Frances Tiafoe is moving into the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open for the third consecutive year. The 26-year-old American secured his spot by defeating Alexei Popyrin with a score of 6-4, 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-3 on Sunday night.
With this victory, Tiafoe becomes the first American man since Andy Roddick, who achieved this feat from 2006 to 2008, to reach three straight U.S. Open quarterfinals. Last year, Tiafoe lost to fellow American Ben Shelton in the quarterfinals and reached the semifinals in 2022, where he was defeated by the tournament’s eventual champion, Carlos Alcaraz.
Tiafoe triumphed over Shelton earlier in this tournament after an exhilarating five-set match, avenging his previous loss. A critical moment in Tiafoe’s victory against Popyrin occurred in the second set. “I think the second set was a huge, huge win for me,” Tiafoe remarked. He noted that turning the match around when he was down 5-3 to force a tiebreak was significant.
Popyrin, the 28th seed from Australia, expressed disappointment in his performance during the second set, describing it as a missed opportunity. “You have to take your chances against top players,” he said, reflecting on his failure to capitalize when serving at 5-3, 40-love.
Popyrin had recently upset defending champion Novak Djokovic and, for the first time in his career, reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam. Although he won the third set convincingly, Tiafoe held steady and ultimately secured the match in the fourth set.
This victory adds Tiafoe to the list of American players moving forward, joining Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals. Tiafoe expressed his optimism, saying, “Everything is happening when it’s meant to happen,” and he emphasized the importance of this moment in his career.
If Tommy Paul can upset top-ranked Jannik Sinner on Monday, it will mark the second consecutive year with three American men in the Flushing Meadows quarterfinals. Tiafoe’s next challenge will be against the 9th ranked Grigor Dimitrov on Tuesday, where he has a career record of 1-3 against his opponent.