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NEW YORK — When his incredible run was over and he’d gone toe-to-toe with the world No. 1, Felix Auger-Aliassime walked off Arthur Ashe Stadium clapping for the crowd, waving as he stepped into the tunnel while fans stood and cheered him on for the last time. 

On Friday night, the Canadian put up a heck of a fight against Jannik Sinner in the US Open semifinal, coming back after dropping the opener 6-1 to force four sets in front of a raucous and packed crowd that backed Auger-Aliassime from the start. 

At times, the 25-year-old from Montreal said it felt a little bit like he was playing at home, because of that crowd support. “Kind of — it was good,” Auger-Aliassime said, with a grin, after a 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 loss to the defending US Open champion.  

“I think my story was a little bit different this tournament. I think people have known my name around tennis, but it’s like, ‘Okay, it was a good story as long as it went on,’” he added. “It stopped tonight, but I’m very pleased to come back home knowing that the crowd wanted me to go on and to keep playing well and to keep enjoying myself on the court.”

Auger-Aliassime’s story grew here in New York, big time. To earn this semifinal match against Sinner, the world No. 27 from Canada dropped three top players — No. 3 Alexander Zverev, No. 8 Alex de Minaur and No. 15 Andrey Rublev — en route to his second Grand Slam semifinal appearance, four years after his first. This equals his best-ever finish at a major, and the best-ever for a Canadian man at a US Open.

Sinner dominated at the start of this semifinal, and it looked like it might be over in a jiffy. The Italian didn’t give up a single point on his opening service game, punctuating it with a 121-mph ace. Auger-Aliassime, meanwhile, opened his first service game with a double-fault, and while he saved a pair of break points and registered his first ace of the game, Sinner went on to earn that early break. 

It was the type of start Auger-Aliassime couldn’t afford against Sinner, who’d dropped just a single set heading into the semifinal. The Canadian’s serve is his biggest weapon, and he couldn’t hold it in his opening game, or much in that first set. 

Still, the crowd was behind Auger-Aliassime for the whole match, cheering on the underdog upset. They roared when Auger-Aliassime won his first point, when he fired his first ace, when he floated in a drop shot that even Sinner, who moves so quickly and effortlessly, couldn’t reach. They stood and cheered when Auger-Aliassime won long rallies, and the Canadian smiled as he took it all in.   

Auger-Aliassime pumped his fist and yelled “yeah!” after winning a break point in the second set, and this crowd was on its feet, cheering right along with him. The umpire had to ask them to “please” be quiet when some yelled “Go Felix” as Sinner was preparing to serve.

New York wanted a show, and the Canadian made sure they got one, capitalizing on his booming serve and 36 winners in all to make it a match. When he won his second service game with four straight points in the second set, Auger-Aliassime raised a fist and walked back to his court-side seat. 

But any momentum the Canadian earned in this match was brief. Sinner returned from a medical timeout to start the third set, and though he appeared to struggle early, the 24-year-old took control soon after with a break to take the set. Sinner later said whatever he was dealing with during the timeout was “nothing very serious.” 

Auger-Aliassime earned break points early in the fourth set, and looked at the crowd and yelled “come on!” The fans responded, and again the umpire had to say: “thank you,” so they’d quiet down enough for play to resume, and not for the last time.  

Auger-Aliassime fired a crosscourt forehand winner on the run to earn his fifth break point of the fourth set, and the crowd lost it again. But he couldn’t capitalize on those chances to break Sinner. 

“Yeah, it’s tough,” Auger-Aliassime said, of those missed opportunities. “I got caught by a slow second serve. I mean, I kind of pulled the trigger on a forehand. Could have went in. If it goes in, maybe I’m in a fifth set, maybe not. I don’t know. I don’t have regrets. I played my way. I played my game.” 

Sinner, meanwhile, continued to play his game and capitalized on his next break point to take a 3-2 lead in the fourth set, never looking back. He’ll face world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in Sunday’s final in a bid for his fifth career Grand Slam. 

And if Friday evening’s semifinal was any indication, the final will be an absolutely electric atmosphere. DJ Trizz had the tunes pumping loudly, the smoke machines were going on the court before the match began, and stars like Julianne Moore, Jon Hamm, Jon Bon Jovi, Kaley Cuoco, Hugh Jackman and Adam Driver were among the celebrities in attendance.  

It was Auger-Aliassime’s last match here this week, and though he didn’t crack his first-ever Grand Slam final, he went on a heck of a run here in New York, and didn’t go out quietly. After his performance here, he’ll move up 14 spots in the world rankings, to No. 13.

The last time Sinner played Auger-Aliassime was a couple of weeks ago in Cincinnati in the Masters 100 quarterfinal, and Sinner crushed him 6-0, 6-2. Sinner called Auger-Aliassime a “completely different player” this time around. 

“He still had a great start, but I had much more belief that as the match would go on, I would find a good level and be competitive,” Auger-Aliassime said, pointing out that his mental game was what he liked most about his performance at the US Open.

“It’s just the belief, the mentality, the conviction in myself that I have what it takes to win these type of matches,” he said. “I think the mentality is something that I’ve been working on, and that was good this week.”

His finale here lasted three hours and twenty one minutes, and ended with New York fans giving both players a standing ovation.   

Before the match, before he walked through smoke machines onto the court and won the crowd over, Auger-Aliassime said he was “here to make the most of it.”

His story at the US Open is over now, but he did exactly that.