Bigfoe calmed everyone down.

The American was supposed to be in “recovery” after his minor hand operation, but he gave us a perfect match in the first round.

Retirement against Rinderknech, small operation before this tournament and the U.S. Open which is coming up fast. There were still a few reasons to think we probably wouldn’t see the best version of Tiafoe for this tournament, but the American showed that you have to reckon with him in an event where he’s already shone in the past. The conditions suit him nicely, and he got through a dangerous first round in a lot of ways. I still think that’s very encouraging for what comes next.

He’s putting together a high-level season and is slipping up less and less. It’s also an excellent swing for him, both in terms of physical condition and motivation. With, obviously, the US Open in his sights. Tiafoe is supposed to bring the heat and keep building momentum. His first round was impressive. He completely dominated Sonego from start to finish, a player he had never really played well against and whose match-up didn’t look good for him on paper. He usually struggles against big servers and players who can attack him very early. But that didn’t show at all in this first match.

He’s facing his buddy Tien again, against whom he already played a great battle earlier this year, and I remember that match very well. It was in Delray Beach, and Tiafoe served for the match before completely collapsing and not winning another game. That’s often his little weak spot: he can be very good right up until it’s time to close, and then he can do absolutely anything. The thing is, Tien on the other side is a player who never gives up. I’ve seen him come back in a bunch of matches where he was way behind. Naturally, that mix is a bit scary. I can already advise that if Tiafoe serves for a set or for the match, you’ll need to be wary. Aside from that, I find the match-up rather nice for Tiafoe because he still has time to play and doesn’t get rushed, even if Tien knows how to attack intelligently. He still has that little elbow issue, but he seemed a bit less affected on serve than in Montreal. His match against Baez was overall a good-level match. He did have a small dip in intensity in the second set, but nothing dramatic either.

High-level match in store. We’ve got two players who are playing well at the moment and should both have their spells in this encounter. I don’t see one-sided domination from either end.