Shelton rallies past Tiafoe in four sets to become the first Black American man to reach the US Open singles final since Arthur Ashe in 1972; top-seeded Alexander Zverev awaits Sunday.
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NEW YORK | Ben Shelton has spent the 2026 US Open knocking down barriers, surviving late nights and proving that American men’s tennis may finally have another player ready to end a Grand Slam drought that has lasted more than two decades.
Now he is one victory away.
The No. 8 seed became the first Black American man to reach the US Open singles final since Arthur Ashe in 1972 — an achievement made all the more poignant inside the stadium bearing Ashe’s name.
For Shelton, however, history is not the finish line.
The 23-year-old is chasing something American men’s tennis has waited 23 years to celebrate: a Grand Slam singles champion.
Andy Roddick remains the last American man to win a major, capturing the 2003 US Open. Shelton can end that drought Sunday.
And after what he has already accomplished in New York, he will arrive at the final believing he can.
