WASHINGTON, July 6, 2020 (by Michael Dickens)
Less than 24 hours after undergoing baptism by firing squad when he faced 21st-ranked John Isner and lost in straight sets as a replacement for injured Reilly Opelka, Atlanta native Kevin King was back on court in the DraftKings All-American Team Cup competition at Lifetime Fitness Peachtree Corners, taking on another American veteran in No. 45 Sam Querrey. King had nothing to lose and plenty to gain. The same could be said for King’s fellow Georgia Tech alum, Christopher Eubanks.
First, the 29-year-old King, a left-hander ranked 286th, surprised Querrey, 3-6, 7-6 (2), 10-5, in one hour and 59 minutes. King dominated both the second-set tie-break as well as the match tie-break. He broke Querrey three times in locking up the second set tie-break, then four more times during the match tie-break en route to victory.
Team Stars gets the job done.😤
Kevin King snags a W against @SamQuerrey 3-6, 7-6(2) and 10-5 In the match tiebreak at the DraftKings All-American Team Cup. pic.twitter.com/F0gDfa7l3Y
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 5, 2020
Then, Eubanks, who was summoned into duty after Frances Tiafoe withdrew after testing positive for COVID-19 – and promptly beat Tennys Sandgren – returned Sunday afternoon and went the distance against Isner. Eubanks held his own throughout their one hour and 46 minute match and won 7-5, 4-6, 10-6 for his second straight win – as much playing by instinct as anything.
Eubanks, 24, ranked No. 238, broke Isner in the 12th game of the opening set to win. Then, he surrendered a break in the fifth game of the middle set that was difference in Isner evening the match. Onto the match tie-break, where it became a slugfest between the 6-foot-7 Eubanks and the 6-foot-11 Isner. From 3-all, though, Eubanks broke Isner twice and won on his second match point with a solid service ace. Unofficially, Isner finished with 17 aces. He finished 2-1 for the weekend.
Gotta love some close competition.👏@chris_eubanks96 defeats John Isner 7-5, 4-6 and 10-6 in the match tiebreak at the DraftKings All-American Team Cup. pic.twitter.com/wQAsUyXd55
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 5, 2020
“When John got the break in the middle of the second set, it was just a matter of preserving myself, managing it, and being as smart as you can,” said Eubanks, who began feeling some tightness in his back in the second set, during an on-court interview after his win. “When it came time to get to the breaker, I think I had a little bit of adrenaline. … I rode it all the way to the end.”
He tried to ride the wave of momentum to the end, and it definitely worked.😎👊@chris_eubanks96 claims his second victory in a row at the DraftKings All-American Team Cup. pic.twitter.com/BIfDbeKhRI
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 5, 2020
With the pair of victories, Team Stars (King, Eubanks, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul) evened the team score at 9-all against Team Stripes (Querrey, Isner, Sandgren and Steve Johnson), with wins on Sunday worth three points each. Then, Team Stars pulled ahead 12-9 when Fritz beat Sandgren, 4-6, 6-3, 10-7, by winning the last three points of the match.
Team Stars take the lead.🇺🇸🌟@Taylor_Fritz97 dominates in the match tiebreaker, making the final score 4-6, 6-3, 10-7 against Tennis Sandgren at the DraftKings All-American Team Cup. pic.twitter.com/3vuCMNcktn
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 5, 2020
However, Johnson rallied Team Stripes with a 7-6 (2), 6-4 win against Paul for his third victory in three matches during the weekend to level the tie at 12-all. Finally, Paul captured a winner-take-all tie-break 7-3 over Johnson to give Team Stars a 13-12 winning margin.
Team Stars shines bright tonight.💫⭐️🌟✨@TommyPaul1 wins the DraftKings All-American Team Cup by defeating Steve Johnson 7-3 in the championship tiebreak. pic.twitter.com/9wE3Ad7Qqe
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 6, 2020
UTS Last Four set
Four players remain in the chase for the title of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown at the Mouratoglou Academy near Nice, France. On Sunday, David Goffin wrapped up the final berth with his victory over Benoit Paire. Stefanos Tsitsipas will go into next weekend’s semifinals as the top seed. Also qualifying were Richard Gasquet and Matteo Berrettini.
43165: The number of different emotions lived in this showdown 😂😬🤯😱@David__Goffin completes the Final Four list, thanks to a 3-1 win against @benoitpaire.#UTShowdown pic.twitter.com/wYMmzRohjm
— UTS | Ultimate Tennis Showdown (@UTShowdown) July 5, 2020
Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Richard Gasquet.
Matteo Berrettini.
David Goffin.
