At the BOSS Open in Stuttgart, Frances Tiafoe defeated Italian Lorenzo Musetti 6-7(6), 7-6(4), 6-2 to advance to his first tour-level semi-final on grass. In a thrilling match at the ATP 250, Tiafoe bounced back from blowing three set points in the opening set by keeping his composure in the second set before cruising to victory in the third. Throughout the two hours and 42 minutes of play, the American was aggressive off short balls, hitting 45 winners to tie the 21-year-old in their ATP Head2Head series at 2-2.
With his 25th victory of the year, Tiafoe qualified for the semi-finals against either Marton Fucsovics of Hungary or fellow countryman Taylor Fritz. After winning on clay in Houston in April, the third-seeded Tiafoe is vying for his third tour-level title and second of the year.
Tiafoe is a debutant in Stuttgart; up until this week, his finest performance on grass consisted of quarterfinal appearances at The Queen's Club in 2018 and 2021. If he wins the trophy in Germany, the 25-year-old will move up one spot to No. 11 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, breaking the Top 10 for the first time.