Prior to the Australian Open Frances Tiafoe had only won five matches in 11 appearances at a grand slam tournament. Now a dream run at Melbourne Park has made him the youngest American man to reach a major quarter-final since 2003.
Recently celebrating his 21st birthday, Tiafoe has produced wins over both Kevin Anderson and Grigor Dimitrov to reach the last eight in Melbourne. Illustrating the talent he has on the court. After each triumph, his celebrations are inspired by NBA superstar Lebron James where he would mimic the ‘too strong’ bicep slap. Something that could feature regularly in his matches for years to come.
“You like that? It was pretty cool,” Tiafoe commented about his celebration earlier this week.
“It is kind of instinct thing,” he added. “I hope the crowd liked it.”
Tiafoe’s route into tennis is far from ordinary. His parents fled to America in order to escape the civil war in Sierra Leone. They only managed to enter the country by coming through the Green Card Lottery. A system where the US government allocated a total of 55,000 visas worldwide to countries with low immigration rates to America. Tiafoe learned to play tennis at a club in Maryland, where his father worked as a maintenance man before becoming a on-site custodian. During his childhood, he would stay with his father, who was given accommodation on site.
“I obviously wasn’t a normal tennis story. The beginning of my career, I was playing for them, trying to do everything for my family. Obviously now I put them in a great place. Now I’m trying to do it for me.” He said following his fourth round win in Melbourne.
“I’m not saying you can’t make it if you grew up from a wealthy situation. I mean, a ton of people have. But obviously that gave me an incentive, a reason to give, a reason to work every day, understand why you do it.” He added.
Those familiar with the career of the American will not be too surprised by his Australian Open breakthrough. As a junior Tiafoe showed promise by winning the prestigious Orange Bowl at the age of 15. Becoming the tournaments youngest ever champion. Two years later, he became the youngest American man to feature in the French Open main draw since 1989. In 2018 he reached his first two ATP finals, winning his maiden title in Delray Beach.
Blessed with a big aggressive game and fast serve, Tiafoe’s rise hasn’t gone unnoticed by his rivals on the tour. So far in his career, he has scored three wins over top 10 players. Including Juan Martin del Potro, who was his idol whilst growing up.
“He’s great as a team player. He’s going to be amazing. He can only get better from now on for him.” Dimitrov said of the 21-year-old. “It’s just a long way to go. I know how is it to break ground on those first tournaments, especially a slam and all that”
“He really needs to just stay calm and make sure he follows the right path. That’s pretty much the only advice I can give him on that end. Obviously he’s done something well so far. He’s progressing, playing better. Those things are already adding up.”
Whilst on the right path, future success on the tour is by no means guaranteed. There has been a lot of talk in Melbourne concerning the changing of the guard following the successes of Tiafoe and fellow next gen star Stefanos Tsitsipas. Although consistency on the tour remains a challenge for Tiafoe, who last won four consecutive matches in a tournament back in May.
“Perth was terrible, Sydney was bad.” Tiafoe reflected about his start to 2019.
Despite his lacklustre run of results in recent time, some of the biggest names in the sport are starting to take note. Something that is exciting American tennis fans and their hunt for a male grand slam champion. The last player from the country to win a major title was Andre Agassi at the 2003 US Open.
“He has everything. He’s quick. He serves well. Very quick forehand. He’s a very dynamic player, aggressive one. Of course, he’s dangerous.” 14-time grand slam champion Rafael Nadal said of Tiafoe.
Nothing is ever certain in life, but there are signs that Tiafoe might be starting to live up to the hype that has been said about him through his young career. His performance against Nadal in the Australian Open quarter-final may seen pivotal, but in reality it is how he fairs on the tour for the rest of the year.
Tiafoe is certainly a star in the making, but only time will tell if he can reach the top of the men’s game.
