Carrying the weight of his country on his shoulders, American Francis Tiafoe ran out of steam in the fifth set of their French Open fourth round match against Matteo Arnaldi on Monday (6-7, 7-6, 6-3, 6-7, 4-6). Tiafoe went 30-0 in the fourth set to take a 4-1, 5-4 lead before the Italian went into overdrive, keeping the Americans out of both teams’ quarters with a singles tie for the first time since the 2017 Paris Games.
Tiafoe, aiming to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam for the fifth time in his career, ran out of steam in the final stages. Arnaldi moved on to face Italian Matteo Berrettini on Wednesday after a hard-fought five-hour, 26-minute battle with Tiafoe.
Tiafoe was looking for his third come-from-behind victory of the tournament by dropping at least one set, but fell short as he lost several key points in the final two sets. Berrettini and second-seeded Alexander Zuberes are the only Grand Slam finalists guaranteed to win their first major in Paris this weekend.
One of only two Americans to advance to the fourth round After 6 people arrived the first weekendTiafoe overcame a shaky start against Arnaldi, but was unable to get ahead of his opponent in the fifth inning. Arnaldi’s dominant effort included an improbable fourth set comeback before dominating the fifth set.
Tiafoe had seven set point chances in the second set, including a 40-0 lead at 5-3, but then Arnaldi stormed back, playing Tiafoe’s familiar record in majors to force a tiebreak and close to a commanding two-set lead. Arnaldi unplugged the jukebox and competed at one of the highest levels of his career, winning the remaining steps with a performance worthy of his trademark fist pump.
For all of Tiafoe’s charisma, shot-making talent and crowd-pleasing athleticism, the biggest question surrounding his Grand Slam ceiling has always been consistency, and the scope of his game expanded early against Arnaldi. Tiafoe said before facing Arnaldi that he needed to focus solely on his next opponent, refusing to look ahead as only three top-10 seeds remained in the field, with Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic also not in the frame.
Another concern was that his momentum tended to be erratic. Tiafoe thrives on emotion and energy, which is part of what makes him a dangerous seeded player. When games get tense in the final stages of a major, Tiafoe’s game typically lacks the consistency that the game’s best players often display — and that story came to fruition again in Game 4.
After leading 5-3 in the set with a wild forehand into the net at 30-15, Tiafoe appeared to be in complete control, winning the next two points and clinching the set winner with a well-placed serve that Arnaldi couldn’t return.
Tiafoe first lost his service game to Arnaldi in the middle of the second set, then heated up with three breaks, including one junction for 10 consecutive points.
The 28-year-old American struggled to show any semblance of rhythm from match to match in the first two sets, but something changed as his aggression flared in the second set tiebreak. Wilt then had a chance to take the lead in the fourth set.
Entering the fourth round, Tiafoe had won a five-set match in a row, but appeared to be starting to tire late in the second set, especially after an awkward approach to the net on a cut-cord ball left him wincing at midcourt.
Perhaps he was conserving any energy he had left for the rest of the match, especially after winning on serve and forcing another tie-break, this time taking the 85-minute second set with a backhand winner behind Arnaldi.
Tiafoe, who is playing in his second major this year with new coach Dr. Mark Kovacs, flashed after dropping the first set and putting his Grand Slam appearance in jeopardy near the end of the second. Unfortunately, he didn’t come up with enough quality shots to win the final two sets.
“He’s doing great. He’s fighting hard and making the right plays,” Kovacs said on the broadcast after the third set, after initially having doubts about his disciple’s shot selection early in the match. “He’s playing more aggressively, taking his time, doing exactly what he’s supposed to do. He looks good, he’s in good shape and he’s playing like he’s supposed to.”
Tier Four’s slow start
Tiafoe defeated Arnaldi, even falling behind in the fifth draw, got some momentum out of the box and even got a cheer from AJ Divanza, who is projected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming NBA draft. Tiafoe, a DMV native, has become friends with the former BYU superstar, who is one of the prospects the Washington Wizards are targeting later this month.
In the tiebreak, Tiafoe slipped on a forehand try on the first point and, after a sprint, lifted a drop from Arnaldi well over the baseline, putting him at an early disadvantage. Tiafoe hit an ace in the middle of the court to extend his lead to 3-2 before returning to serve and facing two set points shortly after.
Trailing 6-5 in the tiebreak, Tiafoe hit a routine backhand into the net, ending the first set.
Few players on tour can match Tiafoe’s ability to rise to the level of elite competition, but maintaining that standard throughout the majors has proven much more difficult during his career. While his return has been explosive, he has often lacked the week-to-week efficiency needed to put pressure on the sport’s elite servers. And the deeper into the Grand Slam tournaments, the difference gets narrower, and too many matches are often spent defending rather than scoring points, the coach said after losing the first set.
Tiafoe took the lead in the opening tiebreaker, but lost the set due to the aforementioned backhand error.
Arnaldi broke Tiafoe in the seventh game of the first set against some of the best winners in the match. He exchanged a sharp angle with Tiafoe at the net, then made a nice lob over his opponent’s head to get back to the baseline and make it 30-0, but a few points later he slipped in a two-handed backhand down the line to take advantage.
Tiafoe stands closer to the baseline than other players and often hits serve returns inside the perimeter. In the first set against Arnaldi, that schematic plan backfired at times and he found himself on the back foot.
“Tiafoe has more aces than any top player,” John McEnroe said on the air. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but he seems to be guessing…and I don’t think he needs to.”
Arnaldi complained about the slick clay surface after his first service game, but did not mention it to the umpire during the rest of the match. Tiafoe faced a break point in his first service game of the match, but before returning to deuce he hit an overhead and beat a crosscourt forehand winner to take it.
Going into the fourth round, Arnaldi had been on court for more than 11 hours in the tournament, which was second to Juan Manuel Cerundro and two spots ahead of Tiafoe. Arnaldi’s marathon rounds never let him get the better of him or affect his legs in the second half of the match, especially in the last two sets where he took advantage of the crowd’s momentum.
What’s next for Tier Four?
Tiafoe couldn’t take the opportunity and pressure to advance as Monday’s match progressed, especially after breaking Arnaldi to take a 3-2 lead in the second set before dropping the game on serve. Tiafoe, who was trying to become the first American to win a men’s singles Grand Slam title in 23 years, collapsed.
With Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic and other contenders expected to be the top seeds at Wimbledon this summer, this felt like a golden opportunity for Tiafoe in Paris. If he beat Berrettini, he would have faced the winner of Félix Auger-Aliassime and Flavio Cobolli in the semi-finals.
Tiafoe physically has the athleticism to compete, but his basic discipline can waver during overtime rallies and he ran out of steam against Arnaldi. Shot selection is important in a Grand Slam, where the opponent repeatedly exposes their weaknesses, but he was unable to do so in the final stages of the match.
The talent is undeniable. The challenge for Tiafoe moving forward on clay is to turn great moments into sustained excellence over multiple matches. That’s the final hurdle separating him from true Grand Slam contention and his first title.
