Frances Tiafoe Beats Daniil Medvedev, Sets Up All-American US Open Quarterfinal Against Alex Michelsen

Frances Tiafoe beat Daniil Medvedev 7-6(1), 6-4, 7-6(6) on Sunday, September 6, 2026, at Louis Armstrong Stadium, winning their fourth-round matchup to reach the quarterfinals of the US Open. Tiafoe was the No. 11 seed; Medvedev was the No. 7 seed. He now faces fellow American Alex Michelsen, making it an all-American quarterfinal.

Key facts

Result: Frances Tiafoe (No. 11 seed) beat Daniil Medvedev (No. 7 seed) 7-6(1), 6-4, 7-6(6)
When and where: Sunday, September 6, 2026, at Louis Armstrong Stadium
Next round: quarterfinals against fellow American Alex Michelsen, an all-American matchup
Career context: Tiafoe’s sixth top-10 victory at a major, and his first win over Medvedev in what he called a “regular match”
Home-Slam history: his fourth US Open quarterfinal in the last five years, after reaching the semifinals in 2022 and 2024

How the match unfolded

Two of the three sets went to tiebreaks, and Tiafoe closed out the third by a 7-6(6) margin after Medvedev, the No. 7 seed, had pushed it that far.

Afterward, Tiafoe told reporters, according to ATP Tour: “What a match. Daniil has been so good and he has beaten me so many times. This is the first time I have beaten him in a regular match, so I am super pumped up about it.”

That “regular match” framing reflects a lopsided history between the two: Tiafoe had lost six of their previous seven meetings, according to ATP Tour. The win was also Tiafoe’s sixth top-10 victory at a major championship, according to ATP Tour.

He also spoke about the atmosphere of playing: “in front of friends, family, loved ones.” Louis Armstrong Stadium has been a good venue for him specifically — he is unbeaten there in ten career matches, according to ATP Tour.

Building on past Grand Slam runs

This is not Tiafoe’s first deep run at his home Grand Slam. He reached the US Open semifinals twice before: in 2022, when he became the first American man to get that far since Andy Roddick in 2006, and in 2024, when he lost an all-American semifinal to Taylor Fritz. The win over Medvedev sends him into the quarterfinals for the fourth time in the last five US Opens.

An all-American surge

Five American men reached the Round of 16 at this year’s tournament, something that had not happened at a major since 1995, and American men have gone without a Grand Slam singles title since Roddick won this same tournament in 2003.

Tiafoe’s quarterfinal opponent, Alex Michelsen, is a 22-year-old Californian who entered the tournament unseeded and ranked world No. 46. He beat No. 27 seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6(6), 6-4, 6-4 to reach his first career major quarterfinal, without dropping a set so far in the tournament.

The two Americans meet on Tuesday, Sept. 8, in Arthur Ashe Stadium, second on in the day session, which begins at 1 p.m. ET. With Tiafoe, Michelsen, Shelton and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz all advancing through the Round of 16 on Sunday, every men’s fourth-round match that day included an American, guaranteeing that at least one American man will reach the semifinals.

Elsewhere in the draw

Elsewhere in the draw, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz beat Tommy Paul to reach his quarterfinal against Ben Shelton, who beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets.

On the women’s side, top seed and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka beat American Taylor Townsend 6-4, 6-3 to reach her sixth straight US Open quarterfinal — matching a streak Serena Williams held from 2011 through 2016 — and will next play Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova.

The other women’s quarterfinal is also all-American: Jessica Pegula against Emma Navarro.

Notable withdrawals

The men’s draw is missing its top seed. World No. 1 Jannik Sinner withdrew before the tournament began with a right knee injury. Other withdrawals included Jack Draper, Victoria Mboko, Emma Raducanu and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

What happens next

Available schedules place the quarterfinals on either September 7-8 or September 8-9; the exact date range remains unresolved. The women’s semifinals are set for September 10, the men’s semifinals for September 11, the women’s final for September 12, and the men’s final for September 13.