From ABC7 Los Angeles · · 2m
Shelton is one win from ending a 23-year American drought
Ben Shelton outserved Frances Tiafoe to reach his first major final, and only Alexander Zverev stands between him and history.
In brief
Ben Shelton outserved Frances Tiafoe to reach his first major final, and only Alexander Zverev stands between him and history. No American man has won a Grand Slam since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Shelton, who was under a year old then, gets his shot Sunday. Originally reported by ABC7 Los Angeles.
Shelton makes his first final
He beat Frances Tiafoe 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 on Friday night in Flushing Meadows. The No. 8 seed now faces top seed Alexander Zverev for the U.S. Open title.
A drought since 2003
The United States has not had a men's major champion since Andy Roddick won this tournament in 2003. Shelton, 23, was less than a year old at the time.
“I'm going for it here, and I'm going to leave it all on the court.”
Zverev wants to spoil it
The German took out Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (6) in the first semifinal and knows exactly what he would be denying the home crowd.
“Hopefully I can not make the American dream come true on Sunday.”
Fresh off a 3:33 a.m. finish
Shelton had ousted defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a quarterfinal that ended at 3:33 a.m. Wednesday, the latest finish in U.S. Open history, and still had energy left.
Celebrities packed the stands
Serena Williams, Jalen Brunson, Salma Hayek, Ben Stiller and Rami Malek watched, along with soccer star Trinity Rodman, Shelton's girlfriend. The crowd cheered both Americans.
“This is both of our favorite tournament in the world, our favorite court in the world.”
Tiafoe started cleaner
After a ceremony marking 25 years since 9/11, Tiafoe took the first set with just three unforced errors to Shelton's 14. A Shelton double fault at 4-4 handed over the break.
Then the serve took over
Shelton finished with 20 aces. At 3-all in the second set he fired a 125 mph serve that knocked Tiafoe backward, then followed with 144, 139 and 140 mph.
A 15-minute game decided it
Serving to stay in the third set, Tiafoe fought through 20 points over 15 minutes before netting a forehand. Shelton was one set from the final.
Tiafoe is now 0-3 here
He has lost all three of his U.S. Open semifinals, the last two to fellow Americans. Taylor Fritz beat him in 2024 before losing to Jannik Sinner.
“Ben played well tonight. Served really well tonight, which made it really tough on me.”
Zverev chasing a ghost
He broke through at the French Open this year and is 24-2 in majors this season. In 2020 he led Dominic Thiem two sets to none in this final and lost in a fifth-set tiebreaker.
“Maybe this year God has said that this is going to be your year.”
Here's the gist
No American man has won a Grand Slam since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Shelton, who was under a year old then, gets his shot Sunday.
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