Frances Tiafoe

Frances Tiafoe's stock has consistently risen over the last three years. True to his self-assigned hashtag, #BigFoeOnTheComeUp—a personal 21st-century slogan for the Instagram age—"Big Foe" is making waves in the tennis world. Tiafoe, who has a contagious enthusiasm, has rapidly become a fan favourite. His hustle and passion have earned him the respect of his peers, while his shot-making and NBA-style victory celebrations have made him a must-see.

Frances Tiafoe's stock has consistently risen over the last three years. True to his self-assigned hashtag, #BigFoeOnTheComeUp—a personal 21st-century slogan for the Instagram age—"Big Foe" is making waves in the tennis world. Tiafoe, who has a contagious enthusiasm, has rapidly become a fan favourite. His hustle and passion have earned him the respect of his peers, while his shot-making and NBA-style victory celebrations have made him a must-see.

Tiafoe was born in Hyattsville, Maryland, to Sierra Leonean immigrants Frances Sr. and Alphina. His father worked on the building crew that erected the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Maryland, and was eventually elevated to the position of head of maintenance. Frances and his twin brother Franklin began training there when they were five years old.

Tiafoe won the Boys' 18s title in the 2013 Orange Bowl at the age of 15, becoming the tournament's youngest champion in the tournament's 67-year history. Four months later, he won the 2014 Easter Bowl, another highly regarded junior competition, and quickly rose to No. 2 in the ITF World Junior Rankings. He was the first American to win both the Orange Bowl and the Easter Bowl 18s since John McEnroe in 1976.

Tiafoe earned his first professional title in February 2018 at Delray Beach, defeating his idol Juan Martin del Potro in three sets in the second round. Tiafoe went on to beat fellow Next Generation talents Hyeon Chung and Denis Shapovalov in the quarterfinals and semifinals, before defeating Peter Gojowczyk in the final. Last May, Tiafoe reached the final of a clay-court tournament in Estoril, Portugal, defeating world No. 11 Pablo Carreno Busta en way to the championship match, when he was defeated by clay-court specialist Joao Sousa.

Tiafoe made his pro debut in 2015, finishing the year as world No. 180 and the youngest guy in the ATP Top 200 rankings. In January 2017, he broke into the Top 100 for the first time in his career, rising to No. 79 by the end of the season. The 21-year-old broke into the Top 50 for the first time last July after reaching the third round of Wimbledon, and he concluded the year at No. 39, one spot lower than his personal best. Tiafoe rose to No. 30 at the end of January after reaching the quarterfinals of the 2019 Australian Open, and he peaked at No. 29 two weeks later.

With a run to the final eight at the Australian Open last month, he achieved his first Grand Slam quarterfinal. Tiafoe came back from a set down to beat two-time major finalist Kevin Anderson in the second round before going on to beat veteran Andreas Seppi in the third round and former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov in the Round of 16. Tiafoe eventually ran out of steam in the quarterfinals, losing 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to Rafael Nadal.