Yoshihito Nishioka beats Frances Tiafoe at Atlanta Open to reach semifinals

The competitiveness of the first set was further enhanced by the move to a tiebreak. When Tiafoe fell to 4-0 in the tiebreak, the crowd rose to his feet to allow him to regain his momentum. But alas, Tiafoe lost the tiebreak, as he seemed to have run out of energy in that game. Nishioka did not let up and gave all his power in the final stretch.

“He (Tiafoe) has a very serious service game. I think he was at 80 or 70 percent on serve, so I couldn’t do anything on serve, but even my service game was great. I knew the tie-break was coming in the first set,” Nishioka said.

Credits: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credits: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

At the end of the match, Nishioka had a higher first serve percentage, first serve win percentage, and second serve win percentage than Tiafoe, although he had fewer aces than Tiafoe.

The second set started out oddly, with Tiafoe receiving a one-point penalty for arriving late to the start of the set, which the commentator called a “setup delay.” Despite only scoring one point, Tiafoe seemed to lack energy and enthusiasm in that first game. Tiafoe eventually found himself down 3-0 in the set, with Nishioka having excellent ball placement and his aces serving at top speeds. Although things started to look bright for Tiafoe with a few aces of his own, nothing fazed Nishioka as the score climbed to 4-1. Although Tiafoe trailed throughout the second set, the crowd never left. Tiafoe’s serves got stronger and he displayed more energy than he had at the start of the set. But Nishioka’s aces kept coming and Tiafoe couldn’t catch up.

“I have some confidence. Everyone is different and I’m going to have to adapt every day, so it’s different,” Nishioka said of his confidence boost Friday night. “I was really tired after the grass season, but now I think I also have some confidence because I can play more aggressively on hard. So yeah, I think confidence makes a difference.”

Credits: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credits: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Tiafoe had struggled this year before this tournament, due to injuries and the presence of high-level competition in the later rounds. The 26-year-old has yet to win a singles title this year.

With the top three players in the tournament eliminated, a surprise could be crowned champion at the Atlanta Open.

Nishioka has yet to win a singles title this year.

“I think everyone is great. The teenager Shang Juncheng is great too. The field is always pretty dangerous,” Nishioka said. “So you know, I think everyone has a chance to win this tournament. I hope I do, but I’m just going to do my best.”

Shang also won his quarterfinal on Friday, beating Max Purcell 7-6, 6-4. Jordan Thompson beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6, 4-6, 6-3. Arthur Rinderknech and Mattia Bellucci played a late match, postponed due to rain.