Taylor Fritz completed a stirring comeback to defeat Frances Tiafoe in the all-American semifinal to advance to face Jannik Sinner in the US Open final.

Before the semifinals on Friday, no American had reached the men’s singles final at the US Open since 2006. But Fritz ended that drought in New York.

With fans inside Arthur Ashe Stadium split between the pair of home favorites, Tiafoe and Fritz stepped out onto court amid an electric atmosphere. The clash lived up to the billing, as Fritz’s dominant serve was met by Tiafoe’s expert ability to counter an opponent’s power in his favor.

Fritz, who defeated Matteo Berrettini, Casper Ruud, and Alexander Zverev to post his best Grand Slam result in his career, enjoyed a fine start. He held serve in the first game before exploiting Tiafoe errors to snatch the first break of the semi.

But Tiafoe hit back. After sinking to 3-0 down, the 26-year-old held and earned his break back with errors creeping into Fritz’s game before collecting a second – one of five successive game wins as he rallied back from the slow start – as he took the first set 6-4.

The second set saw both men step up their respective service games. Tiafoe saved a set point down 5-4 before holding serve, but Fritz came back in the world No. 20’s next service game to break. The break came at 6-5, when Tiafoe was serving to stay alive in the second.

Fritz drastically improved his serve in the second set, winning his last 23 points on serve. He also had 14 winners compared to just three unforced errors as he tied the match, while Tiafoe faltered.

The third set began with Tiafoe breaking Fritz, who lost more points on serve in that game than in the entire second set. It proved to be the only break he needed; Tiafoe held serve throughout, taking the third 6-4 in 40 minutes.

While his first serve percentage dropped to 39 percent in the third set, Tiafoe lost just one first serve point and four second serve points. He expressed a confidence in his game that continued into the fourth.

Both Tiafoe and Fritz exchanged games, with the American duo holding their respective serves. Fritz held to lead 4-3 in a game which featured an epic 31-shot rally as the match became more physical. After another trade of holds, Fritz clinched the key fifth game and forced a fifth set by dramatically breaking Tiafoe, whose first serve percentage continued to decline.

Tiafoe appeared fatigued in the fifth set, and his game unraveled. Fritz – who was broken just once across the final two sets – needed just seven games to pull off the comeback win, breaking Tiafoe three times in the fifth to capture the All-American semifinal.

Now, America dreams of a first home men’s singles champion since Andy Roddick in 2003. Fritz will face Sinner for the U.S. Open title in the men’s singles final on Sunday, Sept. 8.