For Frances Tiafoe focusing on his game and mental health go hand-in-hand.

After a historic run at the U.S. Open, the 24-year-old tennis star is on a mission to become the best version of himself. When he's not on the court working on his game, he's working on himself, and one of his favorite forms of self-improvement is therapy.

In an exclusive interview with iHeartMedia's Black Information Network, Tiafoe opened up about his new partnership with BetterHelp, the world's largest therapy platform, which is providing up to $3 million worth of free mental health therapy to people in need with the goal of shining a light on the importance of mental health.

"Mental health is so important," he told BIN. "A lot of times growing up, you hear people saying, 'Shake it off,' and 'Man up,' and that [leads to] holding things in. I'm glad that [BetterHelp] is a safe haven where you can go and actually get help, speak out on your problems, and be able to feel vulnerable."

The connection between Tiafoe's mental health and performance is one of the many reasons why he "just loves therapy." The tennis star shared that being able to "speak about actual things I'm going through, problems I'm having, understanding why I do things, why I react in a certain way to things, and where it's all stemming from" has made him a better athlete and overall person.

"I love having a place where I know I can go to and not be judged," he added.

As a Black professional athlete, Tiafoe has found that prioritizing his mental health has been crucial to his success on and off the court. As he noted, Tiafoe brought his best self to this month's U.S. Open, where he made quite the splash, becoming the first American man to reach a U.S. Open semifinal in 16 years; the youngest American man to make it to the U.S. Open semifinalist since Andy Roddick in 2016, and the first Black American man to reach a U.S. Open semifinal since Arthur Ashe in 1972.

Keep scrolling to read our Q&A with Tiafoe about his U.S. Open run.

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