When Frances Tiafoe defeated Rafael Nadal to advance to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open, he strutted around the court with his shirt over his face. Overcome with emotion, tears of improbable joy began to flow.
The 24-year-old touted as the future of American tennis became the present. Tiafoe had just defeated one of the greatest tennis players of all time. The breakthrough victory Tiafoe was desperately searching for finally arrived.
Tiafoe then advanced to the semifinal, becoming the first Black American in the U.S. Open semifinal since Arthur Ashe in 1972. Tiafoe’s run ended in the semifinal at the hands of Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set thriller on Friday night.