Frances Tiafoe might have lost to Carlos Alcaraz in round three at this year’s Wimbledon but he didn’t half gain some new fans with his performance.
The American player lost in five sets to the player who eventually won the tournament and actually held a two sets to one lead on the Spanish sensation.
Tiafoe has yet to really catch fire on the professional tennis circuit but there were certainly flashes of brilliance at Wimbledon in 2024.
The 26-year-old has been to a semi-final at the US Open and also reached a quarter-final at the Australian Open in 2019.
At SW19 this year, he came through in the first round against Matteo Arnaldi after trailing two sets to love and then thrashed Borna Coric in straight sets.
When analysing his performance at Wimbledon, Andy Roddick found himself disagreeing with Jon Wertheim when discussing what he’d tell Tiafoe after his exit at the tournament.
Andy Roddick disagrees with something Jon Wertheim said about Frances Tiafoe
Well, it was a pretty decent week at Wimbledon for Tiafoe even though he will have departed believing that he perhaps should have defeated the eventual winner.
Alcaraz had to dig deep to edge past Tiafoe and he proved to be the Spaniard’s toughest test at this year’s tournament.
Wertheim suggested what he would have done with the American after the five-set defeat to Alcaraz at The All England Club.
He said on the Served with Andy Roddick podcast: “If I am Frances’ new coach, I am making him watch that Carlos match and then making him watch a match where he loses to, in his words, a clown on a Tuesday and say how do we reconcile the two.”
Roddick knows what it’s like to play at Wimbledon, reaching three finals but losing all of them to Roger Federer.
He doesn’t agree with Wertheim and he would try a different approach with the world number 28 after his loss at Wimbledon.
Roddick said: “I actually kind of disagree. I think yes, we need to see that level more often, but the way I would present it to Frances is we need the work to be so consistent that the real victory was you playing terribly in the first round and finding a way through to give yourself a chance to play better.
“Round two he played well and then round three it was like riding a bike again, you found the flow. How do we get through more round ones? When you eke out a round-one win. How do you get the victory from the times when you are not playing perfectly? When you are not in the flow. When you don’t have 15000 watching you. He likes that atmosphere.
“I would say the celebration and the one we need to see more of isn’t the top level of your tennis, we have seen that when everything is in flow, I am not worried about you delivering then. Let’s go through the ugly matches, to give you more shots at that energy centre, is the way I would approach that conversation.”
Tiafoe has to take confidence from Wimbledon display
Not many elite athletes take too much from defeats but in the case of Tiafoe at Wimbledon, he has to use this as a springboard to kick on.
The US Open is just around the corner and that is a tournament where Tiafoe has starred before, reaching the final four in 2022.
Tiafoe has been in pretty poor form this season but in taking Alcaraz to five sets and almost sending him packing should give him some heart.
The player will also be given a proverbial rocket with compatriots Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton playing some good matches at Wimbledon this year.
Tiafoe is only 26 and has time on his side when it comes to winning the big trophies that the sport has to offer.
However, he has to show a more consistent streak and his battling display against Alcaraz could be just the springboard he needs.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
