Note: Upon discussing this article with Parsa I want to clarify that the del Potro article previously written was discussing how he deserved a wildcard within the current system. Recently I have come to the conclusion that the system that del Potro would receive the wildcard in should be abolished. If the grand slams, ATP, WTA, and ITF were to keep the current system, then yes, del Potro would still deserve a wildcard.
As readers of my blog know, I have been a vocal critic of the wildcard system currently in place for both the WTA, ATP, ITF and the grand slam tournaments. I don't always think that the players receiving wildcard's results warrant the honor of receiving the wildcard, and perhaps that players just outside of the main draw cutoff (as it would be with wildcards) were getting screwed in place of a player who is almost certain to have a First Round exit.
As I read Parsa_Nemati's tweet last night, it dawned on me that something else really bothered me about wildcards. I want to note that I am not blaming the players receiving these wildcards whatsoever, but rather, I am blaming the system that the ATP, WTA, ITF, and grand slams have in place which makes it so tennis is not truly the meritocracy that, upon first glance, it seems to be, but rather that many players from countries with grand slam tournaments, or countries with lots of regular tournaments, receive a marked advantage just because they were born in one of these tennis-filled countries.
So, what am I exactly referring to? In Parsa's tweet, he mentioned that American Reilly Opelka has moved up 69 spots in the ATP rankings and he is now a career-high number 295 in the world. But, the difference between how Opelka moved from where he was for the August 1st rankings (seeing the week-by-week rankings is a really cool feature on the ATP's site and something interesting to look at if you have time!), at number 837 in the world, to where he is today, at number 295, is totally different than most other players who have moved up in the rankings. Because Riley Opelka has not had to grind it out on the ITF Future's Tour nor the ATP Challenger Tour in order to get to number 295, but rather, he has been gifted opportunities in ATP World Tour tournaments through the wildcard system.
Opelka received three wildcards to ATP World Tour events this season, in Washington, Atlanta, and Cincinnati, one of which lead to a special exemption into a fourth ATP World Tour tournament, in Los Cabos. Now, Opelka did very well to take advantage of the opportunities given to him, making the Semifinals in Atlanta (which gave him the special exemption into the tournament in Los Cabos) and winning a match in Cincinnati, but the question becomes, should he have even received the opportunity to do this at this point in time, given his ranking?
Of course, while Opelka earned his way into the Los Cabos draw by virtue of making the semis of the ATP tournament in Atlanta, that opportunity would not have presented itself had he not received the wildcard into the Atlanta tournament. And it's not like Opelka is really old and has been grinding it out on the ITF Future's Tour and ATP Challenger Tour his entire life. He's only 18 years old and started playing in Future's events (qualifying draw included) in 2013. Opelka still has PLENTY of time to achieve good results and work his way up the rankings. But again, this is nothing against Opelka. If I received a wildcard to Washington, Atlanta, and/or Cincinnati, of course I would take the opportunity given to me. This article, instead, is an indictment on the system that tennis has in place on the whole.
I understand why tournaments grant "home" wildcards. Having wildcards from the country that the tournament is in almost certainly increased interest, which will then increase ticket sales and revenue to the tournament. However, there is too much money and too many ranking points at stake for wildcards to be given to whoever the tournament pleases. Let's take a look at Cincinnati, a Masters 1000 event.
In the ATP draw, four wildcards were given out, including three to American players. Number two seed in the qualifying draw, Guido Pella lost in the First Round of qualifying. Had wildcards not been given out, Pella would have made the main draw, and even if he lost in the First Round of the main draw, still received $15,480 United States dollars and ten ranking points (as opposed to the $1,820 and zero ranking points that he received for losing in the opening round of qualifying).
So, y'all can see that giving wildcards does effect both the finances and rankings for players just outside of the main draw, who cannot make it through the qualifying draw, which given the depth on both the ATP and WTA tours, is a tough ask. By having wildcards, again, this goes against the foundation of a meritocracy that tennis is built on. Having a good ranking doesn't mean as much, when players are able to hop over you based on tournaments' decisions. That just doesn't feel fair to me.
