With history on the line, Carlos Alcaraz and Frances Tiafoe will look to break new ground when they meet in the semi-finals at the US Open on Friday.
The 19-year-old Alcaraz booked his place in the last four in one of the matches of the season in the early hours of Thursday morning. The Spaniard saved one match point en route to a thrilling five-set victory against Jannik Sinner to become the youngest Grand Slam men’s semi-finalist since Rafael Nadal, 19, at Roland Garros in 2005 and the youngest US Open men’s semi-finalist since Pete Sampras, 19, in 1990.
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Alcaraz will be aiming to back up that standout victory and reach his maiden Grand Slam championship match when he faces American Tiafoe on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The two-time ATP Masters 1000 champion is expecting a tough test against the home favourite, though, with Tiafoe leading the third seed 1-0 in their ATP Head2Head series.
“It's going to be really, really tough,” Alcaraz said when looking ahead to the match. “Everybody knows the level of Frances. He has beaten Rafa Nadal and Rublev. He's playing unbelievably right now. High confidence. He loves the crowd. He loves this court. I'm going to have to play my best.”
Alcaraz, who qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals following his win against Sinner, is chasing two historic achievements over the next three days in New York. If he overcomes Tiafoe and then triumphs on Sunday, he will capture his first major crown and become the youngest World No. 1 in the history of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Alcaraz would also rise to top spot if he reaches the final and Casper Ruud does not. The Norwegian faces Karen Khachanov in the other semi-final.
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However, the task at hand is far from simple. Tiafoe stunned four-time champion Rafael Nadal in the fourth round to earn his third Top 5 win, before he dispatched Andrey Rublev in straight sets to become the first American to reach the semi-finals at Flushing Meadows since Andy Roddick advanced to the championship match in 2006.
“This is wild. This is crazy,” Tiafoe said following his win against ninth seed Rublev. “I had the biggest win of my life 24 hours ago and coming out and getting another big win… Andrey’s a hell of a player, and to back it up, that’s huge. It’s tough to turn the page, but I did and now I’m in the semis.”
The 24-year-old arrived at the fourth major of the year off the back of second-round exits in Montreal and Cincinnati. However, the 22nd seed has raised the roof on home soil over the past week with his energetic displays, also eliminating Marcos Giron, Jason Kubler and 14th seed Diego Schwartzman.
It is a run that Tiafoe has relished and one that has seen him rise to No. 19 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. He could climb to No. 15 if he upsets Alcaraz, who is 49-9 on the season.
“I just love playing in front of packed people,” Tiafoe said. “I love to show the world what I can do. Then it makes me feel good when people appreciate how hard you're trying out there and appreciate good tennis, especially where I came from. To see how many people I can get behind me. [It] means a lot. I just want to go out there and try to give the crowd what they want, and that's me getting the win.”
With the stage ready, the former Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals competitors are set to put on a show once again as they target more records in the city that never sleeps on Friday night.
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