French Open: Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul put 2 US men in quarterfinals for 1st time since 1996

PARIS — Before Frances Tiafoe played a point at this French Open, he wasn't particularly enthusiastic about its surface — or his chances in the tournament.

''Last tournament on clay, which I get really excited about,'' Tiafoe said on the eve of the Grand Slam event at Roland-Garros. ''And then we get on the real stuff, the grass and the summer hard courts — where tennis actually matters.''

Might have a different point of view now.

The 15th-seeded Tiafoe made his way into the quarterfinals at the French Open for the first time with a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory over Daniel Altmaier of Germany on Sunday night, joining 12th-seeded Tommy Paul to put a pair of American men in the round of eight.

It's the first time the country placed more than one man in the quarterfinals in Paris since 1996, when Jim Courier and Pete Sampras did it together. Zero men from the United States had made it this far in any year since Andre Agassi in 2003.

The key for Tiafoe?

''Playing hard-court tennis on a clay court,'' he said.

And Tiafoe — who celebrated his win by twice shouting a phrase that can't be quoted fully here but included the words ''let's'' and ''go'' — has done it without dropping a set.

Quite a turnaround for a guy whose big-strike tennis long suffered on the slow red clay. He began his French Open career with a 0-6 record before getting his first win in 2022 and one more last year.

''On clay, I get a little more passive than on other surfaces, because the court doesn't help me play as fast as I would like,'' said Tiafoe, twice a semifinalist on the hard courts of the U.S. Open, where speedy shots are rewarded and the loud crowds and bright lights tend to bring out his best. ''Patience is a thing I struggle with.''

Look at him now, though.

And listen to something else he said when he met with reporters a little more than a week ago, with a dash of his usual sense of humor: ''Overall, I'm a big believer it can all change in a week. When I'm backed up against it, it seems like I start to produce my best tennis, because I have to if I want to continue living the life I want to live.''

Tiafoe, a 27-year-old from Maryland, added: ''If I'm ready to go, I'm not just going to get to the third round — I can go for a run. I genuinely feel I can beat anybody on any specific day.''

He wants more, too, naturally.

''Quarterfinals is not end-all, be-all,'' Tiafoe said.

Next up is a matchup on Tuesday against No. 8 Lorenzo Musetti of Italy, who defeated No. 10 Holger Rune of Denmark 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Last year, Musetti won a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics held at Roland-Garros and reached his first Grand Slam semifinal at Wimbledon.

Four American women play in the fourth round Monday: No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, and No. 7 Madison Keys against Hailey Baptiste in an all-U.S. encounter.

Paul, a semifinalist at the Australian Open in 2023, was never really troubled Sunday during his 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 win against 25th-seeded Alexei Popyrin of Australia in less than two hours. Paul is a 28-year-old who grew up in North Carolina and now goes up against No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, the defending champion who got past No. 13 Ben Shelton of the U.S. 7-6 (8), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.

''Obviously,'' Paul said about Alcaraz, ''the guy can play amazing tennis here.''

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Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis