"I was a young guy having money; I was enjoying my life" - Frances Tiafoe on how he changed his career trajectory to become more 'honed in'
Frances Tiafoe looked back on the positive change in his career trajectory after beating Cameron Norrie on Wednesday (March 15) to reach the last four at Indian Wells.
Tiafoe employed an aggressive gameplan against the in-form left-hander to rack up his fourth straight win without dropping a set. The American was clutch on serve and attacked the net to keep Norrie on the back foot. Eventually, Tiafoe brought up his 14th win of the season to snap the left-hander's eight-match win streak and reach his first Masters 1000 semifinal.
Coming from humble beginnings, Tiafoe earned a lot of money with his early exploits on court. Things could have easily gone south, but the American 'honed in' to become one of the brightest young talents in the sport currently.
At his post-match press conference, the 2022 US Open semifinalist said about not succumbing to the trappings of fame while taking his talent to an elite level:
"I'm a guy came from very humble beginnings. I came on the scene, I was 18 years old, 19 years old, in top 100. Guys thinking I'm gonna be the guy to do it, X, Y, and Z, American hope, blah, blah, blah. It was tough. I don't think I was really ready for it."
He continued:
"You know, I was, you know, a young guy having money, I was enjoying my life, you know, outside activities and stuff like that. Now I just honed it in."
Having made his ATP main draw debut at the 2014 Citi Open in Washington D.C. at the tender age of 16, Tiafoe is now 114-117 on the tour. He will next take on Daniil Medvedev for a place in the Indian Wells final.
"I'm happy for every milestone" - Frances Tiafoe
Having made his first Grand Slam semifinal last year at the US Open, Frances Tiafoe is in unchartered territory at Indian Wells after making his first Masters 1000 semifinal.
The American knows that the going will only get tougher from here, but he's happy to put himself in a position to win the big tournaments. He said:
"Winning events like these is pretty much -- the more and more you put yourself in positions like these, the more and more you have chances to win these events and cross the line. To get to that top echelon of the game, you need to win tournaments like these."
Frances Tiafoe does not take every milestone for granted but doesn't want to stop at the semis. He added:
"Being in semis is great. I'm very happy to be here. It's just semifinals. There's more to do. It only gets tougher. Beating quality guys only gets tougher. Take it for what is. I'm happy for every milestone, humbled, and very, you know, very thankful for the opportunity, but gotta keep the head down and keep going."
The American will look to end his winless four-match streak against Medvedev - who has won his last 18 matches.