Baseline Awards: Best post-match moment

If you’re a fan of American tennis, then you must have felt as if the draw gods were conspiring against you at the US Open on the men’s side this year.

Two seeded players, Jack Sock and John Isner, were drawn to play against teenagers Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe, respectively, on the first day of the tournament. Both matches went the distance: Sock won the first two sets and then dropped the next two, before wrapping it up, 6-4 in the fifth.

It was the Isner-Tiafoe match earlier in the day, though, that had tennis fans around the world abuzz.

If there were any questions about the ability of Tiafoe, the 18-year-old answered them outright as he won the first two sets. Isner squeaked out the third in a tiebreak, then raced through the fourth. Tiafoe rebounded and served for the match at 5-3.

But Isner wasn’t ready to pass the torch yet.

The veteran broke Tiafoe, and they stayed on serve until the tiebreak, which Isner won after an early mini-break. After more than three hours, the match was over, with the only thing left being the meeting at the net.

All the feels were in that hug and one couldn’t help but feel for Tiafoe. Isner offered him some words of encouragement.

Truer words were never spoken.