Playing at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Ben Shelton made some history on Friday that harkens back to the venue’s namesake.
Shelton, seeded eighth, edged 11th-seeded Tiafoe to become the first Black US men’s singles player to reach the event’s title match since Ashe in 1972.
The 23-year-old won in three hours and 17 minutes with the crowd cheering wildly for both players in the all-US matchup.
Sunday will mark Shelton’s first appearance in a Grand Slam championship match. After a US Open quarterfinal win over Tiafoe in 2023, he was eliminated by eventual champion Novak Djokovic. Shelton also reached the semifinals at the 2025 Australian Open.
The United States has not produced a major champion since Andy Roddick captured the US Open crown in 2003.
Shelton will become the first Black US man to compete in a Grand Slam final since MaliVai Washington lost in the 1996 Wimbledon final.
Discussing his feelings about following Ashe to the US Open championship match, Shelton said, “It’s a lot of emotion. My dad, my mum have sacrificed a lot for me to be in this position. … I’m going to need [the fans] on Sunday to bring the energy. I’m going for it here. I’m gonna leave it all on the court. I hope you guys come and back me. Let’s do it for the USA.”
Shelton said of Tiafoe, “He’s like a big brother to me. To be honest, every time that we get to take this court together, Arthur Ashe, and play each other, it’s super special, but this is where we want to be, at the tail end of this tournament.
“This is both of our favourite tournament in the world, our favourite court in the world, and to be able to light it up in front of you guys is the best feeling that there is.”
The two combatants on Friday came in off emotional five-set victories, with Shelton upending seven-time major champion Alcaraz and Tiafoe coming back from two sets down to defeat countryman Alex Michelsen.
After dropping the first set, Shelton turned the match around as he cracked 25 winners to only nine unforced errors in the second and third sets combined. He also feasted on Tiafoe’s second serve, winning 23 of 29 points in those sets, including five return winners.
Tiafoe, 28, displayed great determination in the fourth after being dominated and somewhat subdued in the prior two sets. But after failing on three break- point chances in the first game of the fourth set, he did not win more than one point in any of Shelton’s final five service games.
Leading 6-5, Shelton won the first three points on his rival’s serve, and after dropping a point, advanced on Tiafoe’s second double fault of the night.
Shelton cracked 20 aces and only hit three double faults. He served brilliantly, hitting first serves at 75 percent efficiency and winning 66 of 86, or 76.7 percent, of those points. His winner-to-unforced error ratio was also outstanding with 47 winners and 31 miscues.
Tiafoe finished with 27 winners and 28 unforced errors.
Shelton has never beaten Zverev, falling in all five prior matchups. All of those meetings came over a 16-month period in 2024 and 2025, none of them in a Grand Slam event.
Talking about his development in 2026, Shelton said, “I’ve grown up. I’m more mature, more focused. I know what my goal is, I know what my job is out here and I am 100 percent committed to those goals. It’s not easy playing out here on Arthur Ashe, you’re playing in front of all of your favourite athletes, movie stars. So, to be able to keep your head down and focus for over three hours, it’s not an easy task.” (Reuters)
