Tiafoe surprises Tsitsipas at ATP Vienna

The American tennis player defeated Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (3-6, 6-3, 6-4) in three sets in the second round of the ATP 500 in Vienna. Now Tiafoe will face Diego Schwartzman, seeking a place in the semifinals of the Austrian Erste Bank Open.

Stefanos Tsitsipas he had his second presentation in Vienna, where he started as the first seed and top seed for the title. In his debut match, he beat Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets, but having to fight a lot against a good level of his rival. For its part, Frances Tiafoe He was already busier in this event having had to go through the previous phase, beating Molcan and Miedler. In addition, in the first round he defeated Dusan Lajovic in two sets.

Two tennis players of the same generation had already faced each other four times, with a history favorable to Tsitsipas by 3-1. The last one took place at the Tokyo Olympics, where the Hellenic won in two sets.

Tiafoe gives the blow

The game began evenly in the first instance, with the two players looking to settle down and find the best feelings. The first to find them was Tsistipas, setting a break to get 4-2 up on the scoreboard. From there, everything was solid for Stefanos, who closed the set 6-3.

Even more even outlook for the second set, without opportunities appearing, and with games progressing rapidly. Tsitsipas knew finding a break would be lethal for the American, but he couldn’t. Everything stayed like that, until he appeared in break, but in favor of Tiafoe. The one from Maryland did not hesitate to serve, as throughout the entire sleeve, and equaled the numerical with another 6-3.

Tsitsipas seemed to come out more focused in the third set, leaving behind the doubts of the end of the previous set. The Hellenic made an early break to lead 3-0 in the score. But little by little, things were going to fall apart for the world’s No. 3. Tiafoe not only recovered the break but also got another in a row, winning five games on track, and taking a 5-3 lead. Despite the Greek’s final attempt, Frances Tiafoe sealed the surprising victory with a 6-4.