Frances Tiafoe destroys racket in fit of rage and risks getting in trouble with sponsor

Frances Tiafoe's conduct after his shock loss to Marton Fucsovics in Tokyo could spell trouble with his Japanese sponsors, Yonex, as the American struggles to recover from a disappointing US Open campaign. The 27-year-old made his comeback at the Japan Open following his third-round elimination by Jan-Lennard Struff at Flushing Meadows nearly a month earlier.

It was apparent that Tiafoe remained haunted by that earlier setback when he faced Fucsovics at Tokyo's Ariake Coliseum. Though heavily favoured to overcome his Hungarian opponent, the script was completely flipped as Fucsovics stunned the American with a 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 first-round triumph.

Unable to contain his frustration, Tiafoe unleashed his fury on his racquet in scenes eerily similar to his outburst at the Cincinnati Open.

Social media users were quick to point out the particularly poor timing of Tiafoe's tantrum, given his surroundings.

"That's not going to sit well with Yonex while in Japan," one Reddit user observed.

Another added: "bruh at least don't smash a Yonex racket in Japan," alongside four crying emojis.

One supporter highlighted further reasons why Tiafoe's racket destruction came at perhaps the worst possible moment. "Probably not the most optimal time to destroy a racket: At the conclusion of the match, in your racket sponsor's home country, at a tournament where your racket sponsor is at the second-highest sponsorship level, in front of your racket sponsor's logo at said tournament in sponsor's home country, and... in a country where things like racket smashing are especially looked down upon," the fan added.

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Yonex also sponsors a host of other tennis superstars, including Naomi Osaka, Jessica Pegula, Jasmine Paolini, Ben Shelton, Casper Ruud, Madison Keys, Taylor Townsend and numerous other global tennis stars alongside Tiafoe.

His furious outburst could well have originated from his disappointing showing at the US Open back in late August.

After losing to Struff, Tiafoe delivered a starkly candid evaluation of his mental state as he attempted to work out his future plans.

"I don't know. I don't know how the rest of my season is going to go. I have no idea," he said when asked what his next step was.

"I mean, it's a lot to kind of take in, what is the reality currently now, right? I see Davis Cup, Laver Cup, Tokyo, other tournaments. I have no idea what the rest of the year looks like.

"I don't know what I'll do, I don't know how I'll come up, I don't know how I'll play, I don't know how to recover from this, to be honest with you. I haven't been this down in a very, very long time."

This article first appeared on Mirror US.