It’s a clay-court tournament. In Stuttgart in 2023, the American won the last of his three career titles to date. Tiafoe also reached the quarterfinals in Stuttgart this year. Given his strong results in Swabia, it’s all the more surprising that the 28-year-old is competing in the TERRA WORTMANN OPEN for the very first time this year.
After defeating French Open finalist Flavio Cobolli on Monday and Japan’s Sho Shimabukuro on Wednesday, Tiafoe is the first player to reach the quarterfinals in Halle—and he’s done so without dropping a single set. In the lower half of the draw, the American is one of the players who can beat anyone, despite the strong field at the tournament.
Tiafoe Reaches Quarterfinals on His Halle Debut
Between 2016 and 2025, Tiafoe played at Queen’s Club in London during this tournament week—though with limited success. “I often got eliminated in the first round at Queens,” he explained regarding his move to Halle after his first-round victory over French Open finalist Flavio Cobolli on Monday. “I’m in a phase right now where I’m trying new things, and I’ve never been here before. I thought to myself, ‘Why not? Why not try something new?’”
The allure of the unknown played a big role in Tiafoe’s decision to come to Halle. “I mean, I’ve been on the tour for 10 years, and for me it’s kind of cool to walk around the grounds here and not know where to go. It kind of gives you that feeling you had in your first year, like, ‘Man, it’s cool to be here,’” said the American, who also raved about the organization of German tournaments.
His 6-2, 7-6(4) victory over Cobolli already made it clear just how comfortable Tiafoe feels on the Halle grass. The win was his first against a top-ten player in nearly two years. “It’s cool to beat players like that, but I know what I’m capable of,” he said happily, emphasizing the importance of consistently winning several matches in a row at tournaments. “That’s what it’s all about. I don’t want to have one great week and then disappear for three or four weeks. I just want to be there every week, so I’m happy with what I’ve accomplished so far.”
Against Shimabukuro, Tiafoe secured his long-awaited second consecutive victory. On the packed schauinsland-reisen Court, the world No. 19 put on a performance just as impressive as the one he delivered two days earlier on the Centre Court of the heristo-arena. To maintain his perfect record in Halle, Tiafoe must defeat either Learner Tien or Felix Auger-Aliassime in Friday’s quarterfinal. The two will face off on Wednesday afternoon.
In addition to Tiafoe, four other players from the U.S. are competing in the TERRA WORTMANN OPEN—making the Americans the largest national contingent in the tournament. While Learner Tien (6-2, 6-4 over Max Schönhaus) and Ethan Quinn (1-6, 6-4, 6-4 over Karen Khachanov) had already advanced to the round of 16 on Monday, top stars Taylor Fritz (7-6, 5-7, 6-4 over Zizou Bergs) and Ben Shelton (7-5, 6-3 over Lorenzo Sonego) followed suit on Wednesday.
