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Could Frances Tiafoe be America’s next male tennis star?
Frances Tiafoe became just the third American player to defeat Rafael Nadal in a Grand Slam match. (Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports)

Could Frances Tiafoe be America’s next male tennis star?

Cody Kluge

Cody Kluge - BVM Sports Journalist/Editor

Updated:

NEW YORK (BVM) – The biggest headline coming into this year’s U.S. Open was American tennis legend Serena Williams competing in a grand slam event one last time. However, as Williams’ career is ending, a potential American tennis star on the male side has emerged: Frances Tiafoe.

On Monday, Tiafoe shocked the tennis world as he upset 22-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory. The 36-year-old Nadal was the No. 2 seed in this year’s tournament and had a 22-match Grand Slam winning streak following titles in the Australian Open and French Open earlier this year. No. 1 seed and defending champion Daniil Medvedev was also upset by Australia’s Nick Kyrgios just a day earlier.

No. 22 seed Tiafoe, who had never even won a set against Nadal in their previous matches, advanced to his first U.S. Open quarterfinals. He is the youngest American to do so since Andy Roddick in 2006. 

Frances Tiafoe U.S. Open tennis ATP Tour
Frances Tiafoe had never won a set against Rafael Nadal prior to his U.S. Open victory over the Spaniard. (Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports)

“I’m beyond happy, almost in tears, I can’t believe it,” Tiafoe said in his on-court interview after the match. “He [Nadal] is definitely one of the greatest of all time. I played unbelievable tennis today. I really don’t know what happened.”

A powerful hitter whose passion and excitement has entertained many tennis fans throughout his young career, Tiafoe now has his biggest win to date under his belt. It surprised many close to him, including his parents and girlfriend, Canadian tennis player Ayan Broomfield, as well some of his peers in the sports world – most notably NBA star LeBron James who gave Tiafoe a shoutout for his incredible performance on Twitter.

It likely wasn’t the first time James has seen Tiafoe in action, as last year the tennis star pulled out James’ signature celebration following a U.S. Open victory over fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev of Russia.

As Tiafoe’s emotions spilled out following the big win over Nadal, the moment also signaled what could be the start of a new era in professional tennis. This will be just the second major since 2005 to not have some of tennis’ biggest names on the men’s side in Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the quarterfinals as each continues to age. 

Nadal likely has more left in the tank, but may eventually hand off the baton to fellow Spaniard and world No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz who is also in this year’s U.S. Open quarterfinals at just 19 years old. 

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Meanwhile, on the women’s side in the U.S., Williams has long been tennis’ best. Now, she is passing the torch to 18-year-old phenom Coco Gauff. 

When it comes to the men’s side in the U.S., there has been a long search for a new star. Tiafoe is hoping he can change the narrative and finally bring a long-awaited, dominant male player to the game with his recent success.

Tiafoe has had a unique story to get to this point. Both of his parents immigrated to the United States in the 1990s from Sierra Leone during the country’s civil war. Tiafoe’s father, Constant, joined a construction crew that was building the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Maryland. Meanwhile, his mom, Alphina, worked multiple jobs including as a nurse. Born in 1998, Frances and twin brother Franklin lived at the center their father was helping build, constantly playing tennis over the next decade-plus. 

Frances quickly emerged into one of America’s brightest young tennis stars. Reaching No. 2 in the International Tennis Federation junior rankings, Frances earned one of his first signature wins at Les Petits As in France at 14 years old. He followed that up with another big win in the Orange Bowl junior tournament later that year. 

After winning the USTA Junior National Championship, Frances received a spot in the main draw of the 2015 U.S. Open. He earned an invite to play in the main draw of the French Open that year as well, becoming the first 17-year-old American to do so since Michael Chang and Pete Sampras in 1989.

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Frances Tiafoe U.S. Open tennis ATP Tour
Frances Tiafoe has climbed into the top 30 of the world rankings in 2022. (Credit: Danielle Parhizkaran-USA TODAY Sports)

Since turning pro, Frances has climbed the world ranks. He cracked the top 100 while winning his first-ever Grand Slam match at the Australian Open in 2017. He made waves the same season with his first win over a top-50 opponent at Wimbledon, and also pushed Federer to a five-set match at the U.S. Open.

In 2018, Frances won his first and only ATP Tour event to date, the Delray Beach Open. 

A year later, the young tennis star made it to the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam event for the first time at the Australian Open, cracking the top 30 of the world rankings. By 2020, Frances had become the youngest American in a decade to reach the round of 16 in the U.S. Open, and he accomplished the same feat in 2021. He also earned one of his best career wins over world No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas at Wimbledon last season.

After falling in the world rankings over the last few years, Frances’ play has brought him back up to No. 26 in 2022. He earned his first French Open win earlier this season, and also reached the round of 16 for the first time at Wimbledon. And now, he has captured the biggest win of his career with his U.S. Open defeat of Nadal. Frances is just the third American to ever defeat the Spaniard in a Grand Slam, joining a short list which includes Roddick and James Blake, the latter of which similarly beat No. 2 Nadal at the 2005 U.S. Open.

At 6-foot-2, Frances has a powerful serve and a unique forehand shot that continue to carry him to success. 

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America has not had a notable male tennis star since Roddick, and it can be argued that no one since Sampras has been truly dominant from the country on the men’s side.

However, Frances may very well change that. He’s had some ups and downs throughout his tennis career, but the constant that has remained is his elite potential. At 24, Frances is putting that potential on full display, and is now in his best position yet to capture his first Grand Slam title. The budding star’s next appearance at Arthur Ashe Stadium will come on Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET in the quarterfinals in a rematch from last year’s U.S. Open with Rublev.

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