by Hanlon Walsh
Alex Michelsen, seeded fifth, defeated good friend and fellow Southern Californian Learner Tien in a highly anticipated American Next Gen battle to kick off the first night session on Stadium Court. Towering at 6-foot-4, 20-year-old Michelsen fired seven aces in a straightforward 6-4, 6-2 victory over 19-year-old Tien in 70 minutes. Despite many head-to-head matchups in juniors, Monday night’s occasion marked their first official ATP Tour meeting.
In the second night match on Stadium Court, American Aleksandar Kovacevic upset seventh seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-3, 6-4. The victory marks Kovacevic’s second career win at River Oaks in three appearances. Next he’ll be a heavy favorite on paper in his second round match against Frenchman Corentin Denolly, who scored his first career ATP Tour main draw win over Brandon Holt on Monday night.
Singles Wildcards for the Win
Cristian Garin, a wildcard entrant and the 2019 US Clay champion, opened up singles action on Stadium Court with a straightforward 6-3, 6-4 victory over Switzerland’s Alexander Ritschard. Following in Garin’s footsteps, the wildcard success continued on Stadium Court. Garin’s reward is a second round encounter against top seed Tommy Paul.
American Jenson Brooksby, who received a wildcard into the qualifying draw, won his third consecutive match at River Oaks, this one over Japan’s Taro Daniel 6-4, 6-4. A former top 25 breakout star, 24-year-old Brooksby scored his first main draw win at River Oaks since 2022 after being sidelined from tour the last few years. With the win, he sets up a blockbuster second round match against Alejandro Tabilo of Chile.
Doubles Take: Top Seeds, Defending Champion Advance
Monday’s trio of doubles matches on Court 3 went by the books as the higher ranked teams advanced in each of the matchups.
The top-seeded American doubles duo of Robert Galloway and Jackson Withrow showed Houston fans what doubles is all about, dispatching fan favorites Michael Mmoh and Frances Tiafoe, “Team Mo-Fo”, 6-3, 6-2 in just under one hour.
In the most compelling doubles match of the day, the Aussie fourth-seeded team of Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson outlasted the reigning 2024 NCAA champions, Robert Cash and JJ Tracy, 3-6, 7-6(1), 11-9. Thompson, the two-time defending U.S. Clay doubles champion, extends his Houston win streak to nine matches.
Rounding out Monday’s Court 3 doubles action, the Brazilian team of Rafael Matos and Marcelo Zormann defeated Colombia’s Nicolas Barrientos and India’s Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli 6-4, 7-5.