Therefore, I have decided that the wildcard system needs to be abolished. Players should be getting into a tournament based on their ranking, not based on who a tournament wants to see in the main draw.
Monday, August 22, 2016
Saturday, August 20, 2016
How Can Anna Karolina Schmiedlova Turn Her Year Around?
In 2015, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova had a fantastic year. She reached three WTA Finals, winning two of them, and played in the WTA Elite tournament in Zhuhai, beating Roberta Vinci 6-1, 6-0. Overall, 2015 was definitely a success for Schmiedlova, and expectations were very high entering the 2016 season. Unfortunately, it seems as if the weight of these expectations have caused Schmiedlova's game to collapse.
2016 has not been a good year of tennis for Anna Karolina. Her record this year is 6-23, which includes a 2-1 record in Fed Cup and an 0-1 record in the Olympics. If you take these matches out of her record to show how she is doing in matches in which WTA points were on the line, she is 4-21, which equates to a winning percentage of 16%.
Now, luckily for her, she is still doing decently rankings-wise, at number 86. But, this is largely due to good results during the end of last summer and last fall, which included a Third Round appearance at the US Open, a semifinal in Seoul, a quarterfinal, in Wuhan, and the previously mentioned victory in Zhuhai. This makes it very important for Schmiedlova to turn her year around, quickly.
So, as opposed to turning this into an article bashing Schmiedlova's year, I have decided to try to figure out some ways that Anna Karolina can turn her year around. Hopefully, she will read these tips and incorporate, at least, think about some of the ideas I am suggesting, as I really hate to see a player struggle at the magnitude that she has, without any (known) injuries that could be explain her play.
How Can Schmiedlova Turn Her Year Around?
1. Seeing Either a Therapist or a Sports Psychology: At the beginning of the year, many of Schmiedlova's losses were in straight sets, however, in recent matches, Anna Karolina has played decently well, she just hasn't been able to finish the match. In recent matches to Sasnovich, Ostapenko, and Kontaveit, Schmiedlova has had at least one match point, but just hasn't been able to close out the match. I think, whether it be a general therapist or sports psychologist, it would be good for Anna Karolina to talk about what she is going through on court, to have someone totally unbiased who will understand what she is going through and help her work through the issues that she is facing. Perhaps Schmiedlova's issues are an injury that she isn't telling anyone about or something going on in her personal life, but whatever the case, having a therapist or sports psychologist to talk with would do Anna Karolina a lot of good, in my opinion.
2. Block out Distractions: Perhaps Schmiedlova's issues with her game is that she is not fulling invested in tennis this year, and is distracted by other diversions in her life. Whether she deems distractions as player parties, social media accounts, such as Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter, television, texting, the internet, or anything else, it is important that Anna Karolina identifies what might be distracting her from playing her best tennis and block out those distractions from her her life. It might be as simple as blocking out other diversions in her life that could lead Anna Karolina back to being a top 30 player.
3. Don't Panic and Play Too Many Tournaments: In a situation like Anna Karolina's, it would be easy to panic and just sign up for a tournament every week. I think this is a bad idea, however. What playing every week does is, if Schmiedlova doesn't win it just continues, every week, to hurt her mindset. However, if Schmiedlova does start winning and goes on a couple runs in consecutive tournaments, she will be fatigued and would be setting herself up to lose due to exhaustion in subsequent tournaments, if playing, for instance, for three or four weeks in a row. So, I don't think it is a great idea for Schmiedlova to have played seven tournaments in the past eight weeks (if we include New Haven as a tournament for next week). I think that, perhaps, scheduling a tournament every-other-week would provide the best balance of playing but not overplaying.
Notice how, in my advice to Anna Karolina, I don't mention any technical changes to her game. I think Schmiedlova's game is fine, otherwise she wouldn't have won two WTA titles. For Schmiedlova, I truly think that improving her game is more a matter of doing the right things off-the-court as opposed to making changes to the fundamentals of Anna Karolina's game.
But, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova is a very good tennis player, and I absolutely believe that she will turn her year around.