Next Sunday. For the #UTShowdown crown. 👑 pic.twitter.com/NVjtExx2Hk
— UTS | Ultimate Tennis Showdown (@UTShowdown) July 5, 2020
World TeamTennis: Don’t throw away your shot
#WTT2020: Don’t throw away your shot to see the groundbreaking, star-studded fan-favorite return to the world-wide stage for a limited run July 12-Aug. 2, LIVE on @CBS, @CBSSportsNet, @TennisChannel, @espn+ and @Facebook! #Hamilton #TheCourtWhereItHappens #WallpaperWeekend pic.twitter.com/Ng74vSefHK
— World TeamTennis (@WorldTeamTennis) July 5, 2020
Raducanu and Frey win British Tour titles
Find out how @EmmaRaducanu & Arthur Fery claimed the opening British Tour titles at the National Tennis Centre 👉 https://t.co/HPgsMi5efK pic.twitter.com/jKpiASxGxE
— LTA (@the_LTA) July 5, 2020
Sanchez Vicario remembers her first Grand Slam title
📺 “My life changed completely.”
Arantxa Sanchez Vicario reflects on her first Grand Slam 🏆 at the age of 17 as part of Latin week on #TennisUnited.
Watch the full episode —> https://t.co/TTDtyZwaaT pic.twitter.com/vhwpG2Ctmb
— wta (@WTA) July 5, 2020
What we’re missing at Wimbledon
No need for ‘quiet, please’ this year…#WimbledonRecreated pic.twitter.com/QlICAvbz20
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 5, 2020
The Way Back Machine I / Novak Djokovic becomes No. 1
Nine years ago today, @DjokerNole became World No. 1 for the first time.
He’s spent a total of 5.4 years in the top spot since.https://t.co/15aAK8n9Hu
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 5, 2020
The Way Back Machine II / Roger Federer wins 15th Grand Slam
Eleven years ago today, Roger Federer rewrote history when he outlasted Andy Roddick, 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14, on Centre Court.
In doing so, Federer set a new record by becoming the first man in tennis history to win 15 Grand Slam titles.https://t.co/WU71SPpxvy
— TENNIS (@Tennis) July 5, 2020
The Way Back Machine III / Arthur Ashe wins 1975 Wimbledon title
On this date in 1975, Arthur Ashe became the first (and still the only) black man to win the Wimbledon singles title, defeating No. 1 seed and defending champ Jimmy Connors.
Ashe won the 1968 @usopen when he was an amateur and on leave from the Army.
Photo credit: AP. pic.twitter.com/0QYvWeNmaD
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) July 5, 2020
What they’re writing
• Christopher Clarey, tennis correspondent for The New York Times, from “Tennis Tours Debate Ranking Systems Frozen by the Coronavirus”:
For professional tennis players, the coronavirus pandemic has meant canceled tournaments, lost income and frozen rankings, with the men’s and women’s tours putting their systems on hold in mid-March.
Rankings are, in many respects, the coin of the tennis realm: the determining factor in players’ ability to enter events, receive seedlings and even earn certain bonuses from sponsors.
And the hiatus has created a new mathematical challenge for this global sport. As the tours prepare to resume in August, what is the best way to thaw the rankings that usually shift week by week?
The Association of Tennis Professionals, which runs the men’s tour, and the Women’s Tennis Association, which runs the women’s tour, have debated long and hard about the fairest and smartest way forward. So has the International Tennis Federation, which operates lower-level professional events and oversees the junior, senior and wheelchair circuits.
How to thaw the tennis rankings after an unprecedented freeze? It’s tricky but decisions are imminent and there will be fallout. My latest https://t.co/7H0ER04wqZ
— Christopher Clarey (@christophclarey) July 4, 2020
• Girl Nathan, contributing editor for Racquet, from “Can Men Be Trusted to Play Safely?”:
A professional tennis player has spent years dutifully obeying the instructions of various coaches. They are elite at that particular skill. Why is it so hard for these same people to follow straightforward instructions, now that the risks of not listening are so much more severe? Maybe if you incentivized them with ranking points to stay home, we’d actually get somewhere, because this isn’t working.
If we don’t get tennis this year, we are blaming you, MENS https://t.co/YeXCgwclSH
— Racquet (@racqetmagazine) July 3, 2020
What they’re podcasting
Only a one-time Champion, but surely there is no name more synonymous with Wimbledon than Jana Novotna.
This was a tough one to prepare and record, but also one of my proudest pod achievements. https://t.co/BZY5oGkpe0
— Catherine Whitaker (@CWhitakerSport) July 5, 2020
What they’re sharing on social media
Roger Federer / He’s been busy off the tennis court
Tomorrow, July 6, @rogerfederer goes live like never before. Expect an epic interactive experience, surprises and special guests. Plus, find out what Roger’s been working on in the On Lab. Don’t miss it https://t.co/NN0AIms81v pic.twitter.com/hEtgXCxenj
— On (@on_running) July 5, 2020
Naomi and Mari Osaka / For a good cause …
.@naomiosaka and her sister Mari have partnered with @UNICEF to design a limited-edition face mask 😷❤️ –> https://t.co/0IBC8YD9KQ pic.twitter.com/SxQeo3VexY
— wta (@WTA) July 3, 2020
Karen Khachanov / Back to childhood …
Back to childhood 👶🏻😂 pic.twitter.com/fW3IrrbLSV
— Karen Khachanov (@karenkhachanov) July 5, 2020