Ben Shelton Reaches US Open Final, Moves One Win From Ending America’s 23-Year Grand Slam Wait

Shelton Wins All-American Semifinal Against Tiafoe

Ben Shelton is one victory away from ending a long wait for an American man to win a Grand Slam singles title. The 23-year-old Shelton defeated fellow American Frances Tiafoe 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 on Friday in an entertaining US Open semifinal at Arthur Ashe Stadium, earning a place in Sunday’s championship match against No. 1 seed Alexander Zverev.

Shelton, the No. 8 seed, became the first Black American man to reach the US Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972 and the first Black American man to reach a Grand Slam final since MaliVai Washington at Wimbledon in 1996.

Now, Shelton has a chance to make history for American men’s tennis. The United States has not produced a men’s singles Grand Slam champion since Andy Roddick won the 2003 US Open.

Shelton Overcomes Slow Start Against Tiafoe

Tiafoe played the cleaner tennis early, committing only three unforced errors compared with 14 from Shelton. At 4-4, Shelton double-faulted to hand Tiafoe the break, and Tiafoe served out the opening set to take control.

Shelton responded by turning up the power on his serve. He finished the match with 20 aces and gradually took control of the contest, particularly on Tiafoe’s second serve. Tiafoe won nine of 13 second-serve points in the opening set, but he struggled badly in that area afterward, winning only 11 of 39 second-serve points over the final three sets.

The turning point came early in the second set. Serving with new balls at 3-3, Shelton opened with a 125 mph serve that knocked Tiafoe backward as he tried to get his racket on the ball. Shelton followed with serves clocked at 144, 139 and 140 mph, with the final two resulting in aces. The barrage helped Shelton seize the momentum, and he never relinquished it.

Marathon Third Set Game Gives Shelton Control

The most dramatic moment came at the end of the third set, when Tiafoe fought desperately to hold serve. The game lasted 15 minutes and 20 points before Tiafoe finally sent a forehand into the net. The break gave Shelton a two-sets-to-one advantage and put him one set away from his first Grand Slam final.

Tiafoe continued to battle in the fourth set, but Shelton’s serve and growing confidence proved decisive. Shelton eventually earned the crucial break and closed out the match 7-5.

The defeat dropped Tiafoe to 0-3 in US Open semifinal appearances. He previously lost to fellow American Taylor Fritz in the 2024 semifinals before Fritz went on to lose to Jannik Sinner in the final.

Shelton Has History in His Sights

Shelton’s run is even more remarkable considering what he had just endured in the quarterfinals. The American eliminated defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a match that concluded at 3:33 a.m. ET on Wednesday, the latest finish in US Open history. Despite the demanding turnaround, Shelton returned to the court Friday with plenty of energy.

Shelton is also attempting to become the first former college player to win a Grand Slam men’s singles title since John McEnroe captured the 1984 US Open. Former college players have lost 11 consecutive Grand Slam finals since McEnroe’s victory.

Shelton won the 2022 NCAA singles championship at Florida and has continued his rapid rise through professional tennis. His run in New York has already guaranteed that he will reach a career-high No. 4 in the world when the new rankings are released Monday. That will make him the highest-ranked former college player since Harvard’s James Blake reached No. 4 in January 2007.

Zverev Awaits in Sunday’s Final

Standing between Shelton and history is Zverev, who defeated Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (6) in the other semifinal. Zverev enters the final with a significant advantage in their head-to-head history, having won all five of his previous meetings with Shelton. However, Sunday will mark their first matchup at a Grand Slam.

Zverev has also been nearly unbeatable against left-handed opponents. He has won 44 of his last 45 matches against lefties, with his only loss during that stretch coming against Learner Tien in Acapulco in 2025. Zverev owns the third-highest winning percentage against left-handed players in the Open Era.

The German also won his first Grand Slam championship at this year’s French Open. If Shelton defeats him Sunday, the 2026 season would feature two first-time men’s major champions. That has happened only once in the past 20 years. The last time was 2014, when Stan Wawrinka won the Australian Open and Marin Cilic captured the US Open.

An Electric Night in New York

The all-American semifinal drew a star-studded crowd to Arthur Ashe Stadium, with Serena Williams, New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson, U.S. soccer player Trinity Rodman, and actors Salma Hayek, Ben Stiller and Rami Malek among those in attendance. Rodman, Shelton’s girlfriend, was among the notable supporters watching him move closer to the biggest title of his career.

Before the match, a giant American flag was unfurled across the court as part of a ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Tiafoe appeared to receive slightly more support from the crowd early, but the atmosphere grew louder for both Americans as the match progressed. The crowd ultimately witnessed a historic night for Shelton.

One Match From American Tennis History

Shelton now has one final obstacle between himself and a place in American tennis history. A victory over Zverev on Sunday would make Shelton the first American man in 23 years to win a Grand Slam singles championship and the first U.S. men’s player since Roddick to lift the US Open trophy.

For a player who was competing in college just four years ago, the opportunity is extraordinary. Now, Shelton has 23 years of American frustration, a historic personal breakthrough and a US Open championship all waiting on the other side of one final match.