Frances Tiafoe became the hope of all American fans when he rose to rank 10 in 2023. Unfortunately, Tiafoe has not managed to keep up with the rest of the Tour and found himself losing several tournaments in the first or second round. The trend continued as he lost in his first appearance in the Madrid Open. On top of that, Tiafoe has worried fans even more as he will now appear in a tournament, not on the ATP Tour.

Tiafoe experienced a steady decline since the start of this year and now sits at rank 21. The American player faced another tough battle in Madrid against 91-ranked Pedro Cachín, 7-6, 3-6, 6-4. Desolated by the loss, Tiafoe has taken a step that will take anyone by surprise. 

As per tennis journalist Jose Morgado, Tiafoe is set to appear in a Challenger tournament in Cagliari, Italy. “Frances Tiafoe is actually playing… a challenger next week. Top seed in Cagliari, a 175 event with 4 top 50 players,” read the tweet.

He received a bye in the first round and will face either one of Federico Coria and Fabio Fognini. The move likely comes because he aims to get a steady stream of wins under his belt and rise to the level of the ATP Tour again. The tournament will end before the Rome Masters, which could be where Tiafoe is looking to resurrect his previous form. 

Tiafoe’s downfall has not gone unnoticed, as American tennis personalities have shared their thoughts about why he experienced a slump.

American legend believes Frances Tiafoe is not a ‘huge hurdle’ anymore

Courier reveals the primary factor behind Tiafoe’s demise in his appearance on The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast. “Confidence is king, right? And if you take your eye off the ball for a second, and you lose some matches, you become more vulnerable in the eyes of the locker room. And I think that’s a little bit of the story right now is that the players feel like it’s an opportunity when they play Frances rather than a huge hurdle.”

Courier believes that regardless of the state he is in, Tiafoe has the skills to climb back to the top 10 spot. Since his downfall came with no injuries, his health is his biggest weapon at the moment. An uninjured player is always dangerous, which means Tiafoe only needs to get a grip on his game.

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The American player has shown great performances in the past. A slump is something all players go through, but not something from which all players can recover. Will Tiafoe rise to the challenge and be his best version once again?