Frances Tiafoe grinds out win over Alexei Popyrin for US Open quarterfinal berth

Frances Tiafoe has returned to the stage that has defined his career.

The stage — the U.S. Open quarterfinals — where Tiafoe (No. 20) was eliminated last year in a thriller to fellow American Ben Shelton, which he avenged in this year’s third round.

A stage where Tiafoe emerged out of nowhere to become one of the sport’s fan favorites after upsetting the legendary Rafael Nadal in 2022. A stage which could now set the tone for the next chapter of his career.

To secure his return to the U.S. Open quarterfinals, the 27-year-old Tiafoe had to go through one of this year’s tournament’s most formidable wild cards.

He defeated Australian Alexei Popyrin, who had upset No. 2 Novak Djokovic in the third round and is ranked No. 28 in the world, 6-4, 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-3 in the fourth round Sunday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Tiafoe will next play No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov.

Popyrin was on the verge of winning the second set and pulling even, but he saw a 5-2 lead evaporate to 5-5 and then a 6-5 lead turn into a tiebreak and Tiafoe subsequently won the tiebreak and the set. In the ninth game, Tiafoe came back from 0-40 to break Popyrin.

“I win a point, win another point, I was like ‘ooh,’ ” Tiafoe said after the match. “He gave me one, and I was like ‘Don’t let me get two,’ then I was like ‘Don’t let me get three,’ and then I thought ‘I might as well break now.’ I got pretty lucky there, honestly. Without [the fans], it wouldn’t have happened.”

After dropping the third set, Tiafoe overpowered Popyrin — breaking him in the sixth game — to win the fourth set and seal the win.

There was hardly anything to separate Tiafoe and the 25-year-old Popyrin early, as the two traded the first eight games in the first set, with both holding serve.

Tiafoe finally broke the pattern.

He broke Popyrin in the ninth game to go up 5-4 in the first set, sending the Arthur Ashe crowd — the overwhelming majority of which was rooting for him — into a frenzy as he unleashed his trademark fist pump. Tiafoe then cruised through the 10th game to secure the opening set.

“I always dreamt of playing on this court, from a kid,” Tiafoe said. “I used to hit against the wall and want to compete on this court. … It’s so iconic. Named after Arthur Ashe, I wanted to be a part of that. It brings the best out of me.”

Sunday was the first time Tiafoe and Popyrin faced each other.

For a while, Tiafoe’s trajectory was moving in the wrong direction.

After his 2022 quarterfinal win over Nadal catapulted his career, Tiafoe, who was not highly acclaimed at the junior level, struggled.

He failed to make it out of the third round of seven of the next eight majors. His only trip further — to the quarterfinals in last year’s U.S. Open — is where he lost to Shelton.

In fact, Tiafoe’s appearance in the 2022 U.S. Open semifinals — where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz — is his only time advancing past the quarterfinals at a major.

“This [year] definitely changed me,” Tiafoe said. “I guess it teaches you, man. I mean, don’t get comfortable. It’s the most unforgiving game we have, right? Don’t think you got all the answers. Don’t get complacent because the game will test you.” 

Though he is not the highest-ranked American, Tiafoe’s cross-cultural appeal has made him the most popular.

Much of it stems from that 2022 win over Nadal, and the New York City crowd continues to treat him as the hometown favorite.

And the field is as open as it has been in years for an American to break the country’s Grand Slam drought, with Alcaraz and Djokovic already eliminated. The only former U.S. Open champion remaining is No. 5 Daniil Medvedev.

But first things first — Tiafoe is back in the U.S. Open quarterfinals.

And it’ll be another stud across from him in Dimitrov, who owns a 3-1 record against him.

Expect fireworks.

“He’s so talented, he’s been one of the most talented players for a very long time,” Tiafoe said. “He’s playing great. Later stage of his career, he’s starting to find great form again. … I’m gonna make him fight for it and earn it.”