Tag: Frances Tiafoe

Joakim Noah on Frances Tiafoe, bridging the NBA-tennis gap and the recent rise of French basketball

Former NBA star Joakim Noah is uniquely positioned to discuss the connections between tennis and basketball.

Former NBA star Joakim Noah is uniquely positioned to discuss the connections between tennis and basketball.

Noah, a two-time collegiate men’s basketball national champion at the University of Florida, grew up in New York. His father, Yannick Noah, was a widely-known tennis star in France and reached career-high singles ranking of No. 3 in the world.

YANNICK NOAH: Watch Joakim Noah’s dad ignore a sideline interview to give his son a standing ovation

After his March Madness titles, Noah enjoyed a long and successful career as a professional basketball player. He was a two-time NBA All-Star and even won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2014.

Although he did not follow in his father’s footsteps to play tennis, he still follows the sport and recently attended the US Open in his hometown of New York City.

The former basketball star, who is celebrated for his intensity and being unafraid to clash with LeBron James, caught up with For The Win from the Emirates Suite during their NBA night at the 2024 US Open.

He discussed his thoughts on tennis star Frances Tiafoe (who wore Noah’s jersey before a match earlier this year), the recent rise of basketball in France (where he represented the national team), and more.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Do you think Frances Tiafoe is creating a bridge between basketball and tennis?

Joakim Noah: Yeah! He has an inner city energy about him and it resonates a lot with the hoopers. A lot of the tennis players don’t know too much about basketball and he’s definitely a bridge. He has a great personality. I love the way he carries himself out there and he is somebody that a lot of the hoopers can relate to.

What drew you to basketball over tennis given your family background?

Joakim Noah: My father was a larger-than-life personality in France. It made me shy away from the game because of people’s expectation toward me when it came to tennis. I felt really safe playing basketball. I loved the team aspect. I loved being able to have friends and be able to do my own thing.

To what do you credit the recent rise of basketball in France?

Joakim Noah: Being retired from the game, I have more time and perspective to travel. I also grew up in the French grassroots system. I understand the difference between the AAU circuit out here in America compared to over there. The reality is that the competition is getting tighter. There is not this dominance that USA once had. I really believe that the reason why, especially in watching [the men’s Olympics gold medal] game, is that the grassroots system is completely different over there. That is the reason you are seeing all of these young talents coming in through the draft. You are seeing Wemby, who is obviously the next face of the league. But they are also doing something on a day-to-day basis: Professional teams have an 18-and-under and a 16-and-under [program]. Even at 12 years old on a Saturday, you can go see the pro team play or the 14 year olds play in the same gym right after your game. The fact you can see what that next level looks like and feels like is great for the younger players.

Describe your feelings watching LeBron versus Wemby in the Olympics final.

Joakim Noah: I think it was an unbelievable game. Obviously, watching Stephen Curry and LeBron James play on the same court after all those great moments they gave us was really powerful. Especially the way that Steph ended the game, you just saw greatness in full display. I felt like France really played their hearts out and they had a team that French people can be really proud of. When you’re playing in big games like that, all it does is inspire the next generation and I think basketball is in a really good place.

What are your impressions of the Emirates NBA Cup and the In-Season Tournament?

Joakim Noah: The NBA In-Season Tournament is something that is really needed for the NBA because the basketball calendar is a marathon. So being able to incentivise the guys to play hard in November and play for the guys who maybe don’t make as much money as the star players just makes everybody play harder. I really appreciate the Emirates NBA Cup because it brings the competition that we all love watching.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1373]

Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz finally have American men pulling their weight in tennis again

Andy Roddick’s name has been evoked so you know it’s been a long time.

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for reading today. Appreciate you giving us a bit of your time.

Tennis is different from other sports. It’s hard to say anyone ever has a “home-field advantage” in the sport. The crowd has favorites, sure. But everybody is really there just to watch some good tennis. That’s how it usually goes, anyway.

But you don’t want to see Frances Tiafoe on the US Open court. That’s a home game.

On Tuesday night, Tiafoe faced off against Grigor Dimitrov, the No. 9 ranked player on the tour. And every step of the way, it seemed like all 24,000 fans in the building were riding his coattails.

There’s a reason for that. People have been itching to see a renaissance in American men’s tennis.

Obviously, America hasn’t been without greats in tennis for years on the women’s side. The Williams sisters — especially Serena — have covered us for the last two decades with ease. That’s tennis royalty right there.

Now, we’re moving into the Coco Gauff era. She’s still got a lot of room to improve after taking a bit of a step back this year, but she’s only 20 years old and has already won a US Open and should win a lot more.

