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Frances Tiafoe is one of the protagonists of the Atp 500 tournament in Acapulco. The American tennis player overcame Yoshihito Nishioka in straight sets in the first round to access the round of 16, where he will face Feliciano Lopez.
Shortly before the start of the Mexican tournament, the number 6 of the seed participated in an event programmed by Mextennis, which aimed to bring out the human side of the athletes. The 25-year-old from Maryland admitted that, since he was a child, he had clear ideas about what he wanted to do when he grew up.
He explained: "I've always had the dream of becoming a tennis player since I was a child. Becoming a pro, I had the opportunity and I wanted to do it. My mom is still mad that I didn't go to college, but that wasn't in my plan, it was clear to me.
As a kid, I used to watch the US Open and imagine what it would be like to play there." He said then: "I grew up watching Andre Agassi, Gael Monfils. Roger Federer. Rafael Nadal. Juan Martin Del Potro was the first player I saw play live and at that point he became my hero."
Frances Tiafoe: "Juan Martin Del Potro is my hero"
Tiafoe is now considered one of the most talented exponents of the American tennis school.
The world number 16 admitted that he is still in touch with many of the friends with whom he shared this passion. He told: "I've played with a lot of guys and I still see a lot of them, we grew up together. Like now, I've been training all the time.
What I've achieved is pretty crazy." After his participation in the event, which was also attended by personalities such as Matteo Berrettini or Feliciano Lopez, the American went to one of the training camps where he made a rally together with his countryman Mackenzie McDonald.