Three sets, and a handshake that went wrong
The third round in Cincinnati finished the way it deserved to. Frances Tiafoe, the No 17 seed, beat No 16 seed Learner Tien 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 overnight to close out the round, and then walked into an argument at the net.
“You’re not injured bro. You’re not injured. You’re lying. That surgery was fake. That surgery was fake. Your wrist is fine. Stop lying,” Tien said to Tiafoe after the handshake, while his opponent laughed it off.
There was a reason for the accusation. Tiafoe had a cyst removed from his right hand less than a week before the tournament, an operation that put his participation in doubt, and he has come out swinging in both of his matches this week rather than nursing anything.
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A venue that suits him
Tiafoe knows this court. He reached the final here two years ago, and this is his fourth trip to the Cincinnati last 16. It is also his third Masters 1000 last-16 of the season, which puts a floor under a year that has not always looked steady.
The result carried a smaller score to settle too. Tien beat him at Delray Beach earlier this season, so their 2026 series now swings back Tiafoe’s way at the better venue and the bigger stage. Tien had come into the match as one of the more awkward opponents left in the draw, and he took the second set by simply refusing to give Tiafoe a rhythm to attack.
Auger-Aliassime waits
Next comes Felix Auger-Aliassime, the second seed and world No 4, who had already booked his place in the last 16 with a straight-sets win over Juan Manuel Cerundolo. That is Auger-Aliassime’s fifth Cincinnati last 16 in six editions of the tournament and his third at Masters 1000 level this year, a stretch that has taken his 2026 win total to 32.
The rest of the draw has been anything but orderly. Brandon Nakashima saved match points to knock out Daniil Medvedev, Nuno Borges removed Andrey Rublev, and Alexander Zverev is the only one of the top three seeds still standing. A quarterfinal place is sitting there for whoever comes through the American and the Canadian.
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