Captaining Czechia’s Davis Cup team, Tomas Berdych has seen two top American players up close this weekend.
Needing a win to qualify for the Davis Cup Finals in November, Berdych’s Czech side took on the American team led by Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe.
Two-time Grand Slam semifinalist Tiafoe lost to Jiri Lehecka in the opener before Fritz beat Jakub Mensik to level the tie at 1-1.
Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images for ITF
The players will swap opponents on day two to decide which team advances to the Davis Cup Finals.
Reacting to the first two matches of the tie, Berdych has suggested who he believes is the better player between Fritz and Tiafoe.
Tomas Berdych says Taylor Fritz is a ‘much tougher opponent’ than Frances Tiafoe
During the post-match press conferences, Berdych commented on Lehecka and Mensik’s efforts against Tiafoe and Fritz.
“First night of action, luckily, we had the time to finish it, which is great. After the week, we had a chance to play in the evening, so that’s good. That’s the first positive thing to start with,” he said.
“Then there is another positive thing, that Jiri [Lehecka] played an absolutely incredible match, which is another one, so he brings the first points to the locker room, which is great.
“Unfortunately, Jakub [Mensik] was not able to deliver the point, same as Jiri.
“I mean, obviously, he had a much tougher opponent, that’s for sure.”
Berdych explained what went wrong for Mensik against top-five star Fritz.
“He made a couple of mistakes, especially in the beginning, and then with the combination of a very tough opponent, which Taylor [Fritz] is, then, you know, it’s like a little bit like a snowball,” he said.
Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images for ITF
The 39-year-old is still feeling confident with his side level at 1-1 against Team USA.
“It’s 1-1 after Friday, which I think is very acceptable for us. Yeah, we still have it quite open for tomorrow, which is good,” said Berdych.
Berdych believes Fritz is a tougher opponent than Tiafoe, but do the stats back his claim up?
Comparing Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe’s tennis careers
Of the two players, it’s fair to say Fritz has enjoyed more success on the ATP Tour so far in his career.
Taylor Fritz’s career stats
- Best Grand Slam result – Runner-up (2024 US Open)
- Career-high ranking – 4th
- Current ranking – 5th
- ATP titles – 10
- Masters 1000 titles – 1 (2022 Indian Wells)
- Top-ten wins – 31
- Olympic medals – Bronze (2024 doubles)
Taylor Fritz’s record at Grand SlamsFrances Tiafoe’s career stats
- Best Grand Slam result – Semifinalist (2022 US Open, 2024 US Open)
- Career-high ranking – 10th
- Current ranking – 29th
- ATP titles – 3
- Masters 1000 titles – 0
- Top-ten wins – 13
- Olympic medals – 0
Frances Tiafoe’s record at Grand Slams
Fritz outperforms Tiafoe in every statistic, having won more titles than his countryman and enjoyed better Grand Slam results.
The world number five has also dominated their head-to-head, winning seven of the eight matches he’s played against Tiafoe.
Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe’s head-to-head record
- 2024 US Open SF – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2023 Acapulco QF – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2022 Tokyo F – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2022 Canadian Open 2R – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2022 Australian Open 2R – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2019 Paris Masters 1R – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2016 Winston-Salem 1R – Taylor Fritz defeated Frances Tiafoe
- 2016 Indian Wells 1R – Frances Tiafoe defeated Taylor Fritz
Tiafoe last beat Fritz nine years ago, in the first round of the 2016 Indian Wells tournament.
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
He’d love to end his losing streak before the end of the year, but will first focus on getting the job done for Team USA.
Fritz is scheduled to play Lehecka, and Tiafoe is set to play Mensik on Saturday, September 13.