Frances Tiafoe Comes Back From 2 Sets Down, Comforts A Crying Alex Michelsen

Frances Tiafoe has done it again at the US Open and comes back from two sets down to beat Alex Michelsen.

It looked fairly over for Tiafoe at the end of the third set, struggling to get his first-serve percentage to a level where he could compete, but he won four straight games to end the third while Michelsen was serving for the third set.

From there, Tiafoe was rolling, winning the next two games in the fourth before Michelsen started to fight back. Once Tiafoe took care of Michelsen in the fourth, it seemed over. Momentum was fully on his side, and Michelsen looked rattled.

Michelsen continued to fight, however, and got to a tiebreak in the fifth set. The experience prevailed for Tiafoe, and even though Michelsen had found his range, Tiafoe did too, and Tiafoe was too good to beat in the decider. Tiafoe’s victory would come from the dead in one of the greatest matches in US Open history, only to be followed by another thriller at night, with Carlos Alcaraz falling to Ben Shelton in an instant classic that would overshadow the Michelsen-Tiafoe thriller.

The match ended with a heartwarming moment at the net: the handshake turned into a hug, with the young Michelsen in tears. Michelsen served for the match, as previously mentioned, which will be tough to swallow for the youngster, and tears at the end are not something you can blame him for.

The Alcaraz vs. Shelton match overshadowing the Tiafoe triumph is not something Tiafoe minds at all, because it means he gets his best chance at the title, avoiding the inevitable duo of Alcaraz and Sinner for the first time he has reached a Grand Slam semi-final. This leaves the door open even though he will be an underdog against Shelton.

Nobody knows who the crowd will back in the Tiafoe vs. Shelton semi-final, but it feels like both will have plenty of support, and it will come down to who can use it better.

The 28-year-old’s win is even more incredible after the upset of Alcaraz, and he will likely never get a better chance to achieve his dream of a US Open title.

It is customary for the Tuesday quarterfinal to get the afternoon slot for the Friday semis, but it would be hard to believe the US Open does not do what Wimbledon did this year and flip the matches for viewing purposes. Tiafoe vs. Shelton is exactly what a US Open night session wants, and it is sure to deliver.