ATP Houston: Elahi Galan dethrones Johnson. Querrey and Tipsarevic advance
Despite the rain, the quarter-final line-up has been completed on Thursday at River Oaks Country Club, with the defending champion failing to pass the very first obstacle! A qualifier Daniel Elahi Galan is through to the first ATP quarter-final following a 6-3, 6-3 triumph over the top seed Steve Johnson in an hour and 13 minutes, dominating from start to finish to sail into the last eight. The Colombian lost 13 points in nine service games, never facing a break point and seizing his chances on the return perfectly to steal Johnson's serve three times and earn the biggest win in a career so far. Nothing could separate them in the first seven games and it was Johnson who cracked under pressure first, wasting game points before hitting a double fault to lose serve and send the youngster 5-3 up.
Serving for the set, Elahi Galan fired a service winner to hold at 15 and grab the first part of the match 6-3, building confidence before set number two where he lost just three points in four service games. The struggling American was far from that pace, dropping serve in the third game after a loose forehand and sending the rival over the finish line with another break of serve in game nine. World no. 372 Janko Tipsarevic is through to the first ATP quarter-final since Shenzhen 2016, beating the 3rd seed Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4 in an hour and 13 minutes. Serving at 71%, Janko did lose serve three times but that wasn't enough for the Briton to keep him in, giving away more than half of the points behind the initial shot and suffering six breaks from ten chances he gave to the Serb.
The match kicked off with breaks and they traded them again in games five and six to stay locked up at 3-3. Janko broke a left-hander at love in game seven to move ahead and he never looked back, taking 12 of the last 14 points and sealing the opener with another good return game at 5-3 when Cameron sprayed a forehand error. Norrie, who played College tennis in Texas, moved ahead in the third game of the second set when Tipsarevic sent an easy backhand wide, opening a 4-2 lead before Janko bounced back to rattle off four straight games and cross the finish line. He broke back in game eight, saved a couple of break points in the following game and went over the top with his sixth break in game ten following a weak volley from Norrie. Former finalist Sam Querrey is safely inside the last eight thanks to a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in 73 minutes, scoring the seventh win over the Spaniard in eight encounters.
Playing well on both the first and second serve, Sam gave away just 11 points in his games, fending off the only break point he faced and mounting the pressure on the other side of the court. Garcia-Lopez had to defend three break points, suffering one break in each set to push the American through, with Sam improving his 2019 tally to 8-6. Querrey took the opener with a beautiful backhand down the line winner in game ten and was more focused when they returned after a break delay, stealing Guillermo's serve in the second game of the second set to forge a huge advantage. Both players served well in the following seven games and Sam sealed the deal with four winners in game nine to race into the quarters and stay on the title course.
In the longest match of the day, the 7th seed Jordan Thompson overpowered a qualifier Santiago Giraldo 4-6, 7-6, 7-5 in just under three hours, winning two points more than the Colombian in a mighty close match that pushed both rivals to the limits all the time. The former top-30 player gave his best to stay in touch with the younger and better-ranked opponent, blasting a backhand return winner in game nine for a break at love and closing the opener with a hold in the following game for a 6-4 when Jordan threw a forehand wide. The Aussie opened a 5-2 lead in set number two but he needed more work to bring it home, netting a backhand to lose serve in game nine before winning the tie break 7-1 when Giraldo's forehand landed beyond the baseline.
Giraldo moved closer to the finish line with a break in the eighth game of the decider although it wasn't to be for him today, dropping the last four games to hand Thompson the triumph. Jordan pulled the break back after a massive backhand mistake from Santiago, holding at 15 in the next game for a 5-5 and earning another break in game 11 to serve for the match. A service winner delivered the win for Thompson after a hold at love, mighty relieved he managed to make a turnaround and stay in contention for the first title in a career.
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2Ky8ezV
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