Frances Tiafoe Reveals Hilarious Fan Interaction After French Open Win

Frances Tiafoe fought for four hours and 43 minutes to defeat Hubert Hurkacz in five sets, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (7), 6-4, 6-7 (1), 6-4, in their second-round match at Roland-Garros on Thursday.

The beloved American tennis star, nicknamed “Big Foe,” celebrated inching one round closer to his first French Open title by jumping into the crowd. He entered the group hug with his lime-green racket, but he left without it.

Tiafoe took to his Instagram Story to plead for his racket’s return: “Unreal atmosphere on Court 14 today. But I must say to the fan who took my racket at the end when I was celebrating with y’all. Can I please have it back? [two face-palm emojis. two laughing-crying emojis] I’ll bless you with two tickets for my next match. DM [Brian Kubik] to collect my racket. Thanks for the love, y’all.”

Roughly an hour later, Tiafoe reposted Kubik’s selfie showing him holding the racket alongside the woman who nabbed it. All’s well that ends well.

After his Round 2 win, Tiafoe joined TNT Sports’ studio crew at Roland-Garros and said he wanted the fan to return this racket specifically because “I won the match with it; it’s gotta be good luck.” He also disclosed that while the fan didn’t receive the two free tickets he had originally promised, he gave her shoes instead.

Tiafoe will face Portugal’s Jaime Faria in Round 3 on Saturday. He reached the quarterfinal at the 2025 French Open before losing to Italian Lorenzo Musetti in four sets.

Watch his full TNT segment below.