Frances Tiafoe faced pressure Saturday evening when he stepped on court at the Laver Cup. Not only was the American trying to halt Team Europe's momentum after Casper Ruud won the second match of the day, but Tiafoe was trying to flip the script against Hubert Hurkacz, who had won their past three Lexus ATP Head2Head meetings.
Mission accomplished for the 25-year-old. Tiafoe defeated Hurkacz 7-5, 6-3 to give Team World an 8-2 lead in the teams competition.
The No. 11 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Tiafoe had lost three consecutive singles matches entering the encounter. But after earning a doubles victory alongside Tommy Paul on Friday evening, Tiafoe rose to the occasion in Vancouver. He harnessed the energy of the crowd to withstand 11 aces from Hurkacz.
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In the critical moments, it was the American who thrived. Tiafoe saved the only break point he faced while converting three of his five opportunities to triumph after one hour and 13 minutes.
Hurkacz will next return to the court for doubles with Gael Monfils against Felix Auger-Aliassime and Ben Shelton. The winner will receive two points, while each match on Sunday will be worth three points.
from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/mxPJEpy
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