Tennis-Tiafoe battles past Popyrin into US Open quarter-finals

Sep 1, 2024; Flushing, NY, USA; Frances Tiafoe (USA) celebrates after beating Alexei Popyrin (AUS) on day seven of the 2024 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK (Reuters) -American Frances Tiafoe fed off the energy of a buzzing home crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach the quarter-finals of the U.S. Open for a third successive year on Sunday after beating Novak Djokovic's conqueror Alexei Popyrin 6-4 7-6(3) 2-6 6-3.

Aiming to become the first American man to win a Grand Slam in more than 20 years, Tiafoe said he was living out his dream by following in the footsteps of former greats at the iconic venue.