NEW YORK (AP) — Taylor Fritz won a six-match series against a weak and frustrated Frances Tiafoe to emerge victorious 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in a all-American match at the US Open on Friday night and reached his first Grand Slam final.

The No. 12-seeded Fritz’s victory full of momentum shift against No. 20 Tiafoe — a pair of 26-year-olds who are good friends and have known each other since playing in tournaments for under-14s — earned a showdown with No. 1 Jannik Sinner for the championship on Sunday.

Fritz is the first American to appear in a major final since Andy Roddick lost to Roger Federer at Wimbledon in 2009. And if he can beat Sinner, Fritz would become the first American to win a Grand Slam trophy since Roddick won it at the US Open 21 years ago.

“It’s why I do what I do,” Fritz said, his voice cracking. “It’s why I work so hard.”

From 4-all in the fourth set on Friday, he took control when Tiafoe’s hitting and usual confidence deserted him. After a double fault yielded a break to make it 4-0 in the fifth, Tiafoe threw his racket in the trash after more than three hours of play. Fritz repaid the favor by double faulting to end the next game, but broke right back and it was soon over.

Sinner, a 23-year-old from Italy acquitted in doping case less than three weeks ago, completed a 7-5, 7-6 (3), 6-2 victory over No. 25 Jack Draper earlier on Friday, with both competitors receiving simultaneous treatment from trainers deep into the 1 1/2-hour second set.

“It was a very physical match, as we can see,” said Sinner, who won the Australian Open in January. “I just tried to stay mentally focused.”

His left wrist was being massaged after he fell during a winning point; Draper required medical attention after vomiting twice in a game that featured temperatures in the 70s and humidity in excess of 60 percent. During that lull in the action, a vacuum cleaner was used to clear the ground behind the baseline, finishing the cleanup job that Draper, a 22-year-old from Britain, was attempting to do himself by wiping up his, er, mess with a towel.

There was no drama outside of the actual game in Tiafoe vs. Fritz, and the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd could have been forgiven for not knowing who to cheer for in the first semi-final in New York between two American men in 19 years.

There was a clap just before the first point, an opening act befitting the show that was about to unfold. But when Fritz broke out for a 3-0 lead, there wasn’t even a hint of a roar, more like polite applause.

The respective guest boxes seemed to reflect the contrasting personalities of the players. The excitable Tiafoe would mark a key moment by shaking a raised fist or gritting his teeth or waving his racket or nodding as he walked to the sideline, and his entourage—including coach David Witt, who worked with Venus Williams for years, as well as Jessica Pegula, the American in the US Open women’s final Saturday against Aryna Sabalenka — stood and clapped, point after point after point.

The group in Fritz’s corner, who took it a bit easier, were more selective in their celebrations.

For Tiafoe, who grew up in Maryland, it was the second time he had appeared in a major semifinal; he lost to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz in New York two years ago. Fritz, a Californian, had never previously advanced beyond the quarterfinals of one of the four most prestigious events in his sport, but his journey into Friday included victories over a trio of guys with six Slam runners-up in total: Casper Ruud, Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini.

Fritz started off strong on Friday, hitting serves up to 135 mph before Tiafoe regrouped and won five straight games. That set was Tiafoe’s early on. In the next, Fritz — who entered this match with a 6-1 head-to-head lead — was nearly perfect, winning 24 of 25 service points and going 8 of 8 at the net. Tiafoe regrouped quickly again and broke to start the third, which proved to be good enough for that set, as he gave Fritz no chance to break. Tiafoe gave away the final game of the fourth, double-faulting twice and sinking a drop shot, part of an 11-point run for Fritz that built to his big lead in the fifth.

There’s no doubt which finalist will receive the most vocal support on Sunday.

Last month the rumor came out that Sinner In March, he failed two drug tests eight days apart, but was cleared after he said they contained traces of an anabolic steroid – an ingredient in a treatment for cuts that is available without a prescription in Italy — inadvertently entered his system via a message from a team member he has since fired. The entire episode has been a constant topic of conversation as he has progressed through the US Open bracket.

The longer the draw lasted between Sinner and Draper – who are friends and played doubles together in August – the more it went in the Italian’s favour, as the match lasted more than three hours.

He is the purest ball-striker currently in the men’s game, and while Draper’s left-handed power and good hands – whether he was following his serves to the net or simply finding other moments to hit volleys, he won 22 of the 34 points he went forward with – made some progress, Sinner got better and better the longer the exchanges went on.

Sinner took the point after 50 of the 80 strokes that lasted nine or more strokes.

“Jannik always plays at such a high level,” Draper said.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis