Francis Tiafoe's father looks back on their early struggles - "I couldn't pay for babysitting so I had to bring the kids to work"

American tennis star Frances Tiafoe may be financially well off due to his success on and off the court, but his father, Constant Tiafoe, recalls a time when the family had to rise through humble beginnings.

Tiafoe has been one of the bright spots for men's American tennis in recent years. The 26-year old has reached a career-high ranking of World No.10, in addition to being a staple in the later rounds of Grand Slam events.

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Life as difficult during Francis' youth, says Constant Tiafoe

Tiafoe's parents moved to the United States from Sierra Leone in the early 1990's, when their home country was ravaged by civil war. In an interview with Yonex, Constant Tiafoe recalled raising Francis alongside his twin brother, Franklin and spoke on the difficulties they faced as a family.

"I said OK, if I come here maybe it'll be better than back there... I worked in construction to build a tennis academy," said Constant. "I didn't know anything about tennis. After we finished, then they gave me a job.
"I was like a maintenance guy. When I started working at the job, it was a big problem because I couldn’t pay for babysitting so I had to bring the kids to work. It was an automatic thing, they just have to play tennis because that's all you see, so you got to be good at it.

Constant Tiafoe remembered his amazement at how quickly his sons picked up the sport, to the point where they were vastly better than their fellow trainees.

"Believe it or not, the parents of other kids, they came to me and said, Listen, your son is playing some serious tennis," said Constant.