Paris — Frances Tiafoe’s face expressed what the scoreboard had not. Tiafoe, a 17-year-old from College Park, Md., lost his Grand Slam main draw debut Monday to 36th-ranked Martin Klizan, 6-2, 6-1, 6-4.
While able to hammer 11 aces, including eight in the third set, Tiafoe held only half of his service games, and several times saw his second serves smacked back for clean winners by Klizan.
Despite the potentially humbling experience, Tiafoe remained upbeat through the more competitive third set, which he led, 3-0, after earning a break when Klizan double faulted.
In his news conference, Tiafoe’s answers were often clipped, having been interrupted by his own broad smiles pushing through.