World No. 11 Frances Tiafoe overcame a grueling five-set battle against Alex Michelsen to secure a spot in the US Open semifinals on Tuesday, September 8, 2026. Tiafoe triumphed 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6) after a 4-hour, 38-minute thriller, rallying from two sets down and a 3-0 deficit in the fifth. The victory propels the 11th seed into his third US Open semifinal, having previously reached the final four in 2022 and 2024.
Following the match, an emotional Michelsen broke down in tears on Tiafoe's shoulder after falling short in his maiden major quarterfinal. "I really like Alex. I really, really do, and I just wanted to come up there and just dap him up," Tiafoe said in an on-court interview. "He was definitely crying on my shoulders. We just had some words for each other, and that was it." Michelsen, 22, admitted he struggled to keep his composure. "He was saying a lot of nice personal things. 'When I'm older, you're going to be here, and we're going to play it again in this type of circumstance.' All that good stuff. He's a great guy for consoling me in that moment," Michelsen added.