Frances Tiafoe has returned to the stage that shaped his career.

The stage – the quarterfinals of the US Open – where Tiafoe (No. 20) was eliminated in a thriller against fellow American Ben Shelton last year, for which he took revenge in the third round this year.

A stage where Tiafoe emerged from nowhere and became one of the sport’s fans’ favorites after defeating the legendary Rafael Nadal in 2022. A stage that could now set the tone for the next chapter of his career.

To secure his return to the quarterfinals of the US Open, the 27-year-old Tiafoe had to face one of the strongest wildcard players of this year’s tournament.

He defeated Australian Alexei Popyrin, who had beaten No. 2 Novak Djokovic in the third round and is ranked 28th in the world, in the fourth round on Sunday evening at Arthur Ashe Stadium 6-4, 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-3.

Tiafoe will next play against No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov.

Popyrin came close to winning the second set and levelling the match, but a 5-2 lead melted away to 5-5 and then a 6-5 lead into a tiebreak which Tiafoe eventually won. In the ninth game, Tiafoe recovered from a 0-40 deficit to take the break victory against Popyrin.

“I win a point, win another point, and I was like, ‘ooh,'” Tiafoe said. “He gave me one and I was like, ‘Don’t let me get two,’ then I was like, ‘Don’t let me get three,’ and then I was like, ‘I might as well break now.’ I was pretty lucky there, to be honest. Without (the fans), that wouldn’t have happened.”

After losing the third set, Tiafoe overwhelmed Popyrin – breaking him in the sixth game – to win the fourth set and seal the victory.

There was little to separate Tiafoe and the 25-year-old Popyrin at the start, as the two exchanged the first eight games in the first set and both held serve.

Tiafoe finally broke the pattern.

He broke Popyrin in the ninth game to take a 5-4 lead in the first set. The Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd – most of whom were cheering him on – went into a frenzy as he made his trademark fist-pumping gesture. Tiafoe then easily won the tenth game to take the first set.

“I’ve dreamed of playing on this course since I was a kid,” Tiafoe said. “I’ve always hit the wall and I want to compete on this course. … It’s so iconic. Named after Arthur Ashe, I wanted to be a part of it. It brings out the best in me.”

On Sunday, Tiafoe and Popyrin faced each other for the first time.

For a while, Tiafoe’s trajectory was heading in the wrong direction.

After his quarterfinal victory over Nadal in 2022 launched his career, Tiafoe, who was not widely recognized at the junior level, struggled.

He failed to advance past the third round in seven of the next eight majors, losing to Shelton on his only trip further – to the quarterfinals of last year’s US Open.

In fact, Tiafoe’s appearance in the semifinals of the 2022 US Open – where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz – is the only time he has advanced beyond the quarterfinals at a major.

Although he is not the highest-ranking American, his cross-cultural appeal has made him the most popular.

Much of this is due to the victory over Nadal in 2022 and the New York crowd continues to view him as their hometown favorite.

And the field is more open than it has been in years for an American looking to end his country’s Grand Slam drought, with Alcaraz and Djokovic already out. The only remaining former US Open champion is No. 5 Daniil Medvedev.

But first things first – Tiafoe is back in the quarterfinals of the US Open.

And facing him is another star: Dimitrov, who has a 3-1 record against him.

Expect fireworks.

“He’s so talented, he’s one of the most talented players in a long time,” Tiafoe said. “He’s playing great. He’s getting back to his best form in the later stages of his career. … I’m going to make him fight for it and make him earn it.”