Stan Wawrinka matches iconic Jimmy Connors file at US Open
Stan Wawrinka is aware of a factor or two about leaving his mark on the US Open — in spite of everything he received the 2016 version. On Thursday, the Swiss star etched his title within the file ebook but once more, though he might not be too thrilled with the explanation why this time.
The oldest participant within the males’s singles attract at 38, Wawrinka beat the No. 30 seed, Tomás Martín Etcheverry, 7-6(6), 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the third spherical on Thursday. The victory got here after he despatched Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka packing in straight units to kick issues off.
So, after changing into the oldest man to win a match in singles since 40-year-old Jimmy Connors in 1992 on Tuesday, he turned the oldest man to advance to the third spherical since a 39-year-old Connors in 1991. And he isn’t planning on stopping any time quickly.
“You also want to push yourself to the maximum, be the better player, best as possible. Of course, you’re going to have up and downs in your career, with some positive emotions when you win, some tough ones when you lose,” Wawrinka instructed reporters. “That’s also one of the main reasons I keep going, to get those emotions. Hopefully a positive one.
“I by no means forgot why I began taking part in tennis and what I used to be dreaming after I was younger … to play the U.S. Open, play Grand Slams, huge tournaments, ATP tournaments, to be there. I’m comfortable I can nonetheless play at that stage.”
“You also want to push yourself to the maximum, be the better player, best as possible. Of course, you’re going to have up and downs in your career, with some positive emotions when you win, some tough ones when you lose,” Wawrinka stated.
“That’s additionally one of many major causes I maintain going, to get these feelings. Hopefully a constructive one. I by no means forgot why I began taking part in tennis and what I used to be dreaming after I was younger … to play the U.S. Open, play Grand Slams, huge tournaments, ATP tournaments, to be there. I’m comfortable I can nonetheless play at that stage.”
Thirty-two years in the past, Connors took the tennis world by storm and captivated audiences throughout the tennis panorama as he made a run all the best way to the semifinals. Connors, who has two Grand Slams beneath his belt, together with the 1975 US Open, began off the match with a five-set comeback win in opposition to Patrick McEnroe.
The youthful of the McEnroe brothers, Patrick and John are every New York natives who now work for ESPN. He then received two rounds by way of straight units earlier than taking part in one of the crucial epic matches in US Open historical past.
In the Round of 32, and on his thirty ninth birthday, he battled compatriot Aaron Krickstein in a four-hour, 41-minute five-set match. Connors battled again from path 5-2 within the remaining set to prime a participant 15 years his junior. It was a match full of intrigue, drama, sweat and an entire lot of fist pumps.
The ageing American star received the subsequent two rounds earlier than working into somebody who would himself change into an American legend, Jim Courier, within the semifinals.
Now Wawrinka would be the one dealing with a rising star. He’ll meet No. 6 seed Jannik Sinner, who has received the previous three conferences between the 2, within the Round of 32.
The final time Wawrinka, a former world No. 3, reached the fourth spherical was the 2019 US Open when made it to the quarters. He didn’t play in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic or in 2021 as a consequence of a foot harm. In 2022 he retired within the first spherical in opposition to Corentin Moutet.