US Open 2024: How Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz finally broke through to set up a historic showdown

Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe will meet at the US Open semifinals in an all-American battle on Friday. No matter the result, one of them will become the first American man to reach a Grand Slam final since Andy Roddick at Wimbledon in 2009.

This will mark the first time two American men face each other in the US Open semifinals since Robby Ginepri and Andre Agassi met in the 2005 semifinals. 

“Friday is going to be one hell of a day,” Tiafoe said.

Fritz leads their all-time series 6-1, with Tiafoe’s lone win happening in 2016 at Indian Wells. Despite the head-to-head numbers, it should be a competitive match as both are playing their best tennis. They also have the extra incentive of snapping a 21-year drought with no American man winning a major since Roddick in 2003. An interesting twist to this showdown is the two are good friends who have also competed as doubles partners for years.

“It’s the biggest match of me and Taylor’s lives,” Tiafoe said.”To be able to play him here at the biggest arena, in one of the biggest matches in the world, it’s going to be awesome. I can’t be more excited. I’m going to give everything I got.”

Tiafoe, seeded No. 20, got his semifinal spot after No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov retired because of injury during their four-set battle. It wasn’t how he wanted to earn his ticket, but Tiafoe did have a strong showing and was up 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 4-1 at the time. 

He arrived to New York fresh off his first ATP Masters 1000 final in Cincinnati, which he said gave him a lot of confidence for the final Grand Slam of the season. The closest he has ever gotten to a major trophy was in this same tournament in 2022, when he gave Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz a tough battle in the semifinals. 

“But why not? Why not be holding that trophy?” he told CBS Sports ahead of the 2024 US Open.

During his post match interview on Tuesday, Tiafoe said his strategy against Fritz is going to be “dig deep,” use his speed to be aggressive, and clean up his serve because he wasn’t pleased with how it looked against Dimitrov.

Tiafoe also knows how to feed off a crowd, which is something even Fritz highlighted as one of the things that makes him especially dangerous at Flushing Meadows. 

“Frances is a good player in general, but … he really likes playing here, and once he kinda gets going, he plays really well.” Fritz said. “He kind of carries that momentum and the energy from the crowd, the moment.”

Chances are both Americans will be getting a lot of energy from the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd. Fritz, the highest seeded American at No. 12, also has a lot of momentum coming into this semifinal match. 

He had never made it to a Grand Slam semifinal before this tournament as he arrived with an 0-4 record in major quarterfinals. However, Fritz finally took things a step further with a 6-7 (7-2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) victory against No. 4 Alexander Zverev. 

That win marked Fritz’s fourth victory against a top 10 opponent at a major this season, the most by an American man since Andre Agassi in 1999.

Fritz reached a career-best ATP ranking in February 2023 when he landed at No. 5. However, this calendar year has seen him go the furthest he has ever gone in each of the four Grand Slams. He started by making the Australian Open quarterfinals, then the fourth round at the French Open. He made his second Wimbledon quarterfinal in July, and now here he is at the US Open semifinals. 

Fritz said the key to leveling up was that he no longer felt satisfied with just making the quarterfinals. Making it this far was already a big achievement for him, but he came into the US Open looking for more.

“If it’s me who ends (the American drought), then that’s like my life’s dream basically, so it would mean everything to me,” Fritz told CBS Sports.

No. 12 Taylor Fritz’s journey to the semifinals

• First round: def. Camilo Ugo Carabelli 7-5, 6-1, 6-2
• Second round: def. Matteo Berrettini: 6-3, 7-6(7-1), 6-1 
• Third round: def. Francisco Comesana 6-3, 6-4, 6-2
• Round of 16: def. No. 8 Casper Ruud 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2
• Quarterfinal: def. No. 4 Alexander Zverev 7-6 (7-2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3)

No. 20 Frances Tiafoe’s journey to the semifinals

• First round: def. Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5
• Second round: def. Alexander Shevchenko 6-4, 6-1, 1-0 walkover
• Third round: def. No. 13 Ben Shelton 4-6, 7-5, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-3
• Round of 16: def. No. 28 Alexei Popyrin: 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 2-6, 6-3
• Quarterfinal: def. No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov  6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 4-1 walkover