US Open 2026 results: Frances Tiafoe pulls off massive comeback to reach semi-finals
Tiafoe came into the match 2-17 in her Grand Slam career (0-4 at the US Open) when trailing 0-2 in sets, but battled deep to pull off the most impressive comeback of her career and earn a spot in the semifinals for the third time in five years in New York. Tiafoe will now face the winner of No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz and No. 8 seed Ben Shelton in the semifinals, where he will try to reach his first Grand Slam final.
Michelsen, meanwhile, came tantalizingly close to the first Grand Slam semi-final of his career, but fell to 0-3 in five-set matches. Still, the young American produced the best performance of his career in a Grand Slam and showed that he is another young American threat in men’s soccer.
The match began with Michelsen taking an early lead when Tiafoe’s serve let him down early and Michelsen pounced on him with a break in the third game and it seemed like he would never look back. He took the first set 7-5 and the second featured more of the same from Michelsen, who was much more precise with his serve and was able to break Tiafoe twice to take the second set comfortably 6-3.
Michelsen, who was the only man to reach the quarterfinals without losing a set, looked to be on his way to another straight victory after an early break in the third set put him back in the lead.
Tiafoe looked flat for the first half of the match (he produced a terrible sub-40% first serve percentage in the first three sets) and struggled to create the spark he needed to turn the momentum around. He had a chance midway through the third set to return to serve and put pressure on Michelsen, earning a triple break point with Michelsen on top and moving closer to the semifinals at 4-3, but Michelsen ripped off five points in a row to bring the score to 5-3.
However, Tiafoe finally got the break he needed in the tenth game with Michelsen trying to serve out the match and let out a big shout to encourage himself and the crowd to take things to a fourth set. Michelsen’s serve, which was dominant at the start, began to falter as the goal line was in sight, and the tension of the moment seemed to be taking its toll on the 22-year-old. Tiafoe was able to capitalize and run three games in a row to take the third set 7-5, increasing the pressure on his young opponent.
In the fourth set, Michelsen’s woes continued, as Tiafoe recovered his serve and stormed through the first three games to take control and eventually cruised to a 6-3 victory to send the match into a decisive fifth set. As soon as it looked like Tiafoe was going to roll, Michelsen came roaring out in the final set. The 22-year-old served to start the set and then broke Tiafoe’s serve to take an early lead, consolidating that break to go up 3-0.
Tiafoe finally got on the board in the fourth game and the pendulum swung back towards the veteran, who regained his serve by breaking Michelsen in the fifth game. From there, the tension increased as both men managed to hold serve in the next seven games to send the match into a 10-point tiebreaker for a place in the semi-finals.
Tiafoe drew first blood in the tiebreaker, nailing the initial mini-break to take a 4-2 lead as they headed to the seats for the first change. The No. 11 seed continued to pressure Michelsen with big serves and was able to increase his lead to 7-4, demanding something spectacular from the 22-year-old to avoid a crushing five-set defeat.
Michelsen was unable to produce a final turn in the marathon match, and Tiafoe was able to land a forehand winner down the line to win 10-6 and complete the biggest comeback of his career.
After the match, Tiafoe and Michelsen hugged at the net and the young American couldn’t hold back his tears as Tiafoe hugged him and offered some words of encouragement.
