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Thanks to an extraordinary performance at the end of a crazy battle, was Frances Tiafoe won the BOSS Open. It took over two hours of hard fighting for the winner to be decreed between him and a tough Jan-Lennard Struff, who missed the appointment with his first career title.
It is the third, but the first on grass, however, for Tiafoe, who thanks to the success in Stuttgart was able to rewrite the history of him and of tennis in general. The victory against the German, in fact, certified Tiafoe's entry into the Top-10 for the first time in his career, a result that coincided with another record.
It had been 5,256 days, or over 14 years, that an African American tennis player had not entered the Top-10 of the ATP ranking. The last one to succeed was his compatriot James Blake back in 2009. A historic milestone for Tiafoe, who with his triumph at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart is a candidate to play a leading role for the season on grass.
It has been 5,256 days since an African American male tennis player was last ranked inside the ATP's top 10.
With his title victory in Stuttgart, Frances Tiafoe will end that drought tomorrow 🙌🏾
(📸: Getty) pic.twitter.com/ufhPzFqOaK — GS Tennis News Today (@gstntoday) June 18, 2023
Tiafoe: “I couldn't be happier”
Frances Tiafoe now has three titles won in his career.
If from a purely statistical point of view they may seem few, it must be said that the trophies in question have arrived on all surfaces, this testifying to the fact that the American tennis player, originally from Sierra Leone, knows how to be competitive everywhere and complete .
Interviewed by the ATP Tour at the end of last Sunday's victory against Jan-Lennard Struff, Tiafoe was keen to specify this data, as well as expressing all his happiness for the goal achieved. He told: "The second tie-break was crazy.
Ups and downs, an incredible point at 6-5. It was a heads up. He served very well, I wasn't able to break him in three sets, but I stayed focused. I couldn't be happier. Now I have won at least one title on all surfaces and shown that I am always competitive.
It's an exciting time for a guy like me and with my story. I shouldn't even be here doing half the things I'm doing. This is a milestone that no one can take away from me and I will always remember this moment. I hope I can stay in the Top-10 for a long time."