Ben Shelton advanced to the US Open final with a four-set victory over Frances Tiafoe in an all-American semifinal at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The eighth-seeded Shelton came from a set down to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 in three hours and 17 minutes.
Both players were bidding to reach their first Grand Slam final and produced a show for a raucous crowd. Neither American appeared overawed by the occasion, and both lived up to their reputations as dazzling shot-makers before Shelton won through.
The 23-year-old will face top seed Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s final. Zverev beat unseeded Russian Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (8-6) to reach a third consecutive Grand Slam final and continue his bid for a second major title of the year.
Shelton becomes the first Black American male player to reach the US Open singles final since Arthur Ashe in 1972, and the first Black male player to reach a Grand Slam singles final since Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was beaten in the 2008 Australian Open final.
He is aiming to become the first American male player to lift the US Open singles title since Andy Roddick in 2003.
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