"Women should be appreciated for everything": Tiafoe wants to 'uplift all women' after International Women's Day

Fans of Frances Tiafoe might have noticed an Instagram Story he posted in which he wrote “Happy International Women’s Day”. It was just the latest example of the American uplifting women.

The 25-year-old spends a lot of time at WNBA games, wears WNBA jerseys and praises female athletes. Tiafoe has also enjoyed plenty of training sessions this year with WTA stars, including United Cup teammate Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff.

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“I think women should be appreciated for everything. They bring amazing kids into the world, they make the world a better place. They’re super hard-working and deserve to get the same notoriety, it’s just that simple,” Tiafoe said. “It’s a collective… Happy International Women’s Day. I’m happy for all the amazing women out there doing great things and I want to uplift all the women.”

On Monday evening, Tiafoe took to Stadium 1 at the BNP Paribas Open Indian Wells for a training session with Gauff.

“They give you a better rhythm, honestly,” Tiafoe said, cracking a laugh. “I hit with Coco that first day and I’ve been locked in ever since.”

The WTA stars have liked hitting with Tiafoe, too. Pegula and Tiafoe carried their routine sessions from the United Cup to the Australian Open.

“My nerves usually come out in practice where I'm not hitting well and I'm freaking out. And Frances is just so happy-go-lucky, the biggest hype person ever,” Pegula told the media during the Australian Open. “I’m a little bit more focused, which he needs, so I think it helps him in that way. And I think he likes hitting with me, he says, for the rhythm. He says he feels like the best player in the world when he hits with me.”

Tiafoe will begin his tournament in the California desert on Friday against countryman Marcos Giron.