“I really just needed this" - Frances Tiafoe after shock upset over Matteo Berrettini in the first round of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati

On Monday night, Frances Tiafoe pulled off a huge upset over 12th seed Matteo Berrettini in the first round of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.

The duo locked horns on Center Court and delivered a thrilling encounter for the fans that lasted nearly three hours. Frances Tiafoe roared to victory in three sets, 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(5), in front of his home crowd.

This is the American’s first top-20 win this year.

Watch the winning moment here:

The 24-year-old from Maryland had to dig deep against the former World No. 6. He created eight break point opportunities for himself but Berrettini denied him each of those.

Tiafoe, however, kept going and challenged the Italian with entertaining and high-risk play. He served up 16 aces, making Berrettini’s 12 look meek. The pair dished out 34 winners each but the American cashed in on the pivotal moments in the first and third sets. He remained remarkably unfazed after failing to convert a match point on the Italian’s serve in the third set and sealed the deal in the deciding tie-break.

In the on-court interview, Tiafoe expressed the importance of this prodigious win.

“People don’t understand, obviously results haven’t really shown how well I’ve been playing. I’ve been playing some great tennis, honestly,” he said. “I really just needed this. I know it’s a first-round match, but everyone knew why I needed this against a quality player, so it was big.”

Promptly, he inscribed “needed that” on the camera before signing off.

The American entered Cincinnati after facing brutal defeats in his previous two tournaments. At the Citi Open, eventual champion Nick Kyrgios edged out Tiafoe in the quarterfinals after saving five match points in the second set, 6-7(5), 7-6(12), 6-2. Later in Montreal, compatriot and American No. 1 Taylor Fritz outplayed Frances Tiafoe 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 despite Tiafoe leading 4-0 in the third set.

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Frances Tiafoe will face fellow American Sebastian Korda in the second round in Cincinnati

Tiafoe leads 3-0 in head-to-head against Korda

Another electrifying face-off is lined up as young Americans Frances Tiafoe and Sebastian Korda will battle it out for a third-round spot at the Masters 1000 event on Wednesday.

The duo have met each other thrice before, with Tiafoe emerging as the winner in all three encounters. Their initial meeting was at the 2018 New York Open, where the 24-year-old triumphed over Korda 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. They next met at the 2021 Indian Wells Masters, where the younger native was outfoxed by Tiafoe 6-0, 6-4. The pair’s final clash was in the semifinals of this year’s Estoril Open where Frances Tiafoe extended his lead over the 22-year-old by saving three match points in the second set with a 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-4 win.