WHAT. A. MATCH. The US Open semi-finals featured one of the hottest matchups in tennis today. On one side, you had Frances Tiafoe, the hometown hero looking to make a name for himself in Queens. On the other end, there was Carlos Alcaraz, the rising Spanish sensations who has been phenomenal during the tournament. One of these incredible stories unfortunately had to end today.

It was a hard-fought battle, but in the end, it was Carlos Alcaraz that prevailed, beating Frances Tiafoe in a grueling five-set match. The Spaniard punched his ticket to the US Open grand finals. Along the way, Alcaraz made history, becoming only the second teenager to make it to the finals in Queens.

Before Carlos Alcaraz' US Open semi-final win, the first teenager to make it to the finals was the legendary Pete Sampras, who won the tourney at 19 years old in 1990. Alcaraz also made some incredibly tiring history, as he became the third player to win back-to-back-to-back five-set matches to make it to an Open finals. (via ESPN Stats & Info)

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Frances Tiafoe struck first in their US Open semifinals, taking the first set in a tight race. After that, Carlos Alcaraz racked up two clean sets to take a 2-1 set lead over the American. Tiafoe answered with another tenacious performance, forcing a fifth and final set. Unfortunately, Alcaraz' shot-making was just too good.

Now, Alcaraz has a clear shot at being the top-ranked player in the world. He'll be facing the Norwegian Casper Ruud in the US Open Finals in a few days. Will this be the start of Alcaraz' rise to the top of the tennis world?