South Africa’s Kevin Anderson made history on Saturday morning as he booked his place in the US Open final and could do so again this evening.

Anderson defeated Spain’s Pablo Carreño Busta in a tense semi-final match filled with nerve wrecking rallies, which ended in four sets: 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4. Anderson’s win caused an upset as Busta hadn’t lost a set in the tournament this season. Bill Gates was among the many spectators witnessing this historic moment.

— Kevin Anderson (@KAndersonATP) September 10, 2017

Anderson attributed his victory to hard work: “it was an unbelievably tough match for me. I was pretty nervous starting out and I’m sure Pablo was the same, this is the first time for both of us on one of the most famous stages in tennis”.

He couldn’t contain his excitement as he climbed into the box to celebrate with his family and team.

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“I don’t know if the team hug is appropriate after the semi-finals, but it certainly felt like the right thing to do,” said Anderson.

Not only is this his first ever grand slam final, but this 28th seed is currently no.32 in the world making him the lowest-ranked player to reach the finals in the men’s singles of the US Open since the inception of the ATP ratings in 1973 – pretty remarkable.

Anderson is the first South African man to reach the US Open final since Cliff Drysdale’s appearance in 1965. This is a special moment for South Africa as a whole. Win or lose the country will be routing for him every step of the way.

The 31 year old has made a remarkable come back from injuries that saw him drop to 80 in the world, earlier this year. At 6ft8 he is one of the tallest men to reach the US Open finals.
Will Anderson’s superb serve that saw him bagging 22 aces in the semi-final and his height land him his first ever major title? On Sunday, 10 September 2017 he will attempt to be South Africa’s first grand slam winner since 1981 when John Kriek won the Australian Open.

Anderson might have defeated a Spanish player in the semi-final but he has to face yet another in the final, this time Rafael Nadal the no.1 seed who is said to be the favourite in the much anticipated game at 10 pm CAT at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.

– Article written by Zikhona Masala

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