A Question of Motivation?

Now, there are a few things to mention about Tiafoe...

Well, the first-round exit at home in Washington really sucks for him! He was coming off a rather good grass swing, with a title in Halle, ready to have a big tournament at home. Drawing Atmane in the first round is certainly tough, a player he has already battled hard many times, and quite simply, he now had some extra pressure, playing at home in a night session with a lot of atmosphere. Sure, he normally thrives in these kinds of settings, but probably more so when in an underdog role! Perhaps more so than a lot of players, Tiafoe really needs confidence to play well, with the type of game he brings to the court. When he is not in good form or not feeling great, it really shows! I'm not saying this is the case yet; we still have a lot to play in the US hardcourt swing. Well, that's somehow part of the problem. Tiafoe has tournaments he really likes and cares for in Washington, Cincinnati, and then the US Open. Well, the Canada Masters in either Montreal/Toronto is sandwiched right in between Washington and Cincinnati, which makes it a really tricky tournament for him. Combine that with conditions that can be windy and quite different from the US tournaments, and it becomes even more challenging to perhaps give it 100%.

Tiafoe was scheduled to play doubles with Kyrgios in Washington, but pulled out with a "right wrist injury" after losing in singles. We have to ponder whether this was a real injury or whether he was just not in the mood after getting knocked out in singles. Anyway, he gets to face Cilic, who is coming through his opening round against Shimabukuro already, in straight sets. As Marcos mentioned earlier in that preview, Cilic has not been able to perform that well on clay and grass this season, but it was a combination of bad conditions and tough matchups (like against Medvedev). Now, we are back on hardcourt, and we have to consider him dangerous once again! Specifically, this is a matchup that Tiafoe really does not like; it's probably the worst for him (Big Server / Attacking Baseliner). Tiafoe doesn't get a lot of chances on return against Big Servers, and he is a player who excels when he can dictate the match and play it on his terms, using his excellent toolkit. In the last US Open, his match against Struff is a pretty good example of how tough this kind of matchup is for him...