Learner becomes master: Meet 19-year-old Learner Tien who stunned Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open
USA wildcard Learner Tien has stunned the world by upsetting last year's runner-up Daniil Medvedev after a gruelling five-set marathon.
Learner Tien is making his Australian Open debut this year and he hasn't taken too long to make the world sit up and take notice. The 19-year-old is playing a Grand Slam for just the second time in his career and he defeated last year's runner up and 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev in a second round match that started on Thursday night and finished in the wee hours of Friday morning.
Medvedev cut a frustrated a harrowed and frustrated figure at the end of the marathon as he lost to his teenaged oponent 3-6, 6-7(4), 7-6(8), 6-1, 6-7(7). He chucked his equipment toward the sideline, skidding it across the court until it reached an advertising panel near his bench. At other moments of anger, Medvedev hit a ball against the back wall, toppled a camera behind a baseline and punched his racket bag.
So who is this boy who pushed the Russian 5th seed to this extent?
Tien was born on December 2005 in Irvine, California to Vietnamese parents. His and sister Justice's names are a way for their parents to honour their professions - Learner's mother Huyen Tien is a teacher and his father Khuong Dan Tien is real estate lawyer. “An attorney seeks justice. A teacher seeks a learner. They were virtuous names,” Khuong is quoted as saying in an LA Times article.
Tien's tennis journey started almost as soon as he learnt to walk. His parents would often play the sport recreationally and so Tien laid his hands on a racket when he was just over a year old. He soon showed great promise, playing a tournament for the first time at the age of five and, according to the LA Times, won his first championship at the age of six. His father said that the trophy had a jack-o’-lantern on it because it was Halloween.
Tien continued to show great promise throughout his growing up years, eventually representing the USA in the prestigious 14-and-under Les Petits As tournament in France, at the junior world championships and at the junior Davis Cup. However, he then briefly walked away from tennis.
“I was kind of unsure about my future playing tennis. I wasn’t sure how much I really enjoyed it anymore, just because I’d always played it and I’d played it for so long,” Learner later said. “I guess my sense of enjoyment in playing it was fading a little bit.”
His parents didn't force him to pick up the racket again but he did so eventually with renewed vigour and has never looked back since.
Turning Pro
Tien reached two junior Grand Slams in 2023 - at the Australian Open and the US Open, and was ranked No.4 in singles at the end of the year. He had made his professional debut the previous year though. At just 16 years old, Tien won the 2022 USTA Boys 18s National Championship, which earned him a wildcard into the main draw of the 2022 US Open. This made him the youngest player in nearly two decades to compete in the men’s singles main draw at the US Open. He also received a wildcard to play in the 2023 US Open. In both instances, he was knocked out in the first round.
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