The American men’s side hasn’t been as successful. Andy Roddick was the last American man to win a major in tennis.

Folks. I said Andy Roddick. He hasn’t played since 2012. He won his last major nine years before that, in 2003. It’s 2024 now. You don’t need to be a math genius to recognize that’s a really long time ago.

But fret not, folks! There’s hope now. An American will make the US Open Final after Friday’s match between Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz. Fritz (No. 12) is the likely favorite against Big Foe after having gone 6-1 against him through seven matches. But Tiafoe (No. 20) is on fire right now. He’s won 11 of his last 12 matches, with the only loss coming against the ATP’s No. 1 player, Jannik Sinner. Don’t count him out.

Regardless of the result between these two, we’ll have an American in the final of a major for the first time since 2009. We’ll see what happens from there.

But right now? This is a pretty great place to be in.

The wrong kind of history

(Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Florida State fans, I promise I’m not trying to pile on here. I know things aren’t going great, but the hits just keep coming.

The first Associated Press ranking of the CFB regular season arrived on Tuesday and after two mind-blowing losses to Georgia Tech and Boston College, FSU has dropped from the poll completely.

Florida State is just the third team ever to drop out of the first poll of the season after being ranked as a preseason top 10 team, according to the AP. That’s not a place you want to be.

The season is far from over. Maybe FSU will climb back into a place of respectability. We’ll see. But, right now? This season can only be described as a nightmare.

Other movers: 

— Clemson fell 11 spots from No. 14 to No. 25 after a blowout loss against No. 1 Georgia.

— Texas (No. 3) and Alabama (No. 4) each jumped up one spot, giving the SEC three teams in the top four of the poll with Ohio State (No. 2) being the lone non-SEC team in the picture.

— Texas A&M fell completely out of the rankings from No. 20 after losing to No. 5 Notre Dame.

— Georgia Tech (No. 23) is ranked for the first time since 2015 after starting 2-0 this season.

— Michigan dropped a spot down to No. 10 but can gain some ground with a win against Texas this weekend. What a matchup.

The Caitlin Clark era is officially here for the Fever

Obviously, Clark has been playing all season for Indiana and has been really good as of late.

But the true test starts in a few weeks.

With losses from the Atlanta Dream and the Chicago Sky on Tuesday, the Fever officially clinched a playoff spot on their day off.

https://twitter.com/IndianaFever/status/1831180135040508159

That’s huge. The development of this team has been quite a treat to watch. The Fever have been an offensive juggernaut since the team’s 2-9 start at the beginning of the year. Since then, they’ve gone 15-6 and have won eight of their last 10 games.

What’s really cool about this is that this will be the first time the Fever have made the playoffs without Tamika Catchings. EVER.

https://twitter.com/TonyREast/status/1831180807869743418

Playoff basketball in the WNBA is different. It’s more physical. Opponents are locked in on your tendencies.

How will Clark and the Fever react? I can’t wait to see.

Quick hits: An AsSwiftant coach … Make it or break it … And more

— Travis Kelce confirmed that Taylor Swift has drawn up plays for the Chiefs this year. ANDY REID. YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO.

— Robert Zeglinski has 15 NFL players who really need to have a big season this year.

— And here are Robert and Christian D’Andrea’s Week 0 power rankings heading into the NFL season.

— Angels fans welcomed Shohei Ohtani back with a standing ovation. This was awesome. Here’s Cory Woodroof with more.

— Meg Hall has the trendiest WNBA fits of the week for you here.

— Here’s an explainer on why Sony shut down its new Concord game after just two weeks.

That’s a wrap, folks! Thanks for reading! Appreciate you. Have a fantastic day. Peace.

-Sykes ✌️

Who is Frances Tiafoe’s girlfriend? Meet former Div. I tennis champ Ayan Broomfield

Meet Frances Tiafoe’s girlfriend, Ayan Broomfield.

If you watched Frances Tiafoe’s thrilling comeback Friday against Ben Shelton in the third round of the US Open, you might have saw a few clips of his girlfriend in the stands absolutely going through it while riding the emotions of every shot. She was STRESSED.

See for yourself:

@usopen

If they not like this ion want em #francestiafoe #girlfriend #usopen

♬ original sound – US Open

And some of you may naturally be wondering who that supportive girlfriend is. So for those unaware, allow us to introduce you.

Her name is Ayan Broomfield, and she and Tiafoe have been an item for quite awhile. According to The Spun, they started dating in 2015 and the couple have been “Instagram official” since 2018.

But that’s not the only reason Broomfield is familiar to tennis people. Born in Canada, the 27-year-old was a player herself, making her WTA Tour debut in 2014. In college, she was the 2015-16 ACC Freshman of the Year at Clemson, and she won the 2019 NCAA Div. I women’s doubles championship at UCLA. Broomfield was a body double for the actress portraying Venus Williams in 2021’s King Richard.

