Frances Tiafoe admitted that he’s bothered by never getting a chance to play on Wimbledon‘s Centre Court.
The American is widely known as one of the most fascinating players to watch in tennis, especially if it’s a high-stakes match at a big event. A few years ago, Tiafoe nearly bested Carlos Alcaraz to make the US Open final in a match that went the distance and featured spectacular play by both.
He’s yet to recreate that sort of magic, but it’s definitely more likely to happen on a big court than not. Wimbledon has been an interesting place for him so far in his career, as his best run came in 2022 when he made the fourth round.
Despite that and a couple of third-round finishes, Tiafoe never got a chance to play on the Centre Court, which he openly admitted bothered him in a recent interview with The Telegraph.
“It bothers me. Especially because of where I have been ranked. I’ve lost a lot of third rounds here, which would have put me in a position to play a big match on Centre.”
“I had one year [2018] where I lost to Karen [Khachanov] and it would have been Novak [Djokovic] in the fourth round. I’ve played on Centre Court everywhere but here. We gotta change that.”
This year presents a new chance for Tiafoe to finally play on that court, and he’s excited about it. Grass is a surface on which he can play well at times, but as with any surface, he can be very inconsistent.
He has a grass trophy he won last year in Stuttgart, so he can surely play well, but he can’t bring that level to all his matches. However, on the Centre Court, he’s certain he’d be elite.
“I think I’d be elite on that court. It’s the pinnacle of the sport to play here. You feel the history when you walk around. How prestigious it is. It’s where the game started, on grass, wearing all white. I like the tradition, even though I’m not a tradition guy. To have it one time a year and feel that is really cool.”
