With other Americans sinking, Johnson rising up amidst adversity

Only two American men are through to the third round of the French Open. Heck, only two even made it to the second round.

Nobody could have blamed Steve Johnson if he was part of the early mass exodus.

Instead, Johnson has battled through the emotions of an extremely rough time in his life to make an especially impressive appearance in the last 32 at Roland Garros. Less than three weeks ago, his father–Steve Johnson Sr.–passed away unexpectedly. The elder Johnson had been a the biggest influence on his son’s tennis life and also made a massive imprint on the overall tennis scene in their native Orange County, California.

“I’m [hearing] stories of what he was able to accomplish through tennis, through kids he was able to help out along the way,” Johnson commented. “He was a remarkable man…. Both of my parents, and their parents, have been in the city of Orange (since) way back when. He gave back. He gave a ton.”

The world No. 26 almost skipped the season’s second Grand Slam, but it was already scheduled to be a family affair and thus he decided to play.

“My mom and sister had this whole trip planned for years now,” Johnson noted. “She graduated college and they were going to come here and kind of follow me to Queen’s and then go back before she starts work and whatnot. My mom and sister and my fiancee are here, so it makes it easier and harder all at the same time to see them. Just the pain and…you know…just trying to get through it.

“It’s just hard.”

It has been extremely hard on the court, too.

Johnson survived an opening-round battle with Yuichi Sugita that should have ended on Day 1 of the French Open but was eventually suspended overnight. The former University of Southern California standout served for a straight-set win this past Sunday only to get broken, lose the ensuing tiebreaker, and be forced by darkness to return on Monday. He managed to recover and finally prevailed 6-3, 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-7(3), 6-3 after a total of three hours and 34 minutes.

Johnson persevered through an even longer contest against Borna Coric on Wednesday, when he fought off two set points in a wild and controversial fourth set and mounted a charge from 6-4 down in a tiebreaker to triumph 6-2, 7-6(8), 3-6, 7-6(6) in three hours and 50 minutes.

The United States’ third-highest man in the rankings put the exclamation point on his amazing performance by running around a backhand and crushing a forehand winner at 7-6 in the ‘breaker.

He immediately collapsed to the ground as the emotions came pouring out.


“I have no idea what happened after I hit the forehand,” Johnson explained. “I just kind of collapsed. Emotionally it got the best of me. Today was just such an emotional match–a long match, up and down. Just to get through it was something I know I’ll be very proud of.

“Throughout the match the tennis feels good, mentally you feel good… (But) there were times where my mind wandered a little bit here and there for a lot of different reasons. I was able to just get it back to the tennis. I was able to just find a way through it.”

Isner is Johnson’s lone countryman who has done the same. Jack Sock? Gone. Sam Querrey? Gone. Ryan Harrison? Donald Young? Gone. Everyone else? Gone, gone, gone.

Johnson may be gone soon, with a showdown against Dominic Thiem on his plate for Friday. Maybe not. But even if he is, he has already done more than enough.