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With Frances Tiafoe reaching the last four and Jessica Pegula losing in the quarterfinals, the 2022 US Open marked the first time since Wimbledon 2011 that an American male player outperformed their female counterpart. That's a period spanning 43 Majors.
Seeded 22nd in New York, Tiafoe followed up his fourth-round win over Rafael Nadal with a straight-set defeat of Andrey Rublev. After edging out a tight first set on a tiebreak, Tiafoe produced a flawless second-set tiebreak, not dropping a point, to take a commanding two-set lead. He then closed out the victory to become the first American male since Andy Roddick (2006) to reach the last four in New York.
Meanwhile, Pegula, seeded eighth at Flushing Meadows, lost in straight sets against top seed Iga Swiatek in a tough battle at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. It meant that for the first time since Wimbledon 2011, when Mardy Fish reached the quarterfinals and the Williams sisters lost in the fourth round, an American female player failed to match or better the best result of their male counterpart.
During this period, there have been 12 Major singles titles won by American female players, with Serena Williams accounting for ten of them. In the same period, no American male player has made a Grand Slam final. In fact, only two men, Sam Querrey (Wimbledon 2017) and John Isner (Wimbledon 2018), have made the last four at a Grand Slam.
Tiafoe will next face either Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner for a place in the final.
"American tennis is in a great place" - US Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe
Following his US Open quarterfinal win on Wednesday, Frances Tiafoe reckoned that all the American players were "pushing each other."
Taylor Fritz won Indian Wells this year and was twice a game away against Nadal from reaching the Wimbledon semis. Reilly Opelka made the Canadian Open final last year.
Tiafoe admitted as much in his press conference, saying:
"I think all the American guys are pushing each other. You see Fritz won Indian Wells this year. Reilly made finals of Toronto last year. Me and Fritz had a great run at Wimbledon. Could have made semis there. Tough one with Rafa. Heartbreaker."
He said that with many players entering their primes, the future of American men's tennis looks bright.
"You see these guys do well. And obviously when I made quarterfinals of slam 2019, you see a lot of guys playing well. Tommy is playing great. We are all pushing each other. Everyone is super capable. American tennis is in a great place. We are all starting to really get into our primes, and we will see where that takes us," he said.
Tiafoe is now two wins away from becoming the first American male player since Andy Roddick (2003) to win the US Open, or any Major for that matter. Following his exploits in New York this fortnight, Tiafoe is set to break into the top 20 of the ATP rankings for the first time next week.
Also Checkout:- US Open 2022 Results
