Frances Tiafoe rallies past Alex Michelsen in US Open quarterfinals
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NEW YORK — Frances Tiafoe came storming back from a two-set deficit to defeat unseeded Alex Michelsen 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6) in a thrilling All-American US Open quarterfinal match in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The grueling four-hour, 38-minute slugfest came to an end when Tiafoe prevailed in a tiebreak, claiming victory on a gorgeous forehand winner.
”Everyone was sleeping the first couple hours, I was like, ‘What’s going on?'” Tiafoe said during an on-court interview. “I was asleep with y’all! Then the energy was incredible. Thank you, guys.”
Entering the tournament ranked 46th, Michelsen was attempting to become the second-lowest-ranked men’s player to reach the US Open semifinals this decade, after Ben Shelton, who was ranked No. 47 in 2023 when he made his semifinal run. But the world’s biggest tennis arena claimed another victim who failed to hold a two-set lead after American Taylor Fritz couldn’t maintain his lead and lost to Francisco Cerundolo in the third round.
Tiafoe, a US Open semifinalist in 2022 and 2024, had no answers for Michelsen at the start, who used his serve to score easy points. And although his break percentage was less than 50%, he won almost half of his second-serve attempts. The unseeded 22-year-old, who was once committed to the University of Georgia to play college tennis before turning pro, took the first two sets before Tiafoe came roaring back, rattling the young California native.
Despite the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd constantly cheering, “One, two, three, FOE,” for his opponent, Michelsen seemed undeterred, but as he served for the match in the third set, Michelsen was broken, and then Tiafoe put him away during his service game. Michelsen was then broken again, giving Tiafoe the 7-5 set win and handing Michelsen his first set loss of the entire tournament.
During the final set, Michelsen raced out to a 3-0 lead, frustrating Tiafoe so much that he slammed his racket in frustration after an unforced error. Again, Tiafoe would roar back, converting a break point with a powerful ace to square the match at three. The final set eventually headed to a tiebreaker, where the experienced Tiafoe took control, completing the epic comeback.
The Americans shared a long embrace after the match, with Tiafoe running over to the other side of the net to comfort his young, heartbroken opponent.
“I was trying to keep it together, and I didn’t do a good job of that. He was saying a lot of nice personal things,” Michelsen said of Tiafoe. “You’ll be there. When I’m older, you’re going to be here, and we’re going it play again in this type of circumstance. All that good stuff. He’s a great guy for consoling me in that moment.”
Despite the loss, Michelsen will move up to No. 33 when the next ATP rankings are released, while Tiafoe will reach a career-high of No. 8. Tiafoe joins Andre Agassi as the only American men to reach three U.S. Open semifinals since 2000.
Tiafoe will next play the winner between No. 8 seed Ben Shelton and second-seeded Carlos Alcaraz on Friday, Sept. 11, keeping alive the hope that an American male will break through and win a Grand Slam for the first time since 2003 when Andy Roddick won the US Open.