2016 has not been a good year of tennis for Anna Karolina. Her record this year is 6-23, which includes a 2-1 record in Fed Cup and an 0-1 record in the Olympics. If you take these matches out of her record to show how she is doing in matches in which WTA points were on the line, she is 4-21, which equates to a winning percentage of 16%.
Now, luckily for her, she is still doing decently rankings-wise, at number 86. But, this is largely due to good results during the end of last summer and last fall, which included a Third Round appearance at the US Open, a semifinal in Seoul, a quarterfinal, in Wuhan, and the previously mentioned victory in Zhuhai. This makes it very important for Schmiedlova to turn her year around, quickly.
So, as opposed to turning this into an article bashing Schmiedlova's year, I have decided to try to figure out some ways that Anna Karolina can turn her year around. Hopefully, she will read these tips and incorporate, at least, think about some of the ideas I am suggesting, as I really hate to see a player struggle at the magnitude that she has, without any (known) injuries that could be explain her play.
How Can Schmiedlova Turn Her Year Around?
1. Seeing Either a Therapist or a Sports Psychology: At the beginning of the year, many of Schmiedlova's losses were in straight sets, however, in recent matches, Anna Karolina has played decently well, she just hasn't been able to finish the match. In recent matches to Sasnovich, Ostapenko, and Kontaveit, Schmiedlova has had at least one match point, but just hasn't been able to close out the match. I think, whether it be a general therapist or sports psychologist, it would be good for Anna Karolina to talk about what she is going through on court, to have someone totally unbiased who will understand what she is going through and help her work through the issues that she is facing. Perhaps Schmiedlova's issues are an injury that she isn't telling anyone about or something going on in her personal life, but whatever the case, having a therapist or sports psychologist to talk with would do Anna Karolina a lot of good, in my opinion.
2. Block out Distractions: Perhaps Schmiedlova's issues with her game is that she is not fulling invested in tennis this year, and is distracted by other diversions in her life. Whether she deems distractions as player parties, social media accounts, such as Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter, television, texting, the internet, or anything else, it is important that Anna Karolina identifies what might be distracting her from playing her best tennis and block out those distractions from her her life. It might be as simple as blocking out other diversions in her life that could lead Anna Karolina back to being a top 30 player.
3. Don't Panic and Play Too Many Tournaments: In a situation like Anna Karolina's, it would be easy to panic and just sign up for a tournament every week. I think this is a bad idea, however. What playing every week does is, if Schmiedlova doesn't win it just continues, every week, to hurt her mindset. However, if Schmiedlova does start winning and goes on a couple runs in consecutive tournaments, she will be fatigued and would be setting herself up to lose due to exhaustion in subsequent tournaments, if playing, for instance, for three or four weeks in a row. So, I don't think it is a great idea for Schmiedlova to have played seven tournaments in the past eight weeks (if we include New Haven as a tournament for next week). I think that, perhaps, scheduling a tournament every-other-week would provide the best balance of playing but not overplaying.
Notice how, in my advice to Anna Karolina, I don't mention any technical changes to her game. I think Schmiedlova's game is fine, otherwise she wouldn't have won two WTA titles. For Schmiedlova, I truly think that improving her game is more a matter of doing the right things off-the-court as opposed to making changes to the fundamentals of Anna Karolina's game.
But, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova is a very good tennis player, and I absolutely believe that she will turn her year around.
Monday, August 8, 2016
Frances Tiafoe's First ATP Challenger Tour Title a Long Time Coming
*Note: this article is entirely about singles
Let me start off by saying that I have been a fan of Frances Tiafoe since I first read about his amazing story of a boy coming from poverty and becoming a success in the tennis universe. Tiafoe is an inspiring person.
Upon first starting to watch Frances' matches during the green clay court Challenger swing of 2015, it was apparent that Tiafoe was ultra talented, although he needed to refine his skill set in order for his game to mature to the next level. Tiafoe had already achieved moderate success upon jumping into the ATP Challenger Tour last spring, as he won an ITF Futures Tour tournament, and made the Final of two others.
