Frances Tiafoe just pulled off one of the craziest comebacks you’ll ever see, fighting back from two sets and a break down to absolutely stun Alex Michelsen in the US Open quarter-finals. The 11th seed was down two sets, then a break in the third, with Michelsen serving for the match. But Tiafoe battled back, flipping the script completely to win 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6) in a marathon match that went four hours and 38 minutes. This wild victory puts the 28-year-old into his third US Open semi-final in five years.
Michelsen Was Rolling, Until He Wasn’t
For a huge chunk of this match, Alex Michelsen, ranked 46th in the world, was absolutely owning it. He hadn’t dropped a set all tournament before facing Tiafoe, and you could tell why. He outplayed Tiafoe for the first half, grabbing the momentum in the first set, trading breaks early, then getting the deciding break at 6-5. He fired off 15 winners in that first set compared to Tiafoe’s paltry four! Michelsen kept that upper hand, with his backhand doing serious damage on key points, taking the second set and then going up a break early in the third. It honestly felt like Michelsen, in his first Grand Slam quarter-final ever, was cruising.
But then, everything changed. When Michelsen was serving for the match at 5-4 in the third set, nerves hit him like a brick wall. He coughed up two double faults, Tiafoe broke right back to level it up, then won the set outright. That was the spark. Tiafoe took the opening three games of the fourth set and suddenly, the whole vibe shifted. “In the end I slowly started to get my rhythm,” Tiafoe said after the match. “Snuck out that third set and got better and better.” He gave Michelsen props too, saying, “He’s a hell of a player and he easily could have won today. Shout out to Alex Michelsen.” You could feel the energy building.
What That Wild Fifth Set Means for Tiafoe
After holding Michelsen off in the fourth, this thing went to a deciding set, and boy, did it deliver. There were multiple breaks of serve, keeping everyone on Arthur Ashe Stadium absolutely gripped. Tiafoe, a total fan favorite, just fed off that New York crowd energy. He got the better of the 10-point tie-break to seal his fourth five-set victory at a major this year. It was intense. Michelsen, bless his heart, was in tears at the net, and Tiafoe, being the class act he is, hugged his compatriot after that grueling match.
Now, Tiafoe is staring down a huge opportunity. He’s got defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or American eighth seed Ben Shelton waiting for him in the semi-finals. He’s made it to the semis before, losing to Alcaraz in 2022 and Taylor Fritz in 2024. But this time? After a comeback like that, with that kind of fight and crowd behind him, he’s absolutely hoping to reach the final at Flushing Meadows for the first time. Can he keep this incredible run going? You gotta watch.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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