Frances Tiafoe had a furious episode during his second match at the 2023 Davis Cup, as he lost to Tallon Griekspoor from the Netherlands.
Representing one's country is always a special moment, and it's no different for the second-highest-ranked American on the ATP Tour. Prior to the 2023 Davis Cup Finals group stage, Tiafoe talked about his not-so-successful debut in the American colours, and how he wanted to do better this time around.
It was Croatia that the American struggled against before, and despite wanting the revenge, he lost his singles match once against against Borna Gojo from the host country's team, as the United States play in Split, Croatia.
However, his teammates still managed to get the win in that tie as Mackenzie McDonald won the singles match, while Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram succeeded in doubles to seal a 2-1 win for the United States against Croatia.
However, against the Netherlands, the situation was much different. After Tommy Paul lost the opening singles match, Tiafoe needed to beat Tallon Griekspoor, but he couldn't do it, losing the match in three very close sets.
Yet, the crucial moment came in the third-set tie-break. It was after the Dutch player won the opening set 6-3, while the American triumphed in the second part of the match 9-7 in a tie-break.
Tiafoe saved a match point in the third set, but at 5-3 in the tie-break, things started going south for him. First, Griekspoor hit a serve, which was called out by one of the line umpires, but after a challenge from the Dutch player, the call was overturned as the ball landed 'in'.
However, the chair umpire didn't let the players replay the rally, but instead, he awarded the point to Griekspoor. Tiafoe couldn't understand the decision, as in his opinion, the 'out' call clearly distracted him and came before he hit the ball.
Yet, the conversation with the chair umpire didn't help, and the result was the same when he talked to the tournament referee. Furious about the call, Tiafoe smashed his racquet, receiving a code violation, and a subsequent point penalty, since it wasn't his first violation, and losing the match in three sets, 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-7(3) as a result.
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