Frances Tiafoe receives a customized Cherry Blossom D.C. United football jersey after 2R win at Citi Open 2023

Modified Aug 03, 2023 07:24 GMT

Frances Tiafoe was presented with a personalized Cherry Blossom D.C. United football jersey after his second-round win at the 2023 Citi Open.

Tiafoe commenced his Citi Open campaign on Tuesday with a hard-fought 7-6(5), 7-6(5) triumph against Aslan Karatsev. The World No. 10 outplayed Karatsev in two hours and nine minutes in front of a packed home crowd.

During a post-match interview, Tiafoe stated that the Citi Open had played a significant role in shaping his belief in pursuing a career as a professional tennis player.

"This tournament is one reason why I believed I could play pro tennis. You know, being this close to fans. I mean, you see all the fans here. They're so close, up close and personal with the players," Tiafoe said.

Following his victory, D.C. United presented Frances Tiafoe with a customized jersey with his name emblazoned and the No. '3' from their Cherry Blossom kit.

Tiafoe also took to social media to share a video of himself receiving the jersey.

"@dcunited love," Tiafoe captioned his Instagram story.

Frances Tiafoe will take on Juncheng Shang in 3R of the Citi Open 2023

Second seed Frances Tiafoe will take on qualifier Juncheng Shang in the third round of the 2023 Citi Open in Washington on Thursday.

After receiving a first-round bye, Tiafoe faced Aslan Karatsev in the second round. Both players exhibited exceptional serve defense throughout the entire match, resulting in no breaks of serve. However, it was Tiafoe who managed to seize the advantage in each tie-break, ultimately securing victory.

Meanwhile, Shang defeated Gage Brymer and Thai-Son Kwiatkowski in the qualifiers. In the first round, he triumphed over Emilio Gomez. The teenager was next up against Ben Shelton, whom he had previously defeated at the Atlanta Open last week.

In their Citi Open meeting, Shang dominated in the first set as Shelton struggled to find his rhythm. In the second set, the Chinese teenager faced two breaks but managed to regain his serve on both occasions. However, he was unable to replicate this feat for the third time, ultimately leading to his loss in the set.

Juncheng Shang and Ben Shelton were evenly matched for most of the third set. However, Shang secured a crucial break in the eighth game, propelling him to a 5-3 lead. He then served out the match in the subsequent game, ultimately sealing a 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory.

Frances Tiafoe currently holds a 1-0 lead over Shang in their head-to-head matches. The World No. 10 won their previous encounter at the 2023 Australian Open in straight sets.

Edited by Samya Majumdar