Learner Tien might have a new nickname on the ATP Tour, the "Comeback Kid."
The 19-year-old American rallied from a set down for the second time in as many days on Saturday to defeat No. 33 seed Corentin Moutet 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, to reach the third round at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
Tien came back to defeat Miomir Kecmanovic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the first round in his tournament debut on Friday and 24 hours later he rallied from two breaks down in the second set and a break down in the third set to beat the left-handed Frenchman.
"I am really happy to pull that one off," said Tien, who will next face No. 30 seed Cameron Norrie in the third round on Monday. "It was definitely looking rough, especially in that second set. I didn't really lose hope. I feel like in a lot of my return games I had looks, whether it be 15-30 or Love-15 points that I feel like I should be winning to go up Love-30, and I just let a lot of chances slip by. So just try to keep a level head as best I could, and just keep believing that I was still in the match."
Going back to his last tournament in Beijing where he reached his first ATP Tour final, Tien's last four wins have come from a set down. In the quarter-finals, Tien defeated No. 9 Lorenzo Musetti, who retired with a thigh injury at 0-3 down in the third set. In the semi-finals, Tien beat World No. 18 Daniil Medvedev, who retired at 0-4 down in the final set. Tien also came back from a set down in the first round aginast No. 21 Francisco Cerundolo.
Tien finished last season at No. 122 in the PIF ATP Rankings, culminating with a runner-up at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah where he lost to Joao Fonseca. He began the ATP Tour Asian swing ranked No. 54, reaching the quarter-finals in Hangzhou and final in Beijing. He has climbed to No. 37 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.
Tien has a match record of 25-20 on the season, including an impresssive 5-3 vs. Top 10 opponents. Tien has been working since this summer with former World No. 2 Michael Chang, who he credits with his improvement.
"He's helped me a lot and he's really, really been a great influence on me," said Tien of the International Tennis Hall of Fame member. "He's really helped me kind of, in my first year. I don't have that much experience playing week-to-week, and someone like him that has been around coaching and playing for so long, his insight and his experience has been super, super helpful."
The 19-year-old American rallied from a set down for the second time in as many days on Saturday to defeat No. 33 seed Corentin Moutet 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, to reach the third round at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
Tien came back to defeat Miomir Kecmanovic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the first round in his tournament debut on Friday and 24 hours later he rallied from two breaks down in the second set and a break down in the third set to beat the left-handed Frenchman.
"I am really happy to pull that one off," said Tien, who will next face No. 30 seed Cameron Norrie in the third round on Monday. "It was definitely looking rough, especially in that second set. I didn't really lose hope. I feel like in a lot of my return games I had looks, whether it be 15-30 or Love-15 points that I feel like I should be winning to go up Love-30, and I just let a lot of chances slip by. So just try to keep a level head as best I could, and just keep believing that I was still in the match."
Going back to his last tournament in Beijing where he reached his first ATP Tour final, Tien's last four wins have come from a set down. In the quarter-finals, Tien defeated No. 9 Lorenzo Musetti, who retired with a thigh injury at 0-3 down in the third set. In the semi-finals, Tien beat World No. 18 Daniil Medvedev, who retired at 0-4 down in the final set. Tien also came back from a set down in the first round aginast No. 21 Francisco Cerundolo.
Tien finished last season at No. 122 in the PIF ATP Rankings, culminating with a runner-up at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah where he lost to Joao Fonseca. He began the ATP Tour Asian swing ranked No. 54, reaching the quarter-finals in Hangzhou and final in Beijing. He has climbed to No. 37 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.
Tien has a match record of 25-20 on the season, including an impresssive 5-3 vs. Top 10 opponents. Tien has been working since this summer with former World No. 2 Michael Chang, who he credits with his improvement.
"He's helped me a lot and he's really, really been a great influence on me," said Tien of the International Tennis Hall of Fame member. "He's really helped me kind of, in my first year. I don't have that much experience playing week-to-week, and someone like him that has been around coaching and playing for so long, his insight and his experience has been super, super helpful."
