PARIS — As the first 17-year-old American man in the French Open since Michael Chang won the 1989 title, Frances Tiafoe learned a valuable lesson from a straight-set loss in his Grand Slam debut.
"I need," Tiafoe said with a chuckle, "to get a lot better."
Tiafoe, from College Park, Maryland, earned a wild card from the U.S. Tennis Association for the main draw at Roland Garros, a year after playing in the junior tournament in Paris. On tiny Court 5 — with a seating capacity of 379, and no television coverage — Tiafoe went out quickly Monday, beaten 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 by 36th-ranked Martin Klizan of Slovakia.