Hometown favorite Frances Tiafoe endured three sets and a lengthy rain delay to mount a comeback and win his first match at the D.C. Open Tuesday night.
The fifth-seeded Hyattsville, Maryland, native found his form mid-match to beat Daniel Galan 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-3 in a second-round battle.
“I thought I served and returned much better in the last two sets,” Tiafoe said. “I thought I was dictating play more, moving him around more. I stayed tough. I felt like he was gassing out a little bit at the end. So I’m happy with my fitness level there. Happy I stayed with it. I think I did a good job of staying there mentally and making him beat me.”
Galan was a pesky counterpuncher despite his 124th world ranking. He consistently kept his forehand returns deep in Tiafoe’s court, frustrating him and forcing him to crash the net to try and break the Colombian’s rhythm.
“I was like, ’What the f—-, man?’” Tiafoe said, laughing. “I felt like I was serving really well. He was just roping returns. Was really taken off guard. I was looking around like, whoa.”
Tiafoe got the first break of the match in the fourth game to go up 3-1. Galan would take it right back in the next game, however, placing a lob just inside the baseline after Tiafoe charged the net at 30-all. An unforced error wide off of Tiafoe’s backhand leveled got Galan back on serve.
Galan held at love in the next game, and Tiafoe staved off a break point to force a deuce and win the seventh game for a 4-3 lead just before play was suspended due to rain.
After a 45-minute delay, the two resumed, with Gallon earning two break points against Tiafoe tied 5-5. He needed them both, delivering an overhead smash and getting Tiafoe to swing-and-miss to serve for the set.
In a lengthy game that featured a set point for Galan and four break points in deuce for Tiafoe, the American finally prevailed when Galan returned a volley into the net, setting up a tiebreak to decide the first set.
The tiebreaker was equally tight, with Tiafoe garnering a set point himself before Galan finally converted his fourth, charging the net to force a short Tiafoe return to take the breaker 10-8 and the set.
Tiafoe initially lacked the vibrant enthusiasm that has become his hallmark, even appearing exhausted at times, 10 years to the day that he made his ATP Tour debut here as a 16-year-old.
His countenance changed in the middle of the second set.
On serve at 3-all, Tiafoe converted his second break chance after a long, lob-filled rally, lifting his hands and head to the sky in relief as he walked to his chair. He’d consolidate the break, and only need one set point in Galan’s next service game to take the second and level the match.
“A little bit of [relief],” Tiafoe said of his gesture. “Also, I hit a horrendous pickup volley and luckily he missed it. Kind of laughs on both. I just felt like I broke away there and I felt like the match was going to turn there. Played a long time now. You just feel momentum.”
Tiafoe’s typical demonstrative play took over, feeding off a crowd that backed him after each point. He broke Galan for the fifth and final time in the fifth game of the final set, then served it out at 5-3 to win the match, sending a tennis ball up and out of the stadium in celebration.
“I think it’s good to have a really tough match in the first round where you’re like, Wow, I could be out of here. I think that’s a really good thing,” Tiafoe said. “Definitely gets your feet going and ready for the tournament, rather than getting a sniff on somebody, feeling yourself. You get really tested. I think it helps you going forward.”
“I’m going to remember this one, for sure.”
Tiafoe will face either fellow American Aleksandar Kovacevic or Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena in the third round on Thursday.
• George Gerbo can be reached at ggerbo@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.