Miami, March 25 Frances Tiafoe advanced to his fifth ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final and his first since Cincinnati in 2024 after defeating Terence Atmane 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 at the Miami Open.
For the second straight match, Tiafoe, 28, pulled off a Houdini-like escape. On Monday, he saved two match points in his three-set victory over defending champion Jakub Mensik, and on Tuesday he was down 0-40, 4-4 in the third set against Atmane before achieving the crucial break at 4-5.
"I worked hard to be comfortable in uncomfortable situations, and I often put myself in those positions," Tiafoe said about his late escape.
"It's like when you're running a series of sprints, you're not thinking about the remaining 15. You focus on the one ahead. And that's kind of where I was at.
"When you're down 0/40, worry about 0/40, when you're down 15/40, worry about 15/40, and so on. Ultimately, just be where your feet are," he added.
The victory set up a quarter-final showdown on home soil against Jannik Sinner for Tiafoe, who has a 1-4 ATP Head-to-Head record against the Italian.
Elsewhere, Alexander Zverev defeated the Frenchman Quentin Halys with a victory after two tiebreakers, 7-6(4), 7-6(1).
The 2018 Miami finalist has now reached the quarter-finals or better in six of the past seven ATP Masters 1000s; he has also advanced to the quarters at both Indian Wells and Miami in the same season for the second time (2024), according to ATP reports.
By beating the world No. 111 Halys, the German extended his winning streak against players outside the Top 100 to 16 matches, dating back to 2024.
Next up for Zverev is Francisco Cerundolo, who advanced to his fourth Miami quarter-final in five tries with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Ugo Humbert.