NEW YORK — After watching his No. 4-ranked US Open opponent send one last wayward forehand out of bounds, Taylor Fritz dropped his brightly colored racket, raised his fists, and shouted, “Come on!”
He composed himself, exchanged a hug at the net with Alexander Zverev—who has been a finalist in two Grand Slam events—and then moved to the center of Arthur Ashe Stadium, extending his arms wide and exclaiming, “Come on!” again.
Fritz’s journey has been marked by years of hard work, consistently climbing the rankings and establishing himself as the top American male tennis player. On Tuesday at Flushing Meadows, he secured a significant breakthrough, defeating Zverev 7-6 (2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to reach the semifinals of a major tournament for the first time.
As the 12th seed, this victory marks Fritz’s fourth win over a top-10 ATP player in a major this season, a feat not accomplished by an American man since Andre Agassi in 1999. Before this season, Fritz had been winless in 11 attempts against top-10 players in Grand Slam tournaments.
At 26 years old and hailing from California, Fritz entered the day with an unfortunate record of 0-4 in Grand Slam quarterfinals. Now, he joins Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul, and Ben Shelton as the only active American men to reach major semifinals.
“I’ve had a lot of chances in quarterfinals over the past few years, and today really felt different,” Fritz shared with his supportive crowd. “I really believed it was my time to take it further.”
Fritz is set to face the 20th seed Tiafoe on Friday, who advanced after Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria had to retire due to an injury while trailing 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3, 4-1 in their match.
“It’s exciting to be in the semis, but I still have the mindset that ‘the job’s not done,’” Fritz commented. “Every time I lost in the quarterfinals, I was often asked what it would take to go further. I always said, ‘I just need to keep putting myself in these situations.’ That’s exactly what happened today — the quarterfinals didn’t feel like a monumental challenge as it has in the past.”
The impending Fritz-Tiafoe semifinal matchup is the first between two American men at any Grand Slam since 2005 when Agassi triumphed over Robby Ginepri in New York.
No American man has lifted a Grand Slam singles trophy since Andy Roddick won the US Open in 2003.
The other men’s quarterfinal matches are scheduled for Wednesday, featuring No. 1 Jannik Sinner against No. 5 Daniil Medvedev, and No. 10 Alex de Minaur against No. 25 Jack Draper.
Fritz displayed his typical game, combining powerful serving—winning 20 of 21 points on first serves in the fourth set—with strong forehands. He also showed effectiveness at the net, winning 16 of 24 points he played forward, while creating 10 break-point opportunities against Zverev.
“There’s still work to be done, but his transition game is improving. It’s great to see that paying off here at the US Open in crucial moments,” noted Fritz’s coach, Michael Russell. He highlighted a key volley during a lengthy exchange that helped secure a lead in the final tiebreaker: “That’s a big step we’ve really focused on to enable him to succeed at this level. You can’t just serve and rely on your baseline game.”
Though Fritz managed to convert only two break-point opportunities, he consistently pressured Zverev, who previously reached the US Open finals in 2020 and the French Open finals this year.
Zverev expressed frustration over his performance, admitting, “I haven’t hit my backhand this poorly since I’ve been on tour. I was missing shots that should have been straightforward.”
He added, “My forehand was okay, and my serve was decent, but the shot I’m most known for just wasn’t there today.” Zverev has also faced Fritz before, losing to him at Wimbledon in July.
Zverev’s second serve performance was strong at the beginning, but dropped off dramatically in the later stages of the match, leading to feelings of anger over his loss.
Fritz’s most recent exits from quarterfinals came at Wimbledon against Lorenzo Musetti, and two against 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, as well as another against Rafael Nadal. Djokovic was eliminated early in this year’s tournament, while Nadal did not participate.
Russell emphasized that past disappointments were not a topic of discussion before this quarterfinal. “We never brought up that he hadn’t reached a major semifinal before. Instead, we focused on his strengths, encouraging him to embrace the excitement and competition,” he said.