WIMBLEDON, England — Until a few week in the past, even Chris Eubanks didn’t actually consider he was able to this kind of factor – of beating the world’s greatest tennis gamers at Wimbledon, of reaching the quarterfinals at any Grand Slam event, of profitable match after match after match on grass courts.
“I would show up to tour events saying, ‘Oh, can I get through a couple rounds of here?’” he mentioned throughout an interview the day earlier than play started on the All England Club. “Now I genuinely can say, probably for the first time, I’m showing up to tournaments with higher expectations and really wanting to do well and put my best foot forward. I’m no longer feeling OK just being there. I know that I belong.”
Does he ever.
Eubanks, a 6-foot-7, big-serving American making his Wimbledon debut at age 27 proper after claiming the primary ATP title of his profession, reached the quarterfinals at a serious for the primary time by beautiful two-time Slam runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas 3-6, 7-6 (4), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a bit over three hours on Monday.
“I feel like I’m living a dream right now. This is absolutely insane, when you paint all of the context. I’ve tried so much to block everything out and just focus on the next match – as cliché as it sounds – but … it’s surreal,” Eubanks, who’s from Atlanta and performed school tennis at Georgia Tech, advised the group throughout an on-court interview. “It’s unbelievable. I can’t believe this.”
Why would he? He is ranked a career-best forty third proper now however had a win-loss report of merely 6-10 earlier than occurring the run to the trophy at Mallorca, Spain, on July 1. That got here on grass, which he determined he hated a month in the past – calling it “the stupidest surface” in a textual content he despatched to International Tennis Hall of Fame member Kim Clijsters – after exiting within the second spherical at a low-level ATP Challenger Tour occasion.
“Those words will never come out of my mouth for the rest of my career. The grass and I, we’ve had a very strenuous, I would say, relationship over the years,” Eubanks mentioned after accumulating 53 winners, 16 greater than Tsitsipas. “But right now, I think it’s my best friend.”
He is now on a nine-match profitable streak after including the upset of the No. 5-seeded Tsitsipas to an earlier victory over No. 12 Cam Norrie on the All England Club. Next comes one other problem, assembly No. 3 Daniil Medvedev, the 2021 U.S. Open champion, for a berth within the semifinals.
This is simply the ninth Grand Slam event for Eubanks, who beforehand by no means had been previous the second spherical at one of many sport’s most prestigious occasions. After questioning his capacity to contend for titles, Eubanks considered pursuing tv commentary as a substitute, and he’s labored on-air for Tennis Channel.
But he certain is having a terrific time with a racket in his hand today.
During the latter phases in opposition to Tsitsipas, Eubanks waved his arms to the group to induce it to get louder. After smacking a one-handed down-the-line backhand winner that completed with the flourish of a flowing follow-through, giving him a break for a 4-3 edge within the fifth set, Eubanks held his proper index finger to his ear, looking for extra noise.
When he confirmed a little bit of nerves whereas serving for the victory, lacking a backhand, then a volley, he managed to quiet down.
“Although it got a little bit dicey at the end,” Eubanks mentioned, “I still could have the confidence to say: ‘I’m a server. I hit serving targets for these moments right here, and let’s just try to do what I know how to do.’”
He closed it out with a 127 mph ace adopted by a forehand winner and, after shaking fingers with Tsitsipas, stood on the heart of the court docket along with his thumbs up, his arms unfold extensive and a smile to match.
Eubanks soaked up all the cheers – his supporters included Coco Gauff, the American who reached the fourth spherical in her Wimbledon debut at age 15 in 2019 and was the runner-up at 18 on the French Open final 12 months – after which curled his fingers to show his fingers into the form of a coronary heart.
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