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Brandon Nakashima recovered from a break down in the deciding set to beat Taylor Fritz 7-6 (9), 4-6, 6-3 and reach the Cincinnati Open semifinals. Frances Tiafoe needed four match points to see off Lorenzo Musetti 7-6 (2), 7-5. They meet on Saturday in the first all-American men’s semifinal here since 2010, with Flavio Cobolli facing Arthur Fils in the other half.
Cincinnati, United States: Taylor Fritz hit 22 aces on Friday night and lost.
The 27th seed absorbed everything the sixth seed sent at him — those 22 aces, and 31 unforced errors alongside them — to win 7-6 (9), 4-6, 6-3 in two hours and 13 minutes.
Broken, Then Not
The opening tiebreak went to 11-9 and the second set went to Fritz. When Nakashima fell a break behind in the decider, the match looked to be following the pattern of a rivalry Fritz had dominated.
Instead Nakashima broke straight back for 3-3, held, broke again for 5-3, and served it out — converting his first match point with a forehand winner. “I’ve gotten a lot of confidence over the summer,” he said. “When it came down to the wire in the third set, just tried to trust my game fully.”
It is a considerable run. Nakashima lost a Washington semifinal to Fritz after Wimbledon, reached his first Masters 1000 final in Montreal last week, and has now made the last four at consecutive Masters 1000 events. This is his best showing in six appearances at Cincinnati, having exited in the third round in both 2024 and 2025. Fritz, meanwhile, has still never gone beyond the quarterfinals here in eight attempts.
Tiafoe Survives the Late Scare
Frances Tiafoe’s win over Musetti was tighter than a straight-sets scoreline suggests. He took the opening tiebreak comfortably, 7-2, and led 5-3 in the second before the Italian pulled level.
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It took more than two hours and four match points to finish, on a humid Ohio night with thunderstorms nearby that threatened without ever interrupting play. Tiafoe played aggressively throughout and sealed it with an unreturnable serve.
The 17th seed has spent a difficult summer recovering from a wrist injury and early exits in Washington and Montreal. This is his first Masters 1000 semifinal since he reached the final at this tournament in 2024, losing to Jannik Sinner.
An All-American Last Four
Tiafoe and Nakashima will contest the first all-American men’s semifinal in Cincinnati since Andy Roddick and Mardy Fish in 2010. Tiafoe leads the head-to-head 6-1.
Their meeting is one of two on Saturday. Flavio Cobolli, who came from a set down to beat Tommy Paul, faces Arthur Fils in a tie that guarantees a first-time Masters 1000 finalist.
With Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula also through in the women’s draw, four American players are in the semifinals across both competitions. “It’s insane, I think we’re all doing so well,” Gauff said. “Hopefully we can have a double title win.”
Results — Quarterfinals, Men’s Singles
[27] B. Nakashima d. [6] T. Fritz 7-6 (9), 4-6, 6-3
[17] F. Tiafoe d. [10] L. Musetti 7-6 (2), 7-5
[7] F. Cobolli d. [18] T. Paul 2-6, 6-3, 6-4
[21] A. Fils d. T. Tirante 6-3, 6-2
Semifinals: Nakashima v Tiafoe · Cobolli v Fils
