Tien, the latest American tennis talent to gain recognition, hails from Irvine, California. His love for tennis was nurtured on community courts in Irvine, where he spent time practicing and learning alongside his father. This early exposure quickly developed into a natural skill.
Early start shaped by family influence
Tien shared insights into his beginnings in the sport during an interview with The Guardian earlier this year. He recalled starting tennis at just over one year old, using one of his father’s old rackets that happened to be lying around.
“I started when I was little older than one,” Tien said.
He explained that neither he nor his sister were expected to take up tennis so young, especially since they didn’t have specialized children’s equipment at the time.
“It’s not like they were prepped with little kiddy rackets or anything,” he added.
Childhood memories on the courts
His parents played tennis recreationally, and Tien would often accompany his father to the courts a few times a week. Watching his dad play in local men’s leagues became his first real introduction to the sport.
“My parents would play recreationally. I got to the courts a couple times a week, just with my dad, just watching him play in random men’s leagues,” he explained.
Gradual progression fueled by early training
Over time, Tien’s father started taking a more active role in his training, casually feeding him balls from a very young age. This early practice laid the foundation for his development into a promising young player.
“Eventually my dad started taking me to the courts, randomly feeding me balls from a pretty young age, and then it kind of just progressed from there on.”
ATP Beijing - Learner Tien's projected path
Tien in Beijing, ranking, and results in 2025
Currently ranked no.52, Tien achieved a composed 30-22 win-loss record in 2025. Learner is now playing in Beijing where he bested the world no.21 Francisco Cerundolo 4-6 6-3 6-4, the world no.25 Flavio Cobolli 6-3 6-2, the world no.9 Lorenzo Musetti 4-6 6-3 3-0 ret. and the world no.18 Daniil Medvedev 5-7 7-5 4-0 ret..
Learner Tien will take on the world no.2 Jannik Sinner in the final on Wednesday at 2:00 pm on CAPITAL GROUP DIAMOND. They have never competed against each other until now in top events.
