Taylor Fritz Became First American Male In 15 Years To Accomplish Tennis Feat

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For the first time in nearly 20 years, two American men squared off in the semifinal of a Grand Slam tennis tournament. On Friday night, Taylor Fritz outlasted Frances Tiafoe in a five-set thriller to advance to the final of the U.S. Open against #1-ranked Jannik Sinner. 

Whether Fritz wins or loses, he's already accomplished a feat that took 15 years to replicate. The last U.S.-born men's tennis player to reach the final match of a major tennis tournament was Andy Roddick at Wimbledon in 2009. 

Yeah, it's been a long time. Tennis has been dominated over the past two decades by the "Big Three": Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Of course, none of those men are American. 

Taylor Fritz became the first American male since 2009 to reach the final match of a Grand Slam tennis tournament with his win at the U.S. Open.

Taylor Fritz became the first American male since 2009 to reach the final match of a Grand Slam tennis tournament with his win at the U.S. Open.

(Robert Deutsch/USA Today Network)

They've accounted for the vast majority of Grand Slam finals appearances and victories since 2003. 

But Roddick broke through a few times in the aughts, winning the U.S. Open in 2003 (the last American man to win a Grand Slam tournament), and reaching the final match at Wimbledon three times from 2004-2009.

Since then, though, no American male has really risen to the challenge. 

Until Fritz broke through on Friday night after previously never making it past the quarterfinal stage of a Grand Slam tournament. 

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He has a tough task ahead of him on Sunday afternoon, facing the top men's player in the world, Jannik Sinner. The Italian-born star won the Australian Open this year, his first career Grand Slam title. 

But don't count Fritz out. He's got a big serve and moves well on the court. All of America should be pulling for Fritz. 

It's about time for the United States to claim another major men's tennis title and, hopefully, Taylor Fritz is the man to get it done. 

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Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to OutKick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named "Brady" because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.