History will be standing on both sides of the net when Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe enter Arthur Ashe Stadium for their U.S. Open semifinal.
It will be the first Grand Slam semifinal between two Black men in the Open era. The winner will become the first Black American man to reach the U.S. Open singles final since Arthur Ashe in 1972—and the first to advance to any major final since MaliVai Washington finished runner-up at Wimbledon in 1996.
If Shelton or Tiafoe captures the championship Sunday, he would become the first Black American man to win the U.S. Open since Ashe claimed the inaugural Open-era tournament in 1968.
Those milestones have brought together two distinctly American journeys on the court bearing Ashe’s name.
Frances Tiafoe’s Unlikely Road to New York
Tiafoe was born in Maryland to parents who immigrated from Sierra Leone while escaping the country’s civil war.
His father, Frances Sr., worked on the construction crew that built the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Maryland. He later became the facility’s head of maintenance.
Tiafoe and his twin brother, Franklin, spent much of their childhood at the center, sometimes sleeping in a spare room while their father worked. Their mother, Alphina, worked as a nurse and regularly took overnight shifts.
Tennis entered Tiafoe’s life through circumstance. His rise came through talent, sacrifice and an opportunity his family refused to waste.
At age 5, Tiafoe began training on the same courts his father maintained, turning an unusual childhood home into the starting point of an improbable tennis journey, according to the USTA.
He grew into a top-10 player and one of American tennis’ most visible advocates for making the sport accessible to children from disadvantaged communities.
Earlier in his career, Tiafoe discussed what it meant to see Black children identify with him: “Having black kids looking up to you is huge, and it has a big impact.”
Tiafoe has made expanding that path part of his purpose. “I want to see more Black kids playing the game of tennis,” he wrote in a first-person essay for the USTA, adding that he hoped his success could help make that ambition real.
Now 28, Tiafoe reached his third U.S. Open semifinal in five years by erasing a two-set deficit against Alex Michelsen. He prevailed 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6).
Ben Shelton Carries His Family’s Legacy
Shelton followed a more traditional tennis path, but one with deep roots in Black sporting history.
Shelton understands that his family’s tennis lineage was made possible by the Black champions who came before it. During the 2025 U.S. Open, he called Althea Gibson “the trailblazer” for African Americans in tennis and wondered whether his father would have discovered the sport as a Black child in Alabama without Gibson and Ashe opening doors.
His father and coach, Bryan Shelton, played professionally and reached No. 55 in the world before becoming a successful college coach. His mother, Lisa Witsken Shelton, was an accomplished junior player.
Ben preferred football as a child and did not commit seriously to tennis until his early teenage years. He later played for his father at Florida, helped the Gators win the 2021 NCAA team championship and captured the NCAA singles title in 2022.
The 23-year-old secured his semifinal place by stunning defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7). The match ended at 3:33 a.m., the latest finish in U.S. Open history, and delivered Shelton’s first victory over a top-three opponent.
Arthur Ashe’s History Awaits Its Next Name
Ashe remains the only Black man to win singles championships at the U.S. Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon. He reached his last New York final in 1972, losing to Ilie Năstase five years before the tournament moved to Flushing Meadows.
Shelton leads Tiafoe 3-1 in their rivalry, although they have divided two previous U.S. Open meetings. Shelton won their 2023 quarterfinal before Tiafoe answered in the third round in 2024.
Friday’s third U.S. Open meeting carries far more than a place in another final.
One Black American man will walk onto the court named for Ashe. Another will walk off it having reached a destination no Black American man has occupied there in 54 years.
Ben Shelton-Frances Tiafoe US Open Semifinal Will Make Black Tennis History