Four-time US Open winner and number two seed Rafael Nadal suffered an early exit from the Grand Slam on Monday, losing 6-4 4-6 6-4 6-3 to American Frances Tiafoe in the Round of 16. “I felt like the world stopped. I couldn’t hear anything for a minute,” an emotional Tiafoe admitted following his victory.
In addition to the feat of defeating the all-time leading men’s singles Grand Slam winner in front of his home crowd, the 24-year-old also became the youngest American man to make it to the semi-finals since Andy Roddick in 2006. Intriguingly, Tiafoe’s win means that this is the first US Open without the top two seeded men making it to the quarterfinals since 2000.
For Tiafoe, the experience of defeating Nadal was surreal, especially with his parents Constant and Alphina watching from his guest box in the Arthur Ashe Stadium. “To see them experience me beat Rafa Nadal — they’ve seen me have big wins, but to beat those Mount Rushmore guys? For them, I can’t imagine what was going through their heads. I mean, they’re going to remember today for the rest of their lives,” Tiafoe stated.
