Tien endured a challenging match but displayed resilience at crucial moments, especially in the first set tie-break. He saved two set points in this intense, prolonged shootout. Despite missing a set point while serving, the Vietnamese-American player pulled ahead in the final two points to win the tie-break 11-9.

Winning the opening set allowed Tien to play with comfort and excitement for the rest of the match. He lost only one more service game in the remaining two sets, consistently building a significant lead from the early stages of each set to win 6-4, 6-2. The match concluded with the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals champion hitting 32 winners.

Tien celebrates his victory over Borges in the third round of the Australian Open, at KIA Arena, Melbourne, Australia on 23/1. Photo: Reuters

For the second consecutive year, Tien has reached the fourth round of the Australian Open and will once again face veteran Daniil Medvedev. One year ago, Tien caused an upset by eliminating Medvedev in a long five-set match in the second round. That marked the biggest win of Tien's career at the time, as Medvedev was the runner-up. This year, the Russian player has continued to struggle, having played nine sets in his last two matches.

In the third round, Fabian Marozsan nearly eliminated Medvedev, who lost the first two sets and only narrowly won the third set in the final games, before staging a comeback with scores of 6-7, 4-6, 7-5, 6-0, 6-3. Being pushed to his limits in Grand Slam matches is not new for Medvedev. This has led to a series of disappointing tournaments for him. The 29-year-old player failed to reach the third round of any Grand Slam last season. Medvedev's most recent major final appearance was at the 2024 Australian Open.

"I will focus completely on the next match," Tien shared after his third-round victory on 23/1. "I don't like to think too far ahead, because anything can happen in the next match. My goal is simply one match at a time, one week at a time."

Legendary coach Patrick Mouratoglou recently praised Tien as a player who could join the ranks of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. According to the French expert, Tien has a slight disadvantage with his height of 1,8m but is fast, strong, and agile enough to handle difficult shots. He also possesses a Rafael Nadal-style topspin serve, which can help compensate for his limited height.

"I think he was one of the most improved players on the ATP Tour last year," Mouratoglou stated in an online interview this week. "There's a significant gap between him and Sinner currently, but for young players, that gap can close very quickly. Tien has good skills and footwork. What he needs is to strengthen his physical conditioning and upgrade his serve."

Vy Anh