All-American matchups headline ATP Delray Beach quarterfinals
Three Americans battled into the ATP Delray Beach Open semifinals on Friday, on an exciting day of tennis showcasing three-set matchups, hot-shots and more.
LWOT breaks down Friday’s matches, and has everything you need to know ahead of Saturday’s semifinals.
Learner keeps on learning
Learner Tien was down 5-4 in the third set on Thursday against Miomir Kecmanovic, staring down defeat against the tournament’s defending champion. He won that match, and found himself in the same situation against Frances Tiafoe on Friday — this time in front of a primetime night crowd.
But Tien reeled off the last four games of his quarterfinal to stun Tiafoe 7-6 (5) 3-6 7-5 in an epic. He’s now taken out the 2018 and 2025 Delray Beach champions this week.
“’I’ve really shown myself that these matches aren’t over until they’re really done,” Tien said. “I just go out there, no matter the score.”
He was asked Friday about his result at last year’s Delray Beach Open, where he fell in a crushing loss to Matteo Arnaldi, unable to clinch in a third-set tiebreaker.
“I actually was sitting inside that building having a pretty rough go of it,” said Tien, pointing to a nearby player center. “So yeah, I think that person from a year ago would be pretty surprised to see where I am now.”
Tien led 3-0 in the first set on Friday, but Tiafoe soon broke back and looked to serve out the first set twice. But Tiafoe struggled mightily on his serve in the key moments, and he only saved one of the seven break points he faced all match. Tiafoe lost the opening set, and later slammed a ball out of the stadium after dropping serve to open the second set.
After Tiafoe took a medical timeout in the second set, the momentum shifted. Tiafoe won the second set 6-3, crushing a backhand return down the line to break serve one game prior.