Today, she’s a content creator and influencer, and she recently launched the Ayan Broomfield Foundation, as discussed in a March interview with Vogue.

The next time fans can expect to see Broomfield cheer on Tiafoe is Sunday evening for his Round 4 US Open match against Alexei Popyrin.

A mic’d up Jimmy Butler hilariously won a point off No. 1 tennis star Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open

Jimmy Butler believes that he is one of the best tennis players in the world.

Miami Heat wing Jimmy Butler stole the show at the Stars of the Open Exhibition Match to Benefit Ukraine Relief.

Earlier this year, when he spoke to For The Win, the Heat star said that tennis was tied with basketball for his “second-favorite” sport. Butler clearly had an amazing night at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as part of the 2023 US Open Fan Week.

After some light training, Butler originally began his evening as a crew member for Frances Tiafoe, a basketball fan who is ranked as the No. 10 tennis player in the world. Butler ran out with the other crew members and he looked noticeably taller than his peers.

Butler then competed in an exhibition doubles match with Tiafoe against Carlos Alcaraz (the No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world) and Colombian pop star Sebastián Yatra.

While wearing a microphone, Butler faced off against Alcaraz and gave him instructions for how it would go down: Butler didn’t want to serve, then they had a rally, then Butler won a point off the top-ranked tennis star.

It was impressive to see Butler get in some solid hits against someone as accomplished as Alcaraz, who has already won two major titles at 20 years old.

Later in the night, however, the four-time NBA All-Star did lose in a tough match to Yatra.

Fortunately, though, the loss didn’t impact his confidence whatsoever.

Butler said the experience was a “dream come true” and that he feels he is one of the top tennis players in the world, too.

His extremely high belief in himself when it comes to dominating other sports isn’t new for Butler, though.

Butler once told For The Win that he averages a perfect score whenever he goes bowling, so of course he also thinks he is one of the best tennis players in the world.

[lawrence-related id=1837976,2010629]

2022 Laver Cup, live stream, TV channel, time, how to watch Djokovic/Tiafoe

The 2022 Laver Cup will continue on Saturday with men’s singles & doubles featuring Novak Djokovic and Frances Tiafoe in the night session.

The 2022 Laver Cup will continue on Saturday night with the Night Sessions, they will feature Novak Djokovic facing Frances Tiafoe in the men’s singles match as we get to see Djokovic for the first time in a while.

In the second session, we will see Djokovic/Berrettini vs. De Minaur/Sock in the men’s doubles to finish out Day 2.

This will be another great day of the tournament, here is everything you need to know to catch all the action.

2022 Laver Cup

Federer/Nadal vs. Sock/Tiafoe

  • When: Friday, September 23
  • Time: 2:00 p.m. ET (approx.)
  • TV Channel: Tennis Channel
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

Rosters for Team Europe and Team World:

Team Europe: Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud, Matteo Berrettini (alternate)

Team World: Taylor Fritz, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Diego Schwartzman, Frances Tiafoe, Alex de Minaur, Jack Sock, Tommy Paul (alternate)

We recommend interesting sports viewing/streaming and betting opportunities. If you sign up for a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

La electrizante reacción de un fanático al tiro de Frances Tiafoe en su victoria sobre Rafael Nadal

Los fans del tenis estaban fascinados después de que Frances Tiafoe sorprendió a Rafael Nen la ronda de 16 en el U.S. Open 2022 Tanto que había uno bailando en las gradas. Tiafoe venció a Nadal en cuatro sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3) para avanzar a los …

Los fans del tenis estaban fascinados después de que Frances Tiafoe sorprendió a Rafael Nen la ronda de 16 en el U.S. Open 2022 Tanto que había uno bailando en las gradas.

Tiafoe venció a Nadal en cuatro sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3) para avanzar a los cuartos de final programados para el sábado. EL triunfo fue emocional para Tiafoe, quien eliminó al No. 3, Nadal, de manera dominante.

En su camino al match point, Tiafoe tenía a Nadal contra las cuerdas y los fans en las gradas lo sabían. Cuando las cámaras tomaron a los fans, captaron a uno que estaba pasándosela bomba ¡con un electrizante baile!

Traducción.- Así preparó Tiafoe el match point. No se pierdan la reacción.

¡Así es como se celebra una victoria sorpresa!

