2006, Andy Roddick. That was the last time an American man appeared in a US Open final. Roddick lost to Roger Federer. For the last American win, you'd have to turn back the clock three more years, when Roddick won his only Grand Slam over Juan Carlos Ferrero in straight sets.
Before 2003? Well, young 'uns, it was an embarrassment of riches. We expected an American--or two--to vie for the national title. The '90s Opens are littered with names like Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Courier, and of course Andre Agassi.
Even Todd Martin snuck into the 1999 final--and took his opponent to five sets before succumbing to the shaved-head, 2.0 version of Agassi.
So it's been almost 20 years. American tennis fans have been patient, due in part to the unprecedented quality of rivalries in men's tennis. Records broken, and then smashed to smithereens. Federer-Nadal, then Federer-Nadal-Djokovic.
Then there was a period where we spoke of the "Big Four" as Andy Murray made a case for his inclusion in the elite club (recall that Murray won his only US Open in 2012, defeating Djokovic).
So tonight--and later, as it bent into early morning, September 4--was a tantalizing prospect for American fans. Taylor Fritz won the earlier quarterfinal over Alexander Zverev in four tightly contested sets. Given that Fritz and Frances Tiafoe are in the same lower half of the draw, wins by both would assure an American in the final.
Tiafoe, the son of immigrants from Sierra Leone, grew up at the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Maryland. His father helped to build the center, and was subsequently hired as to maintenan the facility. As a result, he began playing tennis at the age of four.
Tiafoe was facing the highly talented Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, who, at 33, is in the latter stages of a storied career. Dimitrov has the record for most consecutive Slam appearances at 55. Nicknamed "Baby Fed" early in his career, due in part to his one-handed backhand, Dimitrov has failed to match the potential of that lofty moniker, winning 9 ATP Tour events, but no Slams.
Tiafoe rolled to a 6-3 first set win, followed by a second where he led 4-1. But Tiafoe faltered while Dimitrov found his game again, slowly, then in a hurry during the tiebreak, surging to 6-3 before Tiafoe crept back on the heels of two double faults by Dimitrov. There was still a set point for the Bulgarian, and shockingly, Tiafoe double faulted as well, giving the set to Dimitrov.
The third set was reminiscent of the first until at 5-3 for Tiafoe, Dimitrov appeared to aggravate a back muscle, or perhaps his foot, and started to come up short, wincing in pain. He chose to serve out his game instead of calling for a trainer, losing the set in the process.
Dimitrov saw his trainer in the locker room between sets, and gamely returned to the court for another game, but ultimately retired. His attempt to finish the match out of respect for the situation and his opponent.
It's not the way anyone wanted it to end, but here we are: an American man will play for the US Open trophy.
