Annual report Frances Tiafoe 2022: very close to the legends - very good!
Frances Tiafoe delivered some highlights in 2022. And was very close to a very big moment.
by Jens Huiber
last edit:
Dec 19, 2022, 11:07 pm
What? Frances Tiafoe didn't win a single title in 2022 - and the annual balance is still so positive? Of course! Because you also have to consider where Tiafoe came from at the beginning of the year: In Adelaide he started as number 38 in the world, losing to Thanasi Kokkinakis in three sets at the start. At the end of the season, Tiafoe halved his ranking and was even in 17th place at one point. And the late summer in particular will stick in the memory of the now 24-year-old.
The big break started at the US Open: Frances Tiafoe defeated Diego Schwartzman, Rafael Nadal and Andrey Rublev one after the other before he failed in five sets in the semi-finals against Carlos Alcaraz. Above all, the words of the loser Nadal still resonate to this day: he can only compete against younger professionals like Tiafoe in full fitness, otherwise he would be overpowered.
Tiafoe ends Federer's career
New York was followed by London and with it the Laver Cup. And then Tiafoe, together with Jack Sock, became part of one of the great moments in tennis history: the two were allowed to give the opponents in Roger Federer's very last professional match. And Sock/Tiafoe then also defeated Federer and Rafael Nadal, which didn't really matter that Friday evening in the O2 Arena, but in the end it also helped Team World to win this competition for the first time.
And Frances Tiafoe was also significantly involved: he lost his singles against Novak Djokovic without a chance. Tiafoe was there against Stefanos Tsitsipas on the final day. And after defending against several match points, he put the final push into the hearts of the Greeks and the Europeans.
Otherwise? In Estoril and Tokyo it was enough for the final. Frances Tiafoe should have won that one in Portugal against Sebastian Baez. In Tokyo there were two tiebreaks against Taylor Fritz, both of which Tiafoe lost. The fact that there was no air at the end of the season, the Davis Cup quarter-finals against Lorenzo Sonego and thus against Italy, cannot cloud our enthusiasm for the year 2022 from and the guys Frances Tiafeo.
The annual rating: Very good!