USA TODAY International Edition
Upset winner Tiafoe talks of Serena
American believes week helped him
MELBOURNE, Australia – Even on a day in the Australian Open when Serena Williams isn’t scheduled to play it seems impossible for the superstar to escape mention.
On Wednesday, it was Frances Tiafoe who had his turn to talk about Williams after he finished discussing his dramatic, second-round upset of fifth seed Kevin Anderson 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.
Tiafoe fielded questions about his recent time teaming with Williams to represent the United States in the Hopman Cup team competition in Perth two weeks ago. If you take Tiafoe at his word, it sounds as if Williams could hold her own against many of the men on the ATP circuit. He described their practice sessions as some heavy-duty workouts, and it’s worth noting Tiafoe can knock the cover off of a ball with his power.
“We hit a lot,” Tiafoe said. “I was struggling. She hits the ball so hard. Like, the courts are fast. It was skidding. I mean, a little topspin maybe. I’m not used to the ball coming in that flat. That was something I really had to adjust to.”
Overall, however, Tiafoe described the experience as one not to miss.
“She’s so nice,” he said. “Such a good competitor. Off the court, she’s so chill and relaxed. Once she gets on, she hates losing. It’s unacceptable.
“I definitely felt that playing. I was about as nervous as could be. I think we grew (to) a pretty good relationship. I think that week definitely helped me long run.”
Sadly, the pairing didn’t tally up to great success as they failed to post a victory in the round-robin stage.
Certainly the highlight of the Hopman Cup was when the USA took on Switzerland, which found Williams and Tiafoe facing Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic in mixed doubles. It would be the first ever official outing between Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam tournament singles titleholder, and Federer, who has won 20 Grand Slam trophies.
“I was talking to Belinda before (the match),” Tiafoe said. “This is about to be crazy. You’re talking about, I can’t even talk how many Grand Slam (titles) on that court. Forty-three (singles), yeah. Like, I mean, that may not ever happen again. The crowd was loving it from the first point. I’ve never felt something like that in a tennis match.”
As for his upset of South African on Wednesday, he told the crowd, “I lost to Kevin three times last year. I was down a set-and-a-break today and it looks like he was getting the fourth. I just went to a different place. I dug deep. It’s just how bad you want it, and I wanted it bad.”
The victory ended 39th-ranked Tiafoe’s six-match losing streak against top-10 opponents. The last time he pushed past a top-10 player was when he defeated 10th-ranked Juan Martin del Potro en route to his first career ATP title in the 2018 Delray Beach tournament in February.