Frances Tiafoe Details Experience Of 'Taking Shots With Taylor Swift'
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Frances Tiafoe described in a podcast appearance how he and his girlfriend became close with Taylor Swift and her boyfriend, Travis Kelce.
Tiafoe is a popular player on the ATP Tour because of his off-court personality and shot-making during matches. He demonstrated that during an exhibition match against Carlos Alcaraz last month in Charlotte.
The American produced inspired tennis to defeat Alcaraz. Exhibitions are often low-quality affairs because there is no significant title on the line, but Tiafoe and Alcaraz's match featured many intense rallies.
Tiafoe's level in that match and others raises the question of whether the 27-year-old has underachieved by not reaching a Grand Slam final, although he still has much time to achieve that before the end of his career.
Last year's US Open saw Tiafoe come close to achieving that goal. He led his compatriot Taylor Fritz by two sets to one but tired in the deciding set, which allowed Fritz to secure a 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory on the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
That devastating defeat might have led to Tiafoe's drop in form during the tournaments after the US Open. The former world No. 10 also caused controversy with an extraordinary outburst after a loss at the Shanghai Masters.
Tiafoe received a time violation at 5-5 in the deciding set against Roman Safiullin. The two-time Grand semifinalist claimed he threw the ball in the air before the clock turned to zero, but the umpire correctly realized that it was not a genuine attempt to serve.
That was his second time violation of the contest, meaning Tiafoe lost a first serve. After Safiullin won the following two points to consign the American to defeat, the Cincinnati Open runner-up could not contain his rage.
Tiafoe launched an extraordinary rant at the umpire, repeatedly yelling, "F**K YOU!" at him. He swiftly apologized after the match, possibly saving him from a suspension.
That incident may have indicated Tiafoe needed a break from tennis, which he got during the off-season. His time off included being pictured with Fritz and Kelce at an NFL match involving the Kansas City Chiefs.
In an appearance on The Pivot Podcast, Tiafoe described getting to know Swift and Kelce and becoming close to them. However, the tennis star admitted that Swift is not his favorite female artist.
"I’ve said it in real time, whoever I’m with, like, ‘Yo, I’m out here taking shots with Taylor Swift. Granted, I gotta keep it a buck, we’re here on The Pivot — I'm a Beyoncé guy. But at the moment I'm like, man, like, this is crazy, she's the biggest star out here."
"Then Travis and Mahomes they were like 'Yo, we gotta have you in [Kansas City].' Them saying that is wild to me, that they would roll out the red carpet for me. It's crazy because playing tennis and being able to reach that many people and people want to meet me and hang out and actually do stuff, those are the things, it’s why you do what you do."