When Tiafoe managed to qualify for the green clay Challenger event in Sarasota and make a run to the Quarterfinals, it was quite apparent that he had the potential to be a special tennis player. As just a 17 year old at the time, for him to grind out wins not only in the main draw, but in the qualifying draw as well, was truly stunning to watch, and in hindsight, reminds me a lot of Taylor Fritz's successes in Challenger tournaments late last year.
What was even more impressive than his run in Sarasota was that he then made the Semifinals of a Challenger in Savannah (coming within one set of the Final) and then made the Final of a Challenger in Tallahassee. Not only could Tiafoe have a big result, but he could back his result up with other, even better results. This, in fact, gave Frances the victory in the wildcard challenge that the USTA puts on, and with it, a spot in the main draw of the French Open. What was so impressive about Tiafoe, and continues to impress me, is his mental toughness during matches. In the Savannah and Tallahassee Challenger tournaments alone, Tiafoe came back from a set down to win in four of the matches he played, and won in three sets in one additional match.
Frances even lead the Final of the Challenger tournament in Tallahassee by a set and a break, before the much more experienced, gritty Facundo Arguello eventually won the match in three sets. Tiafoe managed to come back from two breaks down in the third set, but gave his serve up once more, and that was what Arguello needed to push through the end of the match. While the loss was disappointing for Tiafoe, it was understandable given the difference in experience between the two. However, it seemed inevitable at the time that Tiafoe would win a Challenger tournament soon thereafter.
However, the loss to Arguello was followed by some mixed results by Tiafoe until the very end of the season. Without going through each event individually, I will say that Frances did very well to win his first main draw ATP World Tour match in Winston-Salem, qualifying and then beating James Duckworth in a third set tiebreak in the First Round, coming from a set down. Tiafoe was even a set away from beating Thomaz Bellucci, a seasoned veteran, in his next match in North Carolina. That result, along another ATP Challenger Tour semifinal appearance in Fairfield (coming a set away from the Final), were the major achievements for Tiafoe between Tallahassee and Knoxville. However, a smattering of mixed results in addition to Wintson-Salem and Fairfield proved that Tiafoe might be rising in the rankings, but he would not skyrocket, like Taylor Fritz did towards the end of 2015.
And perhaps Fritz's results started to inspire Tiafoe, as in the Challenger at Knoxville, Tiafoe played great tennis. After getting pushed to three sets in the first two rounds, Tiafoe came within one set of the title, again winning the first set against Dan Evans, fighting back in the third set to get the match back on serve from a set down, but ultimately losing in three sets. From the parts of this match that I watched, I can assure y'all that Evans played really solid tennis, punishing Tiafoe from the baseline. It was impressive to me that Frances could even win a set off of Daniel. But, in any case, this sunk Tiafoe's record in ATP Challenger Tour finals to 0-2, and with a fairly early loss in Tiafoe's next tournament, somewhat surprisingly, his quest for a Challenger title would have to wait until 2016.
Tiafoe's 2016 up to the Challenger in Granby was marked by improved play and, generally speaking, good results. The problem was just that, he was having good results, but not great results. The big problem for Tiafoe in 2016, until Granby, was that he just couldn't win in the Final of a Challenger tourmament.
That's not to say the year up until Granby was not a success, as this would be far from accurate. Tiafoe picked up his second ATP World Tour match win ever, beating fellow young American Taylor Fritz in the First Round before winning the first set against David Goffin (currently number 13 in the world), and even having two match points, before ultimately losing in a third set tiebreak.
However, Tiafoe's consistent good results on the ATP Challenger Tour was, in my opinion, more impressive than a couple good performances in Indian Wells. Before Granby, Tiafoe had already made the Final of ATP Challenger Tour tournaments in Tallahassee, Winnetka, and in Lexington (which he played in the week prior to Granby). The problem for Frances was, he lost in the Final in all three of his Final appearances.
In Tallahassee, Tiafoe lost to a player he struggles playing against, Quentin Halys. From watching Halys' game, I think that the problem for Tiafoe is that Halys has a very strong backhand, while Tiafoe's backhand, while MUCH improved and a shot which has turned into a weapon for him as 2016 has progressed, is still a weaker part of his game.
