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Frances Tiafoe was recently spotted wearing former NBA star Joakim Noah's Chicago Bulls No. 13 jersey during a practice session ahead of the 2024 French Open. Tiafoe received the jersey as a gift from the 39-year-old on the occasion of 'Yannick Noah Day', a special event to celebrate the 41st anniversary of his father Yannick Noah's historic victory at the 1983 French Open.
Tiafoe, who will begin his campaign in Paris on May 26, recently came off a Round of 16 run at the Lyon Open, losing 7-6(7), 6-4 to Arthur Rinderknech.
Yannick Noah is the only Frenchman to win the French Open in the Open era. He was later inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005.
His son Joakim followed his father’s footsteps in sports but chose basketball instead of tennis. The 39-year-old played 13 seasons in the NBA, mostly with the Chicago Bulls (2007-16), and was a two-time All-Star and the Defensive Player of the Year in 2014. He also represented France in international competitions, winning a silver medal at the 2011 EuroBasket.
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The official French Open's Instagram account shared a photo of Tiafoe wearing the jersey during a practice session on Saturday, May 25.
Joakim Noah commented on the post and wished Tiafoe ahead of the latter's clay-court campaign.
"Happy yannick noah kids day at the french open. Good luck @bigfoe1998. Keep making us proud brother," he wrote.
The former Top-10 player also thanked the former NBA star for sending him the jersey. He wrote:
"Happy @yannicknoah kids day. Nothing but love OG. Appreciate the jersey @stickity13."
Frances Tiafoe talks about drawing inspiration from basketball legends Kobe Bryant and LeBron James
Frances Tiafoe discussed how he draws inspiration from basketball legends Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.
In a conversation with Nick Kyrgios on his video podcast 'Good Trouble with Nick Kyrgios', Tiafoe mentioned that he admires their relaxed and joyful demeanor off the court, as well as their fierce competitiveness on it.
“It's all outside tennis. You see (Le)Bron (James), you see Kobe, right? I mean, you know those guys like seeing them; you know, being cool with their teammates, whatever cool with their friends. But when it was out there, like, you know, me and you were so tight, we joked around right before we got out there, then it’s on," Tiafoe said (at 6:43).
Tiafoe expressed gratitude to these icons for teaching him to be composed and concentrated while playing tennis.
"Same with those guys, especially with the best players in the world. Everyone stepped in, and I wanted to show the world what I could do. Then I just get super excited, and those guys definitely help with it,” he added.
Frances Tiafoe has an 11-11 win-loss record in 2024, with his best performance being reaching the final at the Houston Open where he lost 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 to compatriot Ben Shelton. The American also reached the semifinals at the Delray Beach while making it to the quarterfinals in Hong Kong and Dallas.
