How Frances Tiafoe went from sleeping at a tennis center to the US Open semifinals
When she was young
In 2017 the 17-year-old Frances Tiafoe was just a teenager sleeping in a tennis center in California when she heard a news. The 18-year-old athlete had become a top ten player despite having not competed at a tennis tournament on the circuit for three years.
By winning a tournament, she not only had qualified to play and compete in the US Open, her first major championship, she also had to face a high ranked opponent.
Frances Tiafoe
Photo: Getty Images
Frances Tiafoe was born in Virginia
When she was 18 years old, Frances Tiafoe moved to the Los Angeles area and became a tennis pro. She quickly rose to be the top ranked player in Southern California and was even considered one of the top players in the world, at the time. But she stopped competing professionally around the age of 21 due to injuries.
However, the injury-ridden girl that had been on the tennis circuit for years, never stopped dreaming of becoming the best tennis player in the world.
She tried to find out about tennis matches, but never found the courage or motivation to attend a tennis tournament.
Her father, also a tennis player, told her to try her luck with tennis instead of going to college. Her mother said that her tennis was not that great and had to see how she could improve.
Eventually, Frances started attending a local tennis league every day. She was not the star she thought she would be and was always in the lower sections of the top player rankings, in the lower half of the amateur level tennis players.
However, by competing in the local tournaments, she had the chance to meet the