Therefore, Halys' ability to maneuver himself into backhand-to-backhand rally situations, along with his all-court, powerful game allow him to gain the upper hand in this matchup. In terms of this particular matchup in Tallahassee, Tiafoe once again took the first set of the Final, before fading towards the end. Becuase Tiafoe's backhand, and volleys have substantially improved since this match in Tallahassee, I think that Frances will win their next matchup. However, I still don't think Tiafoe wants to see Halys in his section of the draw.
In Winnetka, Tiafoe lost to Yoshihito Nishioka in straight sets, in a match that was won by Nishioka in a very straightforward manner. Nishioka in an ATP World Tour tournament in Atlanta came within one set of the Final, losing to Nicholas Kyrgios in straight sets and has never lost a singles ATP Challenger Tour Final, going 3-0 in his career so far. What I am trying to say is that there is no shame in Frances losing this match. The real problem that this match caused was not that Tiafoe lost to Nishioka, but rather that Frances lost another ATP Challenger Tour Final. Mentally, it must have been tough for him to continue losing in the final stage of Challenger tournaments. However, the bitter losses must have made his first Challenger title even sweeter than if Tiafoe won a Challenger in his first Final (more on this later).
Lexington was a very close Final. Tiafoe's opponent was Ernesto Escobedo, a guy who was 0-6 combined in ITF Futures Tour and ATP Challenger Tour Finals before this match. Therefore, Escobedo had an even tougher mental barrier to get over than Tiafoe, a victory in a Futures event had even eluded him. However, in Lexington, Escobedo played excellent tennis, utilizing his powerful serve and forehand to force Tiafoe to be on the defensive, and playing punishing first-strike tennis, winning 7-6(3) in the third set. Because Escobedo took the racquet out of Frances' hands so often, it was more of how well Ernesto played than how bad Frances played. However, the weight of yet another Challenger Final loss almost certainly weighed heavily on Tiafoe's mind, no matter how well his opponent played.
Finally, in an ATP Challenger event in Granby, Tiafoe had his breakthrough. Putting the disappointment of his loss to Escobedo aside, Tiafoe won the tournament in Granby for his first title on the ATP Challenger Tour. Frances won five matches in a row to win Granby, including a very impressive win in the Round of 16, where he came back from a set down to beat James Ward. Tiafoe was broken serving for the match against Ward at *5-4 in the third set, however, he did not get down on himself and mentally checkout like he might have in the past, and instead, had the mental fortitude to break back immediately, and win 7-5 in the third set.
The set lost against Ward was the only set Tiafoe lost all tournament, meaning that from his first set loss to Ward, Tiafoe won the next eight sets to win the title. That is a very impressive feat and something that Frances should feel especially proud of. The Final was an emphatic win for Tiafoe. Taking on Marcelo Arevalo, Tiafoe lost only two games on the way to a 6-1, 6-1 victory. Frances never let Arevalo in the match, breaking Marcelo's serve in the first game, and never letting the nerves that come from playing in a Final, nor his history in Challenger Finals to drop his high level of play.
It was just so apparent watching the match just how far Tiafoe has come since he first started out on the ATP Challenger Tour last spring. The most amazing improvement in Tiafoe's game has definitely been his backhand. The improvement his ability to not only can he crack backhand winners, but also to play on the defensive on the backhand side has been astonishing. I'm starting to wonder if, one day, Frances' backhand will overtake his forehand as Tiafoe's better groundstroke.
It must have been really hard on Frances Tiafoe to lose so many ATP Challenger Tour Finals. To come so close, so many times, and not win a single Challenger before Granby almost certainly weighed on Tiafoe mentally. However, any mental on Tiafoe has now been lifted.
Frances Tiafoe won his first ATP Challenger Tour title yesterday in Granby. And the title was definitely a long time coming.
Let me start off by saying that I have been a fan of Frances Tiafoe since I first read about his amazing story of a boy coming from poverty and becoming a success in the tennis universe. Tiafoe is an inspiring person.
