Shelton wins all-American duel vs. Tiafoe, faces Zverev for US Open title

NEW YORK -- Ben Shelton won the all-American duel with Frances Tiafoe and now he's the one who can end his country's long wait for another men's Grand Slam champion.

Shelton pulled out a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5 victory on Friday and will play No. 1 seed Alexander Zverev on Sunday for the US Open title.

Shelton is the first Black American man to reach a US Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972, and the first Black American man to reach any major final since MaliVai Washington at 1996 Wimbledon.

The No. 8-seeded Shelton had plenty of energy left after ousting defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a quarterfinal match that ended Wednesday at 3:33 a.m., the latest finish ever at the US Open.

Now he needs to stop French Open champion Zverev to give the host nation its first men's major winner since Andy Roddick at the 2003 US Open.

Zverev beat Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (6) in the first semifinal. He has a 5-0 career record against Shelton and has won the past 10 sets between them, though this will be their first meeting in a major.

Shelton, who won the 2022 NCAA singles title at Florida, is also looking to become the first former college player to win a major since John McEnroe at the 1984 US Open; former college players have lost 11 straight major finals since.

ESPN Research and The Associated Press contributed to this report.