 

Las 11 mejores fotos de Frances Tiafoe celebrando su emotiva victoria contra Rafael Nadal en el U.S. Open

El lunes en la noche, Frances Tiafoe dejó boquiabierto al mundo del tenis en la edición 2022 del U.S Open cuando derrotó a Rafael Nadal, No. 3 del mundo en octavos de final. En el partido de cuatro sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3), logró la delantera en el …

El lunes en la noche, Frances Tiafoe dejó boquiabierto al mundo del tenis en la edición 2022 del U.S Open cuando derrotó a Rafael Nadal, No. 3 del mundo en octavos de final.

En el partido de cuatro sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3), logró la delantera en el primer set y después pudo ganar la batalla de un empate para ganarle al campeón con 22 títulos de Grand Slam para avanzar a cuartos de final, que se disputarán el miércoles. La victoria es, sin lugar a dudas, la mayor de toda la carrera de Tiafoe, quien estaba ranqueado como el No. 26 cuando llegó al U.S. Open.

Aquí les dejamos el momento de la victoria de Tiafoe, quien como era de esperarse, estaba muy emotivo, pues acababa de vencer a Nadal tras un partido muy emocionante.

Traducción: ¡Ten un momento, Frances Tiafoe!

 

Para celebrar la victoria electrizante de Tiafoe para pasar a cuartos de final, les dejamos algunas de las mejores fotos de su momento.

This U.S. Open fan had an electric reaction to Frances Tiafoe’s sweet shot in win over Rafael Nadal

Look at him go!

Tennis fans were over the moon after Frances Tiafoe stunned Rafael Nadal in Sunday’s round of 16 at the 2022 U.S. Open. So much so that one was dancing in the stands!

Tiafoe bested Nadal in four sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3) to move on to the quarterfinals scheduled for Wednesday. The win was an emotional one for Tiafoe, who knocked out the world No. 3 in Nadal in quite dominant fashion.

Headed into match point, Tiafoe had Nadal on the ropes and the fans in the stands knew it. As the cameras cut away to the fans, they caught one of them having the time of his life with an electrifying dance!

Now that’s the way to celebrate an upset victory!

[mm-video type=video id=01gbzhtk8c19jsv19305 playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gbzhtk8c19jsv19305/01gbzhtk8c19jsv19305-1b4687b2336cd212fde7600ea4028381.jpg]

[listicle id=1956951]

Bradley Beal cheered on Frances Tiafoe’s US Open upset over Rafael Nadal

Tiafoe had some star power in his corner on Monday night.

One of the greatest Grand Slam winning streaks in men’s tennis came to an end in upset fashion on Monday night.

Seeking his fifth US Open singles title, two-seeded Rafael Nadal was upset by 22-seeded Frances Tiafoe in four sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3) to advance to the quarterfinals. Nadal had previously reached at least the quarterfinal round in each of the last 16 majors he participated in, and he had won the prior 22 Grand Slam matches.

Tiafoe, meanwhile, advances to a Grand Slam quarterfinal for just the second time in his career after doing so at the 2019 Australian Open. Nadal may have been the favorite, but Tiafoe had quite a bit of support in the stands at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal was spotted cheering on Tiafoe, who is originally from Hyattsville, Maryland. After his win, Tiafoe called Beal one of his favorite players in the NBA, and he gave shoutouts to former Wizard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and current Washington director of player development Alex McLean, who were apparently also on-hand.

With his victory, the 24-year-old becomes the youngest American man to advance to the quarterfinals in a US Open since Andy Roddick in 2006. And he got to do it with a three-time NBA All-Star in his corner.

[mm-video type=video id=01gbqe16pp8nt4fk977x playlist_id=01f09p3bf720d8rg02 player_id=01evcfkb10bw5a3nky image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gbqe16pp8nt4fk977x/01gbqe16pp8nt4fk977x-d39a75c5e3c1e3f39178979846175ab3.jpg]

[vertical-gallery id=1957403]

[vertical-gallery id=1956902]

11 best photos of Frances Tiafoe celebrating his emotional U.S. Open upset over Rafael Nadal

What a moment for Frances Tiafoe!!!

Frances Tiafoe stunned the tennis world at the 2022 U.S Open after upsetting overall No. 3 Rafael Nadal in Sunday’s round of 16.

In the four-set match (6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3), Tiafoe jumped out early then was able to battle out of a tie to best the 22-time Grand Slam champion to advance on to the quarterfinals, which are set for Wednesday. The win is absolutely the biggest of Tiafoe’s career, who was ranked at No. 26 coming into the U.S. Open.

Here’s the final winning moment for Tiafoe, who was as emotional as expected given the huge upset he pulled off over Nadal after an exhilarating match.

To celebrate Tiafoe’s electric victory as he moves on to the quarterfinals, these are the best photos of his shining moment.