By Hanlon Walsh
Defending champion Frances Tiafoe kept tennis fans on the edge of their seat in his 2024 opening match at the Fayez Sarofim US Men’s Clay Court Championship on Thursday night. No. 3 Tiafoe, 26, surpassed 32-year-old Australian James Duckworth 6-2, 6-7(4), 7-5 in 2 hours and 14 minutes.
With 15 aces, Tiafoe tied his season high ace count and held all 16 of his service games on Thursday night. He has now won five consecutive matches at River Oaks and held 55 of his last 56 service games.
“Winning here last year was huge for me - it was my first title in five years,” said Tiafoe in his post-match press conference. “This place will always hold a special place in my heart. Bronwyn is one of the best tournament directors on tour. I was happy with the way I served tonight, and not sure why I always seem to serve well here. Maybe it was the Rockets game the other night that gave me an extra boost of energy. I am appreciating the wins a lot more this year.”
In Friday’s quarterfinal lineup, Tiafoe once again headlines the evening session against a familiar opponent in 29-year old Australian Jordan Thompson. As the sixth seed, Thompson outlasted American Aleksandar Kovacevic 4-6, 7-6(1), 7-6(7) in the Round of 16 in the longest match in recorded tournament history - 3 hours and 35 minutes.
Etcheverry Overcomes South American Slugfest
Defending runner-up Tomas Martin Etcheverry, the fourth seed from Argentina, made a successful 2024 debut over Daniel Elahi Galan of Colombia. In a battle of clay court specialists, Etcheverry extended his career head-to-head over Galan to 3-0 with a 6-4, 6-4 straight set victory. After trailing 1-4 in the second set, Etcheverry reeled off the next five games to claim the second set but faced an unforeseen obstacle along the way.
While leading 5-4 in the second set, Etcheverry vomited unexpectedly during the changeover and was forced to take a brief medical timeout. He eventually rallied and served out the final game to clinch the second set 6-4.
“I feel okay now - just really happy to get the win today,” Etcheverry told host Blair Henley in his post-match interview. “My stomach started hurting in the second set, so I am glad I was able to pull through and serve out the match. This is one of my favorite events of the year and I’m excited to have my team and family here with me in Houston.”
Michael Mmoh Keeps Wildcard Train Rolling
In a battle of 26-year-olds, Mmoh kept his wild card train rolling with a straight-set upset victory over Australian Max Purcell, the eighth seed in Houston, 6-2, 7-5. He clinched match point with a backhand drop volley winner followed by a huge fist pump and chest thump.
Mmoh, who received a wildcard entry into the singles main draw, talked about how he enjoys the red clay at River Oaks suits and thanked Tournament Director Bronwyn Greer for giving him the opportunity to compete in Houston. All three of his ATP career clay court wins have come at River Oaks.
“I honestly think this is the best ATP 250 event in the States,” said Mmoh in his post-match interview with Henley. “I want to thank Bronwyn for giving me a wildcard which helped give me the opportunity to play in the quarterfinals. I love the red clay here and think it suits my game well - it’s probably faster than any other clay courts we have on tour.”
Serving was a big difference maker in today’s win over Purcell. The big-serving Mmoh fired seven aces, hit 71% of his first serves and won 82% of his first service points to help get over the finish line. Although Purcell hit five aces himself, he struggled to find his serve for the majority of the match, hitting four double faults and only 48% of first serves into the court.
The match didn’t come without its controversies, as Purcell engaged in several altercations with the chair umpire where he questioned various line calls. Mmoh now advances to his second quarterfinals appearance at River Oaks (2022) where he will face Etcheverry.
Doubles Take: Blumberg, Peers Flex Doubles Pedigree
Will Blumberg and John Peers, arguably the biggest unseeded dark horse in the doubles draw, showed a packed Court 3 stadium of Houston fans exactly why they are considered “doubles specialists.” As the more experienced and accomplished team on court, Blumberg and Peers rolled through American Ben Shelton and Ecuadorian Andres Andrade, the former Florida Gators doubles duo, 6-2, 6-1 in only 52 minutes.
Breaks of serve in men’s doubles come few and far between and can quite literally make or break the trajectory of a match. In Thursday’s final doubles match, the serve stat sheet told the full story.
Blumberg and Peers went 5-0 on break points and won 76% of first service points, while Andrade/Shelton struggled with their serve throughout the match. The former 2021 NCAA champions hit six double faults and only won 53% of 1st serve points and 17% of 2nd serve points.
On Thursday’s first Stadium Court match, The Indian-German duo of N. Sriram Balaji and Andre Begemann continued their momentum after upsetting top seeds Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek in the first round. In the quarterfinals, Balaji and Begemann dispatched Arjun Kadhe and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan of India 6-0, 6-3 in 59 minutes.
Begemann, a 2018 U.S. Clay doubles finalist, is no stranger to doubles success on the red clay at River Oaks. He and partner Begemann will face a difficult semi-finals task against defending champions Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson.
On Court 3, the Brazilian team of Fernando Romboli and Marcelo Zormann defeated Australians Andrew Harris and Rinky Hijikata 6-1, 6-4 to advance to their first ATP career semi-final together against Blumberg/Peers. Their consecutive doubles wins in Houston this week have marked their first two ATP Tour doubles victories of the 2024 season, having competed most of the year on the ATP Challenger circuit.