Upon first starting to watch Frances' matches during the green clay court Challenger swing of 2015, it was apparent that Tiafoe was ultra talented, although he needed to refine his skill set in order for his game to mature to the next level. Tiafoe had already achieved moderate success upon jumping into the ATP Challenger Tour last spring, as he won an ITF Futures Tour tournament, and made the Final of two others.
When Tiafoe managed to qualify for the green clay Challenger event in Sarasota and make a run to the Quarterfinals, it was quite apparent that he had the potential to be a special tennis player. As just a 17 year old at the time, for him to grind out wins not only in the main draw, but in the qualifying draw as well, was truly stunning to watch, and in hindsight, reminds me a lot of Taylor Fritz's successes in Challenger tournaments late last year.
What was even more impressive than his run in Sarasota was that he then made the Semifinals of a Challenger in Savannah (coming within one set of the Final) and then made the Final of a Challenger in Tallahassee. Not only could Tiafoe have a big result, but he could back his result up with other, even better results. This, in fact, gave Frances the victory in the wildcard challenge that the USTA puts on, and with it, a spot in the main draw of the French Open. What was so impressive about Tiafoe, and continues to impress me, is his mental toughness during matches. In the Savannah and Tallahassee Challenger tournaments alone, Tiafoe came back from a set down to win in four of the matches he played, and won in three sets in one additional match.
Frances even lead the Final of the Challenger tournament in Tallahassee by a set and a break, before the much more experienced, gritty Facundo Arguello eventually won the match in three sets. Tiafoe managed to come back from two breaks down in the third set, but gave his serve up once more, and that was what Arguello needed to push through the end of the match. While the loss was disappointing for Tiafoe, it was understandable given the difference in experience between the two. However, it seemed inevitable at the time that Tiafoe would win a Challenger tournament soon thereafter.
However, the loss to Arguello was followed by some mixed results by Tiafoe until the very end of the season. Without going through each event individually, I will say that Frances did very well to win his first main draw ATP World Tour match in Winston-Salem, qualifying and then beating James Duckworth in a third set tiebreak in the First Round, coming from a set down. Tiafoe was even a set away from beating Thomaz Bellucci, a seasoned veteran, in his next match in North Carolina. That result, along another ATP Challenger Tour semifinal appearance in Fairfield (coming a set away from the Final), were the major achievements for Tiafoe between Tallahassee and Knoxville. However, a smattering of mixed results in addition to Wintson-Salem and Fairfield proved that Tiafoe might be rising in the rankings, but he would not skyrocket, like Taylor Fritz did towards the end of 2015.
And perhaps Fritz's results started to inspire Tiafoe, as in the Challenger at Knoxville, Tiafoe played great tennis. After getting pushed to three sets in the first two rounds, Tiafoe came within one set of the title, again winning the first set against Dan Evans, fighting back in the third set to get the match back on serve from a set down, but ultimately losing in three sets. From the parts of this match that I watched, I can assure y'all that Evans played really solid tennis, punishing Tiafoe from the baseline. It was impressive to me that Frances could even win a set off of Daniel. But, in any case, this sunk Tiafoe's record in ATP Challenger Tour finals to 0-2, and with a fairly early loss in Tiafoe's next tournament, somewhat surprisingly, his quest for a Challenger title would have to wait until 2016.
Tiafoe's 2016 up to the Challenger in Granby was marked by improved play and, generally speaking, good results. The problem was just that, he was having good results, but not great results. The big problem for Tiafoe in 2016, until Granby, was that he just couldn't win in the Final of a Challenger tourmament.
That's not to say the year up until Granby was not a success, as this would be far from accurate. Tiafoe picked up his second ATP World Tour match win ever, beating fellow young American Taylor Fritz in the First Round before winning the first set against David Goffin (currently number 13 in the world), and even having two match points, before ultimately losing in a third set tiebreak.
However, Tiafoe's consistent good results on the ATP Challenger Tour was, in my opinion, more impressive than a couple good performances in Indian Wells. Before Granby, Tiafoe had already made the Final of ATP Challenger Tour tournaments in Tallahassee, Winnetka, and in Lexington (which he played in the week prior to Granby). The problem for Frances was, he lost in the Final in all three of his Final appearances.
