Tiafoe Reaches Stuttgart Final To Inch Closer To Top 10 Breakthrough

| by Zachary Wimer

Frances Tiafoe will be playing in the 2023 Stuttgart Open final after he defeated Marton Fucsovics in straight sets.

On Friday, the highest-ranked American Taylor Fritz lost to Marton Fucsovics in the quarterfinals. One day later, Frances Tiafoe, who is chasing a Top 10 breakthrough, got a chance to take revenge for his good friend.

But the Hungarian wouldn't be an easy opponent for Tiafoe. The two met three times on the ATP Tour before, and it was Fuscovics who was leading the H2H 2-1 after the initial two wins in the first two matches the two played.

But the American got his one win at the US Open three years ago, and in Stuttgart, he made everything possible to level the H2H. Tiafoe didn't face a break point throughout the match and withstood six set points during a nail-biting second-set tie-break, finally securing his place in the championship match after a gruelling one hour and 37 minutes.

In the first set of the match, Tiafoe got an important break, and served out the rest of the set, winning it 6-3. However, there were not breaks in the second set as the two fought for every point in the tie-break.

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Fucsovics had six set points, but he just couldn't force a decider. On the other hand, Tiafoe used his one and only match point, winning the tie-break 13-11 and the match 6-3, 7-6(11) to reach the 2023 Stuttgart Open final, awaiting Jan-Lennard Struff or Hubert Hurkacz.

The Stuttgart final is Tiafoe's seventh tour-level final and could potentially be his third tour-level title. Earlier this year, he triumphed on clay at the Houston Open, which marked his second tour-level title. Now, on the grass courts of Stuttgart, Tiafoe is poised for another significant triumph.

It marks his first grass court final and represents a breakthrough that could land him a spot in the top 10 ATP Rankings for the first time in his career. At this moment, Tiafoe would find himself 50 points behind the 10th Karen Khachanov, but if he wins, he'll be 50 points ahead of the Russian. After the match, the American was happy about his win, saying:

"Not a bad way to start a day at all. Crazy match, crazy second set, I'm just happy to get through, and hope you guys enjoyed. I wasn't relaxed in the tie-break at all, it was crazy. I wasn't playing my greatest, and he just didn't want to take it, it seemed. I was like, 'If you don't want it, I guess I'm gonna take it', and that's what happened."

2023 Stuttgart Open ATP Prize Money & Points Overview
2023 Stuttgart Open ATP Prize Money & Points Overview

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