Frances Tiafoe came agonizingly close to taking his third-round match against Alexander Zverev to a fifth set at the French Open 2023 on Saturday night. The American was two points away from forcing things to a fifth set and even served for the fourth set but couldn’t close it out. Instead, the 22nd-seeded and last year’s semifinalist Zverev closed out the match in the 4th set tiebreaker to win 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-1, 7-6 (5) after more than 3 1/2 hours on Court Philippe Chatrier to reach the fourth round. With the 12th seed’s exit, no men from the United States remain in the tournament.
“I mean, for the majority of the match, I felt like I was in control,” said Tiafoe, a 25-year-old from Maryland who fell to 1-7 against Zverer.
“It’s just tough,” he said about a half-hour after his loss ended, rubbing his face with his hand. “I should be playing the fifth right now.”
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after putting aside a whiffed over-the-shoulder volley — he leaned atop the net for a moment in disbelief — Tiafoe served for the fourth set at 5-3, but couldn’t seal the deal. In that game, and the next, and later on, too, including at 5-all in the tiebreaker, he would come within two points of owning that set.
Each time, Zverev claimed the very next point. When Tiafoe sent a forehand wide to end it, Zverev let out two big yells. Then the two, who have been pals for about 15 years, met for a warm embrace at the net, and Zverev placed his hand atop Tiafoe’s head.
“He’s one of my best friends on tour,” said Zverev, a German who twice has reached the semifinals on the red clay of Paris, “but on the court, I’m trying to win.”
At the 2022 French Open, Zverev tore ligaments in his right ankle while playing Nadal in the semifinals and had to stop.
“It’s been definitely the hardest year of my life, that’s for sure,” Zverev said. “I love tennis more than anything in the world.”
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