Taylor Fritz on Friday became the first American man since 2009 to reach a Grand Slam final, setting up a US Open title showdown today against world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
Fritz, the world No. 12, twice fought back to defeat compatriot Frances Tiafoe 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in their semi-final.
Australian Open champion Sinner became the first Italian man to make the New York final with a 7-5, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2 win over an ailing Jack Draper of the UK.
Photo: AFP
“He overwhelmed me at the start and I was freaking out a little,” 26-year-old Fritz said after securing victory with a 16th ace. “I just told myself to stay in it, hold serve and apply scoreboard pressure. I did all I could to stay in it. If I hadn’t have done that I’d regret it forever. In the final, I will come out and give it everything.”
Andy Roddick was the previous American to make a men’s singles final at a Slam, at Wimbledon in 2009. He was also the last man from the country to capture a major title when he won the 2003 US Open.
Fritz was just five years old at the time.
Tiafoe was the better player for large parts of their semi-final, but after dumping a lazy drop shot into the net to surrender the fourth set, his game fell apart.
In a 27-minute final set, Tiafoe won just nine points as he slumped to a second US Open semi-final loss in his past three visits.
“It’s tough to swallow, it’s going to hurt,” Tiafoe said. “I thought I was the better player, but in the fourth set I had some cramps. My body kind of shut down on me. Probably to do with nerves.”
Earlier, in a three-hour match, Draper, the first British man in the semi-finals since Andy Murray won the title in 2012, was undone by 10 double faults and 43 unforced errors.
He also vomited on the court, blaming anxiety for the illness.
“Jack and I know each other very well, we are great friends off court,” said Sinner, who unleashed 43 winners in the match where he also injured his wrist in a nasty fall. “It was a very physical match. He’s so tough to beat so I’m excited to be in the final.”
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to