“If I’m ready to go, I’m not just going to get to the third round—I can go for a run. I genuinely feel I can beat anybody on any specific day.” Frances Tiafoe said after earning his QF spot at the French Open earlier this month. Despite not being fond of the clay court much, the American delivered his best this season while impressing everyone with a phenomenal campaign in Paris. Although his journey came to an end against Lorenzo Musetti, the World No.13 was expected to channelize his newfound form onto the grass as well. But guess what? He failed to make any impact in London this week. Now, a former compatriot has come up with some serious advice for Tiafoe if he wants to shine at Wimbledon.

For the uninitiated, Tiafoe appeared in the first round of the Queen’s Club grass event on Monday. He was facing longtime rival, British pro Daniel Evans. Prior to this meeting, the American led the H2H tally 6-4. This time, however, World No. 199 Evans beat Tiafoe, a two-time quarterfinalist of this tournament. Evans didn’t give him any chance and advanced into the next round with a scoreline of 7-5, 6-2.

According to ex-ATP pro and 2003 US Open winner Andy Roddick, Tiafoe can still make amends going forward. When asked to make a prediction for the 27-year-old ahead of the All England Club, he said, “Frances should play great on the grass and he has in the past; his backhand, with the ability to switch directions and flatten it out, keeps people uneasy.” Tiafoe has been able to reach the fourth round of the grass major in the past. He did it back in the 2022 edition before losing to Belgium’s David Goffin. Roddick added, “I think Frances’ entire grass campaign is going to revolve around, can he get cheap points on a serve?”

However, he also raised a few alarm bells. Roddick mentioned that Tiafoe may come under pressure if he fails to defend his second serves. In that case, “you’re going to get the players like an Evans who can chip and get himself into points and/or the people who just take haymakers like a center or an Alcaraz.” So what’s the best strategy to utilize at Wimbledon?

The former pro concluded, “if he can kind of bump up that first serve percentage and make people work on their own serve a little bit more, that’s probably the most important piece for Frances.” But guess what? While Tiafoe may have failed at the Queen’s Club, he’s brought himself closer to the top 10 this month. How? Thanks to the French Open.

Frances Tiafoe on the brink of joining three compatriots in top 10

When he began the campaign on the Parisian clay last month, hardly anyone gave him a chance. He was expected to last two or three rounds and then make an exit. However, Frances Tiafoe proved the doubting Thomases wrong. After earning a first-round victory against Russia’s Roman Safiullin in straight sets (6-4, 7-5, 6-4), he didn’t look back. The American then ousted Spain’s Pablo Carreño Busta before eliminating compatriot Sebastian Korda in the third round.

In the fourth round, he then knocked out Germany’s Daniel Altmaier. With that, he became one of the three American ATP players to enter the QF stage at the 2025 French Open. Other two were Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton. It was the first time, since 1996, when more than one American ATP pro was in the last eight. Last time, Jim Courier and Pete Sampras earned this feat.

“Quarterfinals is not end-all, be-all,” said Tiafoe after his win over Altmaier, as reported by the Associated Press on June 2. He gained a huge confidence to go deeper in Paris. However, the journey ended soon with a loss against Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti.

Despite his defeat, Tiafoe succeeded in making a huge jump in the ATP rankings. Prior to his French Open campaign, he was sitting at the 16th position. After the clay event, however, he climbed up three spots, to the 13th rank. And now, he’s set to join Taylor Fritz (4th), Tommy Paul (8th), and Ben Shelton (10th). Do you think he will enter the top 10 with a lasting impression at Wimbledon? Let us know in the comments below.