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‘Believe You’ve Worked So Hard for This Moment’ – Frances Tiafoe Gets Into an Emotional Embrace With NBA Star Bradley Beal After Entering the 2022 US Open Semifinals

Published 09/07/2022, 11:04 PM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

Frances Tiafoe is on cloud nine owing to his gritty display at this year’s US Open. The 24-year-old American star has achieved his best result in Grand Slam tournaments after his victory earlier today. He defeated Andrey Rublev in straight sets in an intriguing quarter-final match at the 2022 US Open. It was undoubtedly an impressive display by Tiafoe in front of his home crowd.

There has been growing support for Tiafoe as he has dug deep at the tournament. Recently, his close friend and NBA star Bradley Beal, was present in the stands to support Tiafoe.

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Bradley Beal heaps praise on Frances Tiafoe

Beal was in Tiafoe’s player’s box to support him during his match against Rafael Nadal. Further, as Tiafoe knocked out the Spaniard, he moved to his box and had an emotional embrace with Beal.

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Subsequently, Beal heaped praise on Tiafoe for recording one of the biggest wins of his career. He said, “I wouldn’t say [this is] unexpected. Obviously, maybe because of the ranking, but like we told him yesterday as he was enjoying the moment. We were telling him, ‘Believe it. Believe you belong here. Believe you’ve worked so hard for this moment'”.

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USA Today via Reuters

Further, he went on to add, “‘This is your time. Embrace being on this stage,’ and he’s doing that. He’s living up to it. And he, like he said, he has two more.’’

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Tiafoe ends 50-year-old wait

With his victory over Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals, Tiafoe became the first Black man from the United States to reach the last four of the US Open since Arthur Ashe in 1972. In an intriguing contest, Tiafoe got the better of Rublev in straight sets 7-6 (3), 7-6 (0), 6-4.

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This victory will help Frances Tiafoe significantly bolster his ATP ranking. He will enter the top 20 of the ATP rankings when they will be updated post the US Open. He is currently ranked 26th in the world.

Tiafoe will be confident going into the semi-finals of the US Open. It’ll be interesting to see if he can deliver his maiden Grand Slam title in front of his home crowd. Do you think Tiafoe will script his fairy-tale US Open ending? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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Written by:

Vatsal Shah

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Vatsal Shah is a tennis author at EssentiallySports. With a Bachelor's degree in engineering, he is a die hard fan of tennis and sports in general. He is an ardent follower of Rafael Nadal and is inspired by his never-say-die attitude.
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Edited by:

Veer Badani