Tiafoe wins first career ATP title at Delray Beach
DELRAY BEACH: Frances Tiafoe won the Delray Beach Open, with father Frances Sr watching, for his first ATP Tour title.
The 91st-ranked Tiafoe, the first wildcard recipient to win the title in its 26-year history, had consecutive aces on the final two points for a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Peter Gojowczyk of Germany.
At 20, Tiafoe is the youngest American to win a title since Andy Roddick at 19 in 2002 in Houston.
Tiafoe fell on his back in celebration and cried as he hugged his father.
“Now I’m in a position not only to help myself but help fund my family,” Tiafoe said.
“It’s an unbelievable place to be in and it’s bigger than tennis.”
Tiafoe’s parents moved from Sierra Leone to the United States looking for a better life. The elder Tiafoe ended up working as a maintenance worker at a Maryland tennis club where the American-born Frances fell in love with the game.
His twin brother, Franklin, wasn’t interested in the sport.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Frances Sr, who now frequently travels the Tour with his son.
“I told them since they were little, work hard and you can achieve your goal.
“I told him whatever you put your mind to you can do it.”
Tiafoe, who should move up to approximately No. 61 in the new rankings, was playing in his first career Tour-level final at Delray Beach.
He entered last week’s New York Open, where he reached the quarter-finals, with nine total career ATP Tour-level match victories.
In this last two-weeks he has won seven Tour matches.
Among those recent victories is a second-round win over 10th-ranked Juan Martin Del Potro this week.
Tiafoe was the last American to defeat the German, which took place at the 2016 Winnetka, Illinois Challenger event.
“I told you guys I was going to get him,” said Tiafoe, laughing.
“All the guys were texting me, ‘You have to take him out’.”
Gojowczyk had beaten his eight previous American opponents in ATP Tour-level matches, including sixth-seeded John Isner, Reilly Opelka and Steve Johnson this week.
Overall, Gojowczyk had beaten the last 14 American players he faced in Tour and non Tourlevel matches since that Winnetka loss to Tiafoe.
■ RIO DE JANEIRO: Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman ended a two-year wait for his second ATP Tour title as he overpowered an exhausted Fernando Verdasco to win the Rio Open 6-2, 6-3.
The world No. 23 was in commanding form against an opponent who appeared to run out of puff after reaching both the singles and doubles finals in Rio.
“I was very patient, solid, intense, I knew he was very tired as he had played both singles and doubles,” Schwartzman said of his opponent who won the doubles final on Saturday.
“It’s been two years since I’ve won a tournament so I am very happy. It was a perfect week for me.” Schwartzman broke serve three times in the first set as Verdasco produced a string of unforced errors.
Once the Spaniard squandered four break points at 2-2 in the second set, he appeared to wilt under pressure and Schwartzman ran away with the match. — Agencies