The incredible story of Michelsen: "At 16, I didn't even consider becoming a professional tennis player"

Alex Michelsen has become one of the major revelations of the US Open 2026 by making it to the quarter-finals, and his life story deserves to be told as an example of unexpected success. With only four seasons competing at the professional level, this young man is exceeding all expectations, even his own.

He may not be the most complete, elegant, and charismatic player in the world, but what Alex Michelsen is doing deserves to be praised. His path to the elite has been as curious as it has been meteoric, going from playing tennis for fun to reaching the quarter-finals of the US Open 2026 in just six years. He will face Frances Tiafoe for a spot in the semi-finals, and if life has shown him anything, it’s that he has reasons to dream and that those dreams can come true.

This is the story of Alex Michelsen, quarter-finalist at the US Open 2026

Michelsen sees his success as a reward for hard work

"I have a lot of good things on my mind right now. I can't complain. I've been playing very well all week and I still haven't lost a set. I have a lot of emotions and I'm a bit at a loss for words, but I'm very happy."

"In a way, I didn't expect to sign this result, but it's not something I find inconceivable either. I'm a little surprised because I feel like my level before this tournament wasn't very good."

"But at the same time, I've been working like crazy for I don't know how many years to play this sport. I'm a little surprised I got here this way, but I always had the feeling that one day I would."

Fierce competition on the ATP circuit

"My first year on the circuit, I started very well, and then suddenly the clay came, and my confidence was probably at the lowest point of my life. I used to win a lot of matches, and when you get to the circuit, all these players are psychopaths; they're incredible. It gets tough."

"Confidence fluctuates, of course, but at the end of the day, I always have that confidence in myself. Because if you don’t have it, I think I would lose a match like today's or against Nakashima, who is playing very well. I always try to have as much confidence in myself as possible."

Michelsen's happiness for not receiving media attention

"It doesn't bother me at all. I love being under the radar. It's great. I completely agree with you: I think I've been quite under the radar. No one really told me I could be professional until I turned 16. It was never talked about at home. No coach mentioned it. Nobody brought it up. It was never really an idea for me."

"I started to improve more and more, and I had a coach, Jay, with whom I did right-hand sessions at nine in the morning, like I would do back then. He told me, 'I think you can be among the top 100 in the world.' I said, 'No.' And he replied, 'I think you can.' He was the first to tell me that. And he ended up being right."

"There are many younger players than me who have been playing incredibly well. We can say that I haven't earned that attention, and I am perfectly fine with that. You get what you earn. And here we are."

Frances Tiafoe, the next challenge for Michelsen

"I think I probably saw him for the first time when he played against Federer here, on Ashe, in 2017. I vaguely remember watching it from home. I was about 12 or 13 years old. I have played against him twice and I'm 0-2, so I'm going to have to change a few things."

"It's also been a long time since we played, and I feel I've improved. Besides, he's an incredible person and a very good friend of mine. I think it's going to be absolutely amazing. I hope we play on Ashe, because I think it would be a unique experience."

"Frances has all the shots in the book and is an extraordinary competitor. He does everything very well and doesn't have too many holes in his game. I've said it before: I think Frances is a top-5 player at the US Open. He always plays well here. It's going to be a very tough task for me, but I'm going to go out there and give it my all."

Michelsen's mindset in difficult moments

"Of course, I've felt nerves. In the tiebreak, I played terribly until 6-4, to be completely honest. I made a lot of mistakes and made many bad decisions."

"I thought, 'I don't deserve to win this set, so I'm going to play a bit more freely.' Then a couple of good volleys came, and I played a great point at 7-6. It just happened that way, and I was lucky to win the set."

"Of course, I've felt nerves. In the first, second, and third rounds, I felt them throughout the match. It's a human experience, but it's about going out there and managing them as best as possible, and I think I've done very well."

"I try to focus on one point at a time. I know it's a cliché, but I haven't always done it. Sometimes you look too far ahead or too far back when something doesn't go how you want. But, at the end of the day, you can only control the next point."

"I think I've done well during this tournament, especially playing the best of five sets. If you look too far ahead, it can be really overwhelming because you have to win a lot of points, a lot of games, and a lot of sets to win the match."

The example of Alex Michelsen highlights how one can reach the elite through various paths and how important hard work is to exceed any expectations placed upon him. The Californian will seek to prolong his dream at the US Open 2026 and continue to excite everyone with his story.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, La increíble historia de Michelsen: "Con 16 años ni me planteaba ser tenista profesional"