Tiafoe
