Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz ended Frances Tiafoe’s dream run at the US Open with a 6-7(6), 6-3, 6-1, 6 win. 7(5) and 6-3 to reach his first major final, where he will face Casper Ruud with world number one at stake.
In the first semi-final, Norway’s Ruud used his powerful forehand to reach his second Grand Slam final this year, defeating Russia’s Karen Khachanov 7-6(5), 6-2, 5-7, 6-2.
Despite playing into the wee hours of the morning in his two previous five-set matches, the 19-year-old showed no signs of fatigue on Friday and managed to prevail in a close battle against his American rival.
If he can beat Ruud, Alcaraz would become the youngest man to be ranked world number one, beating the mark set by Australian Lleyton Hewitt, who was 20 when he became the world’s best player in 2001.
The victory ended “Big Foe’s” run at the tournament, where his unlikely success and life story captivated fans and drew the likes of former First Lady Michelle Obama to Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Previously, Ruud, the fifth seed at the tournament and current runner-up at Roland Garros, showed he can also be effective on the New York hard court, surviving a 55-shot exchange to close out the first-set tie-break and winning 14 straight points to take a 5-1 lead in a nearly flawless second set.
His form slipped in the third set, where he racked up 11 unforced errors and was outplayed by Khachanov, but then recovered, breaking his opponent’s serve in the third and fifth games of the fourth set, and closing out the contest with a slam dunk. winning forehand, one of 20 he connected in the entire game.
