By Joiner Martinez
07 Sep 2024, 17:20 PM EDT
American tennis player Taylor Fritz will play in the final of the US Open, after beating his friend Frances Tiafoe in a hard-fought semi-final by 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 and 6-1.
Fritz will not have an easy time in his first Grand Slam final, as he will face the world number 1 and the tournament’s top seed, Italian Jannik Sinner.
But the American said: “It’s the reason I do what I do. It’s the reason I work so hard. I’m in the final of the US Open.”
And he commented: “It still hasn’t fully sunk in, I feel like it. When the public cheered me and I was introduced as the finalist of the tournament, I felt incredibly emotional because this is the fulfillment of a dream. I have been working hard for so long to achieve something like this… I have always told myself that I should keep fighting until I achieve my goals and that I should never regret not giving my best effort at the end of my career.”
He even ventured to say: “I don’t think I’ll have more stressful feelings than those I experienced against Tiafoe. Facing a compatriot and arriving as the favourite because of the very favourable head-to-head he had, has been difficult to manage. I know that facing the number 1 is never easy, but I have always felt good when we have faced each other, it is as if his pace of the ball favours me. I generally play well against him.”
It is worth noting that Fritz was able to defeat Sinner at the Indian Wells tournament in 2021, although he lost to him the following year on the same stage.
“Whenever we have played each other, I have enjoyed our matches. I feel like I am going to go out there on Sunday, play really well and win. When I play my best tennis, I consider myself good enough to be a Grand Slam champion,” said Fritz, full of confidence in his chances ahead of the US Open final.
Continue reading:
US Open: Fritz faces Sinner in the final after beating Tiafoe
US Open: Sinner overcomes a Draper who vomited on the court
Pegula and Sabalenka will meet in the US Open final