Frances Tiafoe has once again captured the nation’s attention by securing his spot in the US Open semi-finals for the second time in his career. This feat has only cemented his status as one of the most exciting American players on the tour.
During his post-match press conference, Tiafoe made a comment that had everyone talking. When asked about being the first American male to reach a Grand Slam semi-final since 2009 and at the US Open since 2006, Tiafoe couldn’t help but reflect on how much the landscape of tennis has changed.
The American admitted that a few years ago, someone like Rafael Nadal had such an aura of invincibility that his opponents would start looking for flights back home even before they played him in a quarter-final match for instance. But with the ‘Big 3’ era done and dusted, the young generation has truly arrived.
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Fans quickly picked up on Tiafoe’s remarks, with reactions flooding in across social media. Some appreciated his candid take on how the dominance of the Big 3—Nadal, Federer, and Djokovic—has shaped the expectations of players over the years.
the tennis world is changing, this is the year of the first grand slam since 2002 with no titles for the big 3 pic.twitter.com/yIaT4IFONN
— Tennis world (@claygrasshard) September 4, 2024
In another part of his press conference, Tiafoe answered a question on Roger Federer being in the crowd watching him play. He joked about how Federer looked as flawless sitting in the suite as he did on the court—no sweat, perfectly ironed t-shirt, and impeccable hair.
It was clear Tiafoe was as impressed with Federer’s off-court coolness as the rest of us were with his on-court presence. Other than Federer being present, he was stoked about Kevin Hart being there too. He expressed his excitement and spoke about how honored he felt to play and win in the presence of these two legends in their own domain.
With Tiafoe now set to face Taylor Fritz in the semi-finals, all eyes will be on the American star to see if he can take his run even further and possibly break the curse of no American Grand Slam wins in the last 21 years.
