Tiafoe beats Rublev; 1st US man in US Open SF in 16 years
NEW YORK (AP) — Frances Tiafoe became the first American man to reach the U.S. Open semifinals since 2006 by beating Andrey Rublev 7-6 (3), 7-6 (0), 6-4 behind the backing of a boisterous partisan crowd in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old Tiafoe, who grew up in Maryland, put on a performance just as strong, if not stronger, than the one he used to eliminate 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in the fourth round.
The No. 22-seeded Tiafoe played aggressive, offensive tennis and used 18 aces along with strong net play to oust No. 9 Rublev, a Russian who dropped to 0-6 in major quarterfinals.
Andy Roddick was the last U.S. man to get to the semifinals at Flushing Meadows when he lost to Roger Fededer in the title match 16 years ago. Roddick also was the last man from the country to win any Grand Slam singles championship, taking the 2003 U.S. Open.