Frances Tiafoe: From Rags to Top 10, Forms Own Children's Charity

[jimlosaltos]

With the US Open coming up, many fans of American mens' tennis will be following Frances Tiafoe after his great run last year. Frances (now with an "e") made the semifinals with 5 wins including a 3-setter over Rafa and straight sets over Andrey Rublev. His win gave America two men in the top 10 along with contemporary Taylor Fritz for the first time Mardy Fish and John Isner were ninth and 10th in May 2012

The image of his serve at the end of this post hints at Frances' unconventional strokes, here with a severe wrist snap (yes, I typed the forbidden phrase on TPN, sorry, but in his case I contend it's true ! I'd love to hear your thoughts on his serve or other shots ). His strokes seem designed to bring his fast-twist muscles to the fore. And that's getting results beyond his top10 ranking - in this month's article on Speed and Spin in 2023, Tiafoe's backhand, first and second serves all measured at the highest average velocity for players in the top 10 from stats by InfoSys at Roland Garros. That from a player that is about average size for the ATP these days at 6 ft 2in.

For more images see this month's Tour Portrait.

Frances recently started a charity to help children at the tennis center where he grew up (link in blue). In case you've missed his wonderful backstory, here is a New York Times article from 2012 when Frances was 14 (link in blue). That link should get you past the NYT paywall, but I don't know how many people it will accommodate. Frances' father did maintenance for a tennis club, where he made a bedroom of a tiny office of about 120 sq feet for him and his two young boys. AP: "His parents emigrated from Sierra Leone in the 1990s during a civil war there. They moved to Maryland, where his dad helped construct the JTCC in College Park, then worked as a maintenance man there.

"So that’s where, and why, Frances and his twin brother, Franklin — who took part in Thursday’s on-court drills, too — picked up tennis."

NYT: "At first, no one at the center paid much attention to the boys. But the boys, especially Frances, paid attention to the action on the courts. Frank Salazar, one of the coaches, said that from the time Frances was 4 “he had a tennis racket in his hands.” For years, Frances would watch instructors give lessons to older boys."

My photos of Tiafoe are from his semifinal run at Indian Wells in 2023 where he beat prior champ Cam Norrie before falling to Daniil Medvedev (c)jfawcette

Links:
Tour Portrait at:
https://www.tennisplayer.net/members...rancis_tiafoe/

AP: https://apnews.com/article/frances-t...50f409d96ab9dc

NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/24/sports/tennis/francis-tiafoe-top-ranked-junior-grew-up-at-tennis-center-and-it-shows.html?unlocked_article_code=dM-rQzPeEsOgZvOgSNl9WaewoShxEayCaHdyDYH98_bM8xB-GMYuUM59Ip67yyOTRMm-B5UXLkHx6BTXigoyNOf-TxQXA6L7UEyK6R4VXEWrY8F3Im1ZrZM38mPXGrdROi7jzRItIm 8sXRjeyJGTP14WbNGqAeBnmgFBz__fcVAmHGdryj6mAx-qVxQfi_KwkYAwFmKmL9uLCJ9iYGXvCvRgBIngZ7W9RwwofZ9Jb 4wAnyGZgT4w9CgC1-cn2WSQ0Ei15WSE3U4pjOiOfC8CoZZY4yic3w7eJijNlDnrlbT5 tECIj7vAyARwfYlZJlT358U_EGnC7syeX_tdyTQtRnlVnnzFbP zlzADebpS29J1q6g7w4723hw_ZW0_N1j3qnMNvDKxeYn9J0-O3LyXC-PNwm20Jag&smid=url-share

Speed & spin article:
https://www.tennisplayer.net/members/notes_on_tour/jim_fawcette/speed_and_spin_2023/

Photo 1 of 2 in this post

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Photo 2 of 2 in this post. Necklace displays Frances' nickname "Big Foe"

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[jimlosaltos]

One anecdote about Tiafoe's unusual serve. At last year's US Open he got a second serve ace vs Alcaraz.

Alcaraz was trying to pull off a SABR (SABAl-caraz?) on Tiafoe's relatively slow second serve. Charged way in, pulled his racket back to hit a forehand and leaped in the air.

Ball jump sharply to the server's right nearly striking Alcaraz in the face. Alcaraz stared at the impact point quizziclly

TV had a good close up of Tiafoe hitting the ball. Kind of brushed the top of the ball to his right by suddenly swinging the racket right mostly with his forearm/wrist. I guess it was some kind of twist serve, but not like any I recall seeing.

[jimlosaltos]

Frances is set to meet local Milos Raonic, back on tour after numerous injuries, in the first round of Rogers Cup, Toronto.

They've only met once, with Frances winning in 3 at this same event way back in 2018.

I believe Milos did not play at all last year, and ATP shows only 12 matches in 2021. 23-9 record in 2020.

[don_budge]

From rags to riches to a rather incredible quarter-final defeat at the hands of GB's Daniel Evans. A highly entertaining match featuring the slice and dice, surgical backhand along with a wide variety of shots and tactical options.

[jimlosaltos]

Cross posting with Rogers Cup / Toronto since event was noteworthy.

Milos Raonic is back being Milos Raonic, for a day at least. Let's see how the leg joints hold up.

But let's start with the first set. Tiafoe won the 26-point tie-break that ended with a bizarre incident involving Tiafoe touching the net outside the singles post. The players turned to Fergus Murphy who said "This is complicated". Milos said, I know the ball has to be up. Fergus said appox, "That's not it. Tiafoe touched the net first BUT it was outside the singles post", so the touch didn't cost Frances the point. That is one I had never seen before. Fergus is one of the best Gold Chair Umps IMHO.

Back to Raonic, a cliche' of tennis, or rather a combination of two, is that "The service is the last thing to go with age, and the first thing to go with lack of practice." Well, Milos has missed most of 2 years with multiple injuries, but clearly he's been dropping some bombs on the practice court: "Raonic's 37 aces fell just one short of his own record for a three-set match of 38, hit against Radek Stepanekat Memphis in 2011."

Milos' fastest serve of the night was over 143 MPH, his "average" (and there's nothing average about it) first service was almost 130 MPH (208.7 KPH).

No fans nor ball people were reported injured in this match <g>.

Milos saved 6 of 7 BPs, Tiafoe 0 of 2 and that's all she wrote.

[jimlosaltos]

Good piece in NY times on Tiafoe

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/28/sports/tennis/us-open-frances-tiafoe.html?smid=url-share

>“He’s a little —” Benton paused and with his arms imitated someone who was experiencing the inevitable weight of expectations, the biggest of which are those Tiafoe has set for himself. “In some ways all he can do is disappoint.”

As well as the season has gone for Tiafoe, including wins in tournaments in Houston and Stuttgart, Germany, he has fallen short of his own goals at the most important events. He has lost in the third round at the year’s first three Grand Slam tournaments.

He was downright despondent after he played arguably his worst match of the year in a three-set loss to Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria at Wimbledon on grass, a surface he loves and that would figure to suit his aggressive and creative game.

~~~~~~

> “He’s such a social guy,” Moulton-Levy said in an interview earlier this month. “He has this big beautiful personality, so what he has to do is manage how to turn it on and off through the course of a match. He has to figure out when and how to let it show.”