Frances Tiafoe has undergone a medical procedure just days after he was forced to retire mid-match in Montreal. The No. 15 seed faced Arthur Rinderknech in the Centre Court night session on Friday, but suddenly retired while 6-2 2-0 down and later revealed that he had been dealing with a right-hand injury. The American has since learned that he had a cyst in his hand, which has since been removed.
Timing and Context
It comes at arguably the most important time in the season for Tiafoe, with his home Grand Slam tournament kicking off at the end of the month. But the world No. 20 vowed: “I’ll be back soon.”
Tiafoe’s North American hard-court swing hadn’t gone to plan, as he lost his opening match in Washington and then withdrew from the doubles draw, where he was set to team up with Nick Kyrgios.
Retirement and Diagnosis
The 28-year-old then headed to Montreal for the Canadian Open and won his opening match against Marin Cilic. But while facing Rinderknech on Friday, Tiafoe’s average groundstroke speeds were down. He was broken in a lengthy game early in the second set and decided to retire.
“Sorry to the fans out here in Montreal who came out to watch me tonight. I’ve been dealing with a right hand injury for a lil bit now. I tried to play but need the rest. Until next time thanks for the love,” said after his retirement.
Over the weekend, Tiafoe was diagnosed with a cyst. In a new statement, he wrote: “Big S/O to Dr. Michelle Carlson and the @hspecialsurgery team. They were able to diagnose and take out a cyst that has been causing some issues for some time now. Everything went well and I appreciate all of the messages and support. I’ll be back soon.”
Road to Recovery
Tiafoe has yet to officially withdraw from the Cincinnati Open, which begins on Thursday, less than a week after he retired in Montreal and had the cyst removed. The Cincinnati draw will be made on Tuesday, but Tiafoe would be seeded and will likely not have to play his opening match until the weekend.
The world No. 20 had to retire mid-match in Cincinnati last year due to a back injury, but recovered in time for the US Open, where he reached the third round. Two years ago, Tiafoe finished runner-up at the Cincinnati Open, losing only to Jannik Sinner.
The 28-year-old has made it no secret that the US Open is the most important tournament in his career. He’s reached the semi-finals twice and will be hoping to make a quick recovery before the tournament gets underway on August 30.
