Frances Tiafoe began his 2023 US Open campaign with a 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 victory over American wild card Learner Tien.
“It’s totally different on this court,” said Tiafoe. “I’ve got this crowd behind me. I have so many good memories from last year.”
Tiafoe’s 41 unforced errors suggest he may need to round into Grand Slam form, but it was nonetheless a fairly straightforward afternoon for the world no. 10 as he won 6-2, 7-5, 6-1.
“I love it. This is circled once a year on the calendar. It feels so good to be back here. I’m going to try my hardest and put everything on the line. Hopefully, these next couple of weeks are ones to remember.”
Tien, the youngest player in the men’s draw at 17, captured his second straight title recently at the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championships. However, the Irvine native had his hands full against his more experienced countryman. Comfortable at a career-high No. 10 in the ATP Rankings, Tiafoe opened the match with a service break and was never under threat moving forward.
Tiafoe broke his Tien in the first game and that would set the rhythm for the rest of the match at Arthur Ashe Stadium in front of a crowd that was pulling for him.
The 25-year-old hit 13 winners in the first set and was calculated at the net as he frequently forced Tien to fall back.
But Tien would not get an opportunity to close the gap in the first set. Tiafoe responded for a 3-1 lead before winning a crucial second break for a 5-2 advantage.
After serving for the set, Tiafoe won another service break in the beginning of the second. He would outlast Tien through five deuces to continue his pace.
This streak wouldn’t last for long for the American, as he started to crumble. Tiafoe lost the next two games on unforced errors before he missed the line with an easy forehand winner in the fifth game of the set.
That forehand miss at 30-30, helped Tien take a 3-2 lead before he eventually secured a lead of 4-3.
From there, Tiafoe regained focus and won the next two games. He leveled the set at 4-4, as Tien was able to make trouble for his opponent.
The next game felt like a turning point for Tiafoe, who blew a 40-0 lead with a chance to break. Even so, he held his nerve in the deuce and delivered the moment of the match. He slapped a forehand winner down the line following a huge slam from Tien at the net.
Tien would stick around to return a break of his own, and was two points from a 6-5 lead after a furious left-hand winner down the line for 30-15 in the next game.
Tiafoe managed to claw back and survive a deuce for another break. This time, he served out the set for what would prove to be a nail in the coffin momentum wise.
Even with cementing the third set, there were some signs for concern, as he missed another straightforward winner with the advantage at deuce, down 1-0.
He recovered over the next two points to even the set and eventually win it, but there are some areas to clean up for a player who is a favorite in this tournament. But it might be the lack of knowledge facing a younger opponent with little scouting.
“I thought Learner was very good,” said Tiafoe. “It’s tough when you don’t really know your opponent, who’s so young and coming after you. I made it a little tough on myself in the second set but, ultimately, it was a pretty good first round.”
Tien, played a semester of college tennis at USC before turning pro this summer. He finished with 20 winners to 32 unforced errors.
Tiafoe was more than efficient from the service line, garnering 10 aces and winning 37 of 47 (79%) first-serve points.
Last year, Tiafoe became the first American to reach the men’s semis since 2006 (Andy Roddick). Along the way, he defeated No. 3 Rafael Nadal and No. 11 Andrey Rublev. A two-time titlist in 2023 (Houston, Stuttgart), the 25-year-old improved to 34-14 on the year.
Next up for Tiafoe is 58th-ranked Sebastian Ofner of Austria, a 7-6(5), 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-4 winner over Portugal’s Nuno Borges. This will be their first meeting. Tiafoe is making his ninth straight US Open main-draw appearance, and is the No. 10 seed for the second Grand Slam tournament in a row after Wimbledon.
Stay tuned for more breaking tennis coverage and updates.
Featured Image courtesy of US Open
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- Source: https://thegamehaus.com/sports/frances-tiafoe-advances-to-second-round-at-us-open/2023/08/29/
