New York [US], September 12 (ANI): Ben Shelton battled past fellow American Frances Tiafoe 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 to reach his maiden Grand Slam final at the US Open on Friday, keeping alive his hopes of ending a 23-year wait for an American men's singles champion at the hard-court major.
The eighth-seeded Shelton recovered after dropping the opening set to complete a three-hour, 17-minute victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium and set up a title clash with top seed Alexander Zverev on Sunday.
Zverev earlier defeated Karen Khachanov to reach his first US Open final since 2020, while Shelton will be bidding to become the first American man since Andy Roddick in 2003 to win the singles title at Flushing Meadows.
"I am going to need you guys on Sunday," Shelton said to the crowd following his semi-final triumph, as per the ATP website. "I'm going for it here. I'm going to leave it all on the court. I hope you guys come back me. Let's do this for the USA."
Shelton, ranked No. 9 in the ATP rankings, entered the semifinal after a dramatic five-set victory over defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals, with that match finishing at 3:33 a.m. local time.
Against Tiafoe, the 23-year-old initially struggled to impose himself as the latter edged a tightly contested opening set. Shelton dropped serve at 4-4 after a double fault before Tiafoe served out to love to take the lead.
The eighth seed responded immediately in the second set. After the pair exchanged breaks early, Shelton raised his level at 4-3, drilling a backhand return winner to earn a break point before converting to move 5-3 ahead. He then levelled the match with a 132 mph first serve as Tiafoe sent his return into the net.
Shelton continued to find his range in the third set, winning the crucial exchanges as the match grew increasingly physical. At 2-2, 30/0, he won a 28-ball rally to earn three break points and converted the first to take a 3-2 lead.
He broke again at 5-3 after a marathon 15-minute game featuring seven deuces, converting his fourth set point to move within one set of the final.
Tiafoe raised his level on serve in the fourth set and refused to give Shelton an opening, but the eighth seed continued to apply pressure. With the set locked at 5-5, Shelton finally capitalised on a nervy service game from his compatriot to earn the decisive break.
He then held his nerve to serve out the match and complete the comeback.
Shelton finished with 47 winners, including 20 aces, to reach the biggest final of his career. He is now the 13th different American man in the Open Era to reach the US Open final and the first since Taylor Fritz in 2024.
The victory also improved Shelton's record against Tiafoe to 4-1 in their ATP head-to-head meetings.
"Frances is like a big brother to me," Shelton said, as per the ATP website. "Every time we take to this court together [Arthur Ashe Stadium], it is super special. This is where we want to be. At the tail end of the tournament. This is our favourite tournament and favourite court in the world. And to be able to light it up in front of you guys is the best feeling."
Shelton will face a formidable challenge in Zverev, who leads their head-to-head record 5-0. However, the American will enter Sunday's final with four titles already won this season in Dallas, Munich, Stuttgart and Montreal.
By reaching the championship match, Shelton has also become the youngest American US Open men's finalist since Roddick, who was 21 when he reached the final in 2003. (ANI)
US Open: Ben Shelton rallies past Frances Tiafoe to reach maiden Grand Slam final
