Donald Young trailed by a set and was suffering from an apparent knee injury during his second-round match at the Delray Beach Open on Thursday afternoon. By the end of the day, Young found himself all the way in the semifinals. That’s how quickly things can turn around in tennis.
Young persevered through the pain and ended up overcoming fellow American Taylor Fritz 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 57 minutes. The Atlanta native fought off 13 of 15 break points, including all 10 that he faced in the second set.
“It’s all a bit of a blur right now,” Young explained. “I was just trying to compete, to fight, and I was able to win. I don’t know how. It’s tough playing [other Americans]–it brings a different pressure. They want to beat you bad, you don’t want to lose to them. I’ve been there before, the older guys didn’t let me in, so I’m trying to hold them off for as long as possible.”
Young-Fritz highlights:
Young got a walkover from Steve Darcis through the quarterfinals immediately following his win over Fritz, and he will go up against another American in either Jack Sock or Steve Johnson on Saturday.
Sam Querrey added to the American charge by defeating 20-year-old American Jared Donaldson 6-2, 6-3. Querrey sent 13 aces blazing past his doubles partner and he saved of the break points he faced to advance in exactly one hour.
Querrey-Donaldson highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkVXFPMZYMw
When asked prior to the Juan Martin Del Potro vs. Damir Dzumhur showdown whom he would rather play, with Querrey awaiting the winner in the quarterfinals, the world No. 35 did not beat around the bush.
“In a way, I’d rather play Dzumhur,” Querrey admitted. “But it’s great to see Del Potro back. He’s definitely at a different level now than he was a year ago. I’ll have to elevate my game if I play him again.”
Del Potro, who fell to Querrey in the semis of this tournament last season, earned a shot at revenge by getting the best of Dzumhur 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-3 on Thursday night. The 42nd-ranked Argentine saw a 3-1 lead in the second set slip away but rebounded to prevail after two hours and 23 minutes.
“It was a really tough match for me,” Del Potro reflected. “[Dzumhur] was really fast from the baseline and I couldn’t find the place to make winners with my forehand. I got my chances at the end of the match and I took it. I think I played my best game in the third set. He was trying to put the ball all the time to my backhand and coming to the net when I sliced. He was smart, but in the end I was more offensive from the baseline and came to the net in the important moments and that was the difference.”
Del Potro hot shot:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko3zaZ7VFMc
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