Frances Tiafoe produced one of the biggest wins of the Cincinnati Open so far, knocking out second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime to lead a strong showing by the American contingent.
Tiafoe defeated the Canadian 6-3, 6-4 in a composed performance that saw him keep his errors under control and dictate the match from the baseline.
The American made just 16 unforced errors compared with 37 from Auger-Aliassime, allowing him to maintain pressure throughout the contest.
“I was super solid from the back of the court. Didn’t have many errors there,” Tiafoe said after the match.
The victory sends Tiafoe into his second Masters 1000 quarter-final of the season. His run in Cincinnati has already included wins over Lorenzo Sonego and Learner Tien before he took down the tournament’s second seed.
Tiafoe will now face Lorenzo Musetti for a place in the semi-finals.
While Tiafoe delivered the biggest American upset, Taylor Fritz and Brandon Nakashima also secured their places in the last eight, setting up an all-American quarter-final.
Sixth seed Fritz continued his impressive form on home soil with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Christopher O’Connell.
The win marks Fritz’s first Cincinnati quarter-final appearance since 2023 and his third overall at the Masters 1000 tournament. That puts him alongside Andy Roddick, Mardy Fish and John Isner as the only American men to reach at least three Cincinnati quarter-finals this century.
Fritz is also riding an eight-match winning streak on American hard courts after recently claiming the Washington title.
His reward is a rematch with Nakashima, whom he defeated in Washington only a few weeks ago.
Nakashima booked his place in the quarter-finals by overcoming Nuno Borges 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3.
The 23-year-old fired 27 aces and maintained his momentum after saving three match points against Daniil Medvedev in the previous round.
The result gives Nakashima his first Cincinnati quarter-final and continues an impressive stretch of form. He reached his first Masters 1000 final in Montreal last week and has quickly established himself as one of the players to watch on the North American hard-court swing.
“My team and I put in a lot of hard work. The mentality has been very important,” Nakashima said.
Elsewhere, Lorenzo Musetti advanced with a 7-5, 6-2 win over qualifier Jaime Faria.
The Italian reached his first Masters 1000 quarter-final since Rome last year and will now meet Tiafoe in another intriguing clash between two players enjoying strong runs in Cincinnati.
With several leading names already out and three Americans through to the quarter-finals, the Cincinnati Open is shaping up for an exciting finish as the battle for the Masters 1000 title intensifies.
