Frances Tiafoe has been on a curler coaster journey since final summer season, however issues appear to be clicking for the American tennis star forward of the 2024 US Open. Tiafoe is contemporary off the very best match of his profession with an look within the last of the Cincinnati Open.
Regardless of not having the ability to take down World No. 1 Jannik Sinner on Monday, enjoying in his first ATP Masters 1000 last was a confidence booster.
“I feel the whole lot was falling into the suitable place,” Tiafoe informed CBS Sports activities. “I used to be in a very good place mentally, having extra enjoyable enjoying tennis. I really feel like I bought my swagger again generally. Taking part in aggressive and finally believing in myself.”
Final yr, Tiafoe reached the semifinals at Indian Wells in March. Two months later, he earned a ticket to the third spherical of the French Open. Tiafoe achieved the best rating of his profession at No. 10 in June 2023. That July, he launched the Frances Tiafoe Fund and achieved “a really significant private achievement” by beginning a sequence of group tennis clinics throughout the nation with the assistance of a partnership with Cliff Bar.
Life felt nice, however on the courtroom issues grew to become inconsistent in a short time. After holding on to his No. 10 rating for 9 weeks, Tiafoe began slipping and located himself outdoors of the highest 20 in March 2024.
“I used to be No. 10 on the planet enjoying actually, very well. Profitable quite a lot of matches,” he mentioned. “I had the world in my fingertips after which let go of the rope a bit bit.”
Tiafoe parted methods with coach Wayne Ferreira in December and reunited with former USTA coach Diego Moyano. As of July, he’s now with David Witt, who has labored with Venus Williams and Jessica Pegula. That’s positively quite a bit to adjustments in a brief period of time, however Tiafoe mentioned the most important change for him has been his psychological strategy.
In Cincinnati, he discovered himself down 2-5 within the third set of the semifinal towards world No. 15 Holger Rune. His purpose has been to be a “robust out” towards any opponent, and that persistence helped him power a tiebreak and finally win the match 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4).
“Having gratitude, being extra grateful,” Tiafoe mentioned. “I feel I had much more hesitation and was questioning myself. It is not actual. It is sort of what you place in your head. It simply grew to become not enjoyable as a result of I used to be enjoying nervous and tight.
“I loosened up and now it is ‘no matter occurs, occurs.’ I am grateful, win or lose. Mindset is the whole lot.”
As he enters the final Grand Slam of the season, Tiafoe is seeking to do one thing he has by no means carried out earlier than: win his first Main trophy. Confidence can be key, and proper now he’s feeling good about the place he’s at whereas additionally ensuring to take issues someday at a time.
“I might positively wish to win it, I feel I’ve the power to,” he mentioned. “At first, you wish to put your self in that second week… However why not? Why not be holding that trophy?”
Tiafoe has been near that purpose earlier than, and his finest Grand Slam run really occurred on the US Open in 2022 when he made the semifinals.
“You may have per week like [the Cincinnati Open] and abruptly you are again in it,” Tiafoe mentioned. “You’re feeling like, ‘I’m who I mentioned I’m’ as soon as once more. Tennis is up and down like that, nevertheless it’s about managing the lows. That low was quite a bit longer than I needed it to be however issues began to click on proper on the good time. I am prepared now to start out enjoying among the finest tennis of my profession.”
The Cincinnati Open positively set the stage for what could possibly be an thrilling match in New York. World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz — the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion — performed what he described as “the worst match” of his profession and misplaced to Gaël Monfils within the spherical of 32. World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev additionally struggled in that very same spherical and misplaced to Jiri Lehecka in straight units.
Upsets are usually not enjoyable for individuals who discover themselves on the fallacious aspect, however they actually make issues extra attention-grabbing.
“Tennis might be the very best it has been,” Tiafoe mentioned. “You bought [Alexander] Zverev, Medvedev, Sinner — very, very robust. I feel Alcaraz and [Novak] Djokovic are nonetheless a degree above, however any given day they will lose, particularly to any of those guys, myself included. I feel it is cool in that sense… The game can be getting actually fashionable, there may be quite a lot of vitality round it.”
The US Open will get underway on Aug. 26 on the USTA Billie Jean King Nationwide Tennis Middle in Queens, New York.
