Qualifying Continues at US Open After Fantastic First Round Finish
Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic
Ryan Shane
I arrived at the Bud Collins USTA Media Center on Wednesday morning to cloudless skies, and in just a few hours around the grounds, I saw something I hadn’t seen in six days in Cincinnati a week before–a sun burn. It almost felt good, felt like summer tennis.
It was Round 1 qualies time at the US Open, and you know what that means–you get to see sad veterans, ebullient up-and-comers and players you’ve simply never heard of.
Court 17 was the All-American court on Wednesday, as Americans were scheduled in all 5 matches. UVa’s Ryan Shane won a three-setter against Kimmer Coppejans, and he was in fantastic spirits after the matches and quite popular with the selfie circuit. Sacha Vickery and Tommy Paul were unsuccessful on the court in their matches, so when Reilly Opelka prevailed over Edouard Roger-Vasselin, we knew the US was guaranteed a winning record on Court 17 as the final match was scheduled between Carolyn Dolehide and Melanie Oudin. Oudin was the final victor on everyone’s favorite outer court on Wednesday. Shane will play Belarus’ Ilya Ivashka on Court 5 today, which is the Court Americain Du Jour, as your line-up there includes our stateside contingent of Amanda Anisimova, Jesse Pegula, Oudin, Opelka and Shane.
You had Stefan Kozlov lose a 12-minute game in a third set, which was a harbinger of his loss against Michael Berrer, and you had this guy, Adrian Menendez-Maceiras, act like he had won a grand slam just by prevailing in his first round qualifying match.
Usue Arconada and Coach Frank Salazar
On a final note, Usue Arconada won her first US Open qualifying match in her second attempt, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 over Yu-Hsuan Lee. Arconada, the 2016 Wimbledon girls doubles champion showed poise throughout. She’ll take on Sara Sorribes Tormo later today.
Tennis Atlantic 