In Tallahassee, Tiafoe lost to a player he struggles playing against, Quentin Halys. From watching Halys' game, I think that the problem for Tiafoe is that Halys has a very strong backhand, while Tiafoe's backhand, while MUCH improved and a shot which has turned into a weapon for him as 2016 has progressed, is still a weaker part of his game.
Therefore, Halys' ability to maneuver himself into backhand-to-backhand rally situations, along with his all-court, powerful game allow him to gain the upper hand in this matchup. In terms of this particular matchup in Tallahassee, Tiafoe once again took the first set of the Final, before fading towards the end. Becuase Tiafoe's backhand, and volleys have substantially improved since this match in Tallahassee, I think that Frances will win their next matchup. However, I still don't think Tiafoe wants to see Halys in his section of the draw.
In Winnetka, Tiafoe lost to Yoshihito Nishioka in straight sets, in a match that was won by Nishioka in a very straightforward manner. Nishioka in an ATP World Tour tournament in Atlanta came within one set of the Final, losing to Nicholas Kyrgios in straight sets and has never lost a singles ATP Challenger Tour Final, going 3-0 in his career so far. What I am trying to say is that there is no shame in Frances losing this match. The real problem that this match caused was not that Tiafoe lost to Nishioka, but rather that Frances lost another ATP Challenger Tour Final. Mentally, it must have been tough for him to continue losing in the final stage of Challenger tournaments. However, the bitter losses must have made his first Challenger title even sweeter than if Tiafoe won a Challenger in his first Final (more on this later).
Lexington was a very close Final. Tiafoe's opponent was Ernesto Escobedo, a guy who was 0-6 combined in ITF Futures Tour and ATP Challenger Tour Finals before this match. Therefore, Escobedo had an even tougher mental barrier to get over than Tiafoe, a victory in a Futures event had even eluded him. However, in Lexington, Escobedo played excellent tennis, utilizing his powerful serve and forehand to force Tiafoe to be on the defensive, and playing punishing first-strike tennis, winning 7-6(3) in the third set. Because Escobedo took the racquet out of Frances' hands so often, it was more of how well Ernesto played than how bad Frances played. However, the weight of yet another Challenger Final loss almost certainly weighed heavily on Tiafoe's mind, no matter how well his opponent played.
Finally, in an ATP Challenger event in Granby, Tiafoe had his breakthrough. Putting the disappointment of his loss to Escobedo aside, Tiafoe won the tournament in Granby for his first title on the ATP Challenger Tour. Frances won five matches in a row to win Granby, including a very impressive win in the Round of 16, where he came back from a set down to beat James Ward. Tiafoe was broken serving for the match against Ward at *5-4 in the third set, however, he did not get down on himself and mentally checkout like he might have in the past, and instead, had the mental fortitude to break back immediately, and win 7-5 in the third set.
The set lost against Ward was the only set Tiafoe lost all tournament, meaning that from his first set loss to Ward, Tiafoe won the next eight sets to win the title. That is a very impressive feat and something that Frances should feel especially proud of. The Final was an emphatic win for Tiafoe. Taking on Marcelo Arevalo, Tiafoe lost only two games on the way to a 6-1, 6-1 victory. Frances never let Arevalo in the match, breaking Marcelo's serve in the first game, and never letting the nerves that come from playing in a Final, nor his history in Challenger Finals to drop his high level of play.
It was just so apparent watching the match just how far Tiafoe has come since he first started out on the ATP Challenger Tour last spring. The most amazing improvement in Tiafoe's game has definitely been his backhand. The improvement his ability to not only can he crack backhand winners, but also to play on the defensive on the backhand side has been astonishing. I'm starting to wonder if, one day, Frances' backhand will overtake his forehand as Tiafoe's better groundstroke.
It must have been really hard on Frances Tiafoe to lose so many ATP Challenger Tour Finals. To come so close, so many times, and not win a single Challenger before Granby almost certainly weighed on Tiafoe mentally. However, any mental on Tiafoe has now been lifted.
Frances Tiafoe won his first ATP Challenger Tour title yesterday in Granby. And the title was definitely a long time coming.
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