Taylor Fritz finally got over the Grand Slam quarterfinal hump on Tuesday afternoon, taking down Alexander Zverev 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(3) at the U.S. Open. Fritz was previously 0-4 lifetime in major quarterfinals.
The world No. 12 is now the fourth active American man to have reached a slam semifinal, joining Frances Tiafoe (2022 U.S. Open), Tommy Paul (2023 Australian Open), and Ben Shelton (2023 U.S. Open).
With one more win, Fritz would be the first American man to play in a Grand Slam final since Andy Roddick at Wimbledon in 2009.
“I came out really just feeling good, ready to play,” the 26-year-old said. “I think in a lot of my previous quarterfinals, I came out a little bit nervous. But today I just felt really good from the start, ready to go…. (I’m) super pumped to make it into my first semi.”
It was another rough Grand Slam loss for Zverev, who is still seeking his first title following a pair of five-set losses (2020 U.S. Open and 2024 French Open). The world No. 4 did not get as close this time, but he had a huge opportunity as the highest-ranked player left in the bottom half of the draw and with Carlos Alcaraz already gone from the top half.
Alas, he was denied by Fritz–just as he was earlier this summer at Wimbledon, that time in a five-set match during fourth-round competition.
“(My) serving and actually returning was actually okay,” said Zverev, who added that this is the “most angry” he has been “in a long time” following a loss. “From the baseline I played absolutely terrible. My backhand, I don’t remember since being on tour hitting my backhand this badly. I just don’t. I mean, I was missing shots which were in the middle of the court with no pace (in the) bottom of the net. Terrible.
“And don’t say that Taylor didn’t deserve to win. No, he absolutely deserved to win today. I’m not taking anything away from him. He played quite a good match. I did nothing to deserve to win.”
