Learner Tien, the new giant-slayer

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It can't be a coincidence. Winning the only two matches you've played against top 5 opponents can never be a coincidence, I refuse to believe it. There is something about Learner Tien that the rest of his generation does not grasp. Surely, he lacks many other things, not even his strengths are fully defined yet –the most logical thing when you're 19 years old– but I insist: within the whole puzzle, this boy has a unique piece that will lead him to conquer many mountains. He did so in the last Australian Open, where he defeated Daniil Medvedev in the second round (6-3, 7-6, 6-7, 1-6, 7-6). He repeated this last night in the ATP 500 Acapulco, when he deactivated the top favorite, Alexander Zverev, in another flawless match (6-3, 6-4). How did the American do it? Listening to his words will not give us the answer.

"To be honest, I couldn't tell you how I did it," he commented in the heat of the moment on TennisTV. "I just stepped onto the court and tried to control what was happening on my side of the court. I knew it would be a real challenge, one of the best players in the world was opposite me, so once you achieve the goal, you feel one of the best possible sensations inside. Right now, all I want is to play my next match," evaluated the American, who will face Tomas Machac in the next round, currently the highest-ranking player left in the quarterfinals. In this case, the Acapulco food poisoning has had a lot to do with it, but that's another story.

It's risky to say that Zverev stepped onto the court without being at 100% physically, defending that condition to explain his defeat, so we will assume that this match took place on equal terms where Learner was the better of the two. Without making much noise in the big parameters, but steadily securing the match through his second serve, saved break points, and consistency from the baseline that can even unsettle the German, one of the toughest profiles from that perspective. A victory that deserves all the repercussions that come with beating a world top 2 player in a tournament of this caliber.

THE NEW GIANT-KILLER

Virtually inside the top 70 of the rankings after this latest blow, Tien's name has already made headlines twice this season. Considering that it's still February, we can say that the average is impressive. People are starting to see him as a special talent, which he truly is, yet it's not easy to hold a 2-0 record against top 5 players. Maybe "easy" isn't the word; what I'm revealing is the pressure this kid will now have to bear for shining against Medvedev and Zverev. It doesn't matter if he loses to Machac now, the public will always expect his best version in the most challenging situations.

These are the two elements that have helped me the most in those two victories," summarizes the American without giving himself any credit.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Learner Tien, el nuevo mata-gigantes