NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Taylor Fritz survived an epic fight against American compatriot Frances Tiafoe 4-6 7-5 4-6 6-4 6-1 to reach his first major final at the U.S. Open yesterday.
The home fans packed Arthur Ashe Stadium for the all-American semi-final, where 12th seed Fritz used his monster serve to his advantage, closing out the match with one of 16 aces.
Tiafoe got off to a terrific start but gradually ran out of energy and had nothing left in the tank in the final set, as 50 unforced errors and nine double faults across the match cost him dearly.
He next plays Italian top seed Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s championship match, where he hopes to end a 21-year U.S. men’s major drought.