PARIS — Before Francis Tiafour played the points at this French Open, he wasn’t particularly keen on its surface or the opportunity at the tournament.
“I’m really excited about the final tournament at Clay,” Tierfour said the night before the grand slam event at Roland Garos. “And we ride the real thing, grass and the hard courts in the summer – tennis is actually important.”
He may now have a different perspective. The 15th seeded Tierfour made his first appearance in the quarter finals at the French Open with a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory over Germany’s Daniel Altmeier on Sunday night, joining 12th seed Tommy Paul and putting the American pair in eighth rounds.
This is the first time that more than one man has been placed in the Paris quarterfinals since 1996 when Jim Courier and Pete Sampras did it together. Zeroman from the US has been winning it so far in the years so far since Andre Agassi in 2003.
And Tiafoe, which cannot be fully quoted here, celebrated the victory by yelling the phrases twice, including the words “Let’s” and “Go” – did without dropping the set.
A considerable turnover for a man who has been suffering for a long time with a large tennis on slow red clay. He first won in 2022 after starting his French open career with a 0-6 record, and another last year.
“In clay, I’m a little more passive than the other surfaces because the courts don’t help me play as fast as I want,” said Tierfour, a double semifinalist on the US hard court. “Patience is something I struggle with.”
But look at him now.
And listen to what he said when he met with the reporter over a week ago, when he heard at least a bit of his usual sense of humor.
“When you’re ready to go, you can go for a run, not just for three rounds. I really feel like anyone can beat on a certain day.”
Next up after Tiafoe will be on Tuesday against Italy’s No. 8 Lorenzomsetti or Denmark’s No. 10 Holgaloon.
Four American women will play in the fourth round on Monday: No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, and No. 7 Madison Keys will face Haley Baptist on All-US Encounter.
Paul, a semi-finalist at the Australian Open in 2023, did not actually plague Sunday with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 victory over 25th seed Australian Alexei Popilin within two hours. Paul was 28 years old and grew up in North Carolina and is now facing Spain’s second Carlos Alcaraz.
“Really,” Paul said of Alcaraz, “A man can play amazing tennis here.”
