Well-rested Kevin Anderson advances at New York Open
Kevin Anderson hitting a backhand against Rafael Nadal during the 1st set of the men's finals in Arthur Ashe Stadium at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows Thursday Sept. 10, 2017 Credit: Newsday / J. Conrad Williams Jr.
Kevin Anderson finally got to play a match in the New York Open on Thursday afternoon. The Open’s No. 1 seed and 11th ranked player in the world got a bye in the first round, then he came up against Ernesto Escobedo, a qualifier who had to win two matches to get into the main draw and then his first-round encounter.
His opponent and the court took some getting used to, but Anderson ultimately prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5).
“Playing Thursday is pretty late in the week and you are playing against an opponent who has already won three matches,” said Anderson, who lost to Rafael Nadal in the U.S. Open final last September. “He has a good sense of the conditions and I think that showed a little bit in the first set.”
The 6-8 Anderson wasn’t the tallest guy out there on Thursday. That went to 6-11 Ivo Karlovic, who defeated Ryan Harrison, 6-4, 6-4. Karlovic, by the way, is the ATP all-time leader in aces with 12,479 entering this season. He had 16 yesterday.
Querrey tops Youzhny, faces Karlovic next
Sam Querrey got to play a match, too. The No. 2 seed was solid in a 6-4, 6-3 win over Mikhail Youzhny in the first night match.
He’s become a fan of the New York Open setup in the Coliseum
“I love the black court, it looks really cool,” Querrey said. “The whole setup in there is great. It’s different, unique and I really like it.”
Karlovic is next for him on Friday, a couple of bombers going at it. “He’s a pain to play,” Querrey said. “He got a big serve. Against a guy with a huge serve you have to worry about your own serve.”
