Tennys Sandgren

[arti]

2019 w liczbach:

Ranking: 68
Bilans meczów: 13-17
Tytuły: 1 (Auckland)
Finały: 0
Zarobki: $735,549

[Kamileki]

Tennys Sandgren - Auckland [First-Time Winner Spotlight]

Tennys Sandgren departed the ASB Classic in 2018 with two tour-level wins for his career. This season, Sandgren left Auckland with his first ATP Tour trophy after defeating Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-2.

"I'm a little bit at a loss for words, honestly. A lot of work, a lot of training and a lot of sacrifice goes into even making a final and to get a win, I'm kind of speechless," Sandgren said on court. "Just grateful that I can be out here, play and compete.”

Norrie had beaten the American in three consecutive ATP Challenger Tour events in September and October of 2017. But Sandgren found some of the tennis that helped him to the 2018 Australian Open quarter-finals to dismiss Norrie in 79 minutes.

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[arti]

Tennys Sandgren przegrał z Corentinem Moutetem 6:7(3), 4:6. Porażka oznacza, że Amerykanin straci 250 punktów za zeszłoroczny triumf w Auckland i tym samym wypadnie z Top 100.

https://sportowefakty.wp.pl/tenis/86279 ... ed-tsonga-

[arti]

American Tennys Sandgren opened his title defence in style with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Kiwi wild card Michael Venus. Sandgren, who captured his maiden ATP Tour crown 12 months ago in Auckland (d. Norrie), picked up his first tour-level win since last year’s US Open. The 28-year-old will now have an all-American clash with fourth seed and two-time Auckland champion John Isner.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/hurkacz ... 020-monday

[Kamileki]

Defending Champion: American Tennys Sandgren returns to defend his maiden ATP Tour title. He defeated Brit Cameron Norrie in last year’s final, who is also back in New Zealand this year.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/aucklan ... ing-report

[Damian]

Sandgren Stuns Berrettini In Five

Spoiler:

Fognini, Querrey advance on Wednesday

Tennys Sandgren continued his love affair with the Australian Open on Wednesday. Two of his previous three Top 10 wins came during his inspired quarter-final run at this event two years ago, and the American picked up a fourth by stunning eighth-seeded Italian Matteo Berrettini 7-6(7), 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 7-5 in their second-round clash.

Sandgren won fewer points on the day (148 to 152), but prevailed in the rallies that mattered most to advance in three hours and 23 minutes.

“It’s a Top 10 win at a Slam, so it’s up there for sure," said Sandgren, who finds himself at No. 100 in the FedEx ATP Rankings after playing just one tour-level match between the end of last year’s US Open and the end of the season. Last week, he failed to defend the 250 points he collected 12 months ago by winning the Auckland title (d. Norrie).

But after his third consecutive run to a major third round, the Tennessee native proved that he has emerged as a big-match player.

“I was injured for most of the Fall. I tore a ligament and got a stress fracture in my toe. After the US Open I played one week in Asia and then I was done. I had five to six weeks where I didn’t have any points to defend [and could have pushed higher in the rankings] but I couldn’t play.

“I felt I played well in spurts last year. I had some good weeks at Slams. I like these tournaments a lot… Sometimes you can get lost a little bit when you’re playing 30 or 35 weeks a year. I feel my game comes together in these weeks.

“You gear your schedule to peak in these weeks. I’m getting get better at that as I get older. Maybe I’m just getting older and wiser. I take my weeks off so I can prep for these weeks.”

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Both players traded service holds throughout the opening set. They each let slip a mini-break lead in the tie-break, but it was Sandgren who first saved a set point at 5/6 with a strong forehand approach. The American earned a set point at 7/6, but Berrettini erased it with a big forehand of his own. That wing would betray the Italian as he sprayed a wild error at 7/7 and Sandgren took the opportunity for an early lead.

The Italian began to grow frustrated at the windy conditions and how they impacted the timing on his forehand. Sandgren smartly stood well behind the baseline and opted for conservative, high-percentage tennis, letting his opponent self-destruct in the second set. He grabbed the lone break at 2-2 and went on earn a commanding two-sets advantage.

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But just when it seemed that the American was about to complete a stunning upset, Berrettini stepped up in the last game of the third set. He added extra height to his shots and extended the baseline rallies, sparking a forehand error from Sandgren at 5-4 to break the American and insert himself into the match.

Sandgren surprisingly strayed from the tactics that had given him the lead, attempting to match Berrettini’s aggressive baseline hitting in the fourth set. The eighth seed handily prevailed in the power battle, finding the range on his forehand and breaking Sandgren twice to send the match into a decider.

It appeared that Berrettini would complete a remarkable comeback when he earned triple break point with Sandgren serving at 3-4, but the American bravely clawed back to hold serve. He stayed with Berrettini and then pounced at 5-5, showing outstanding court coverage to secure a break when the eighth seed sent a forehand into the net. The 28-year-old flexed his bicep after a strong first serve wrapped up one of the biggest wins in his career.

You May Also Like: Djokovic Channels Ivanisevic In Serving Clinic
Sandgren will next take on Sam Querrey. After a mixed bag of results last season that didn’t meet his lofty standards, the American looks poised to push back up the FedEx ATP Rankings this year. He advanced to the third round by defeating Lithuanian Ricardas Berankis 7-6(2), 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Querrey hammered 26 aces and won 87 per cent of his first-serve points (59/68) to advance in two hours and 35 minutes. The 32-year-old improved to 3-0 in his ATP Head2Head series with Berankis. He’s reached the third round on six occasions in Melbourne (2007-08, 2013-14, 2017, 2020), but will now look for his first appearance in the second week.

Although Querrey enjoyed an outstanding grass-court season last year that included a quarter-final showing at Wimbledon and runner-up finish in Eastbourne (l. to Fritz), he posted a combined 16-15 record on other surfaces. If he can bring his Melbourne form to the rest of this season, he’ll quickly improve on his current ranking of No. 45.

Fognini

Fabio Fognini continued to work overtime at the Australian Open. Two days on from a deciding set tie-break win over American Reilly Opelka on 1573 Arena, the Italian was at it again on Margaret Court Arena, this time against Australian Jordan Thompson in a 7-6(4), 6-1, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6(4) win over four hours and six minutes.

“It was a good fight,” said Fognini. “I think the end was sweeter, because I was winning two sets to zero, but I won 7-6 in the fifth set. I feel good, but tired. I was up two sets to zero, but played a horrible service game at the start of the third set. He was serving unbelievable.”

Thompson led 4-2 in the first set and at 5-4 could not convert two set points on Fognini’s serve. Fognini wrapped up the 58-minute opener, with 21 unforced errors costing Thompson, and the Italian went on to strike 14 winners and secure the first five games of the second set. Thompson, clearly frustrated, rallied and took a 3-0 lead in the third set and one service break proved to be enough for the fourth set. He saved two match points at both 4-5 and 5-6 in the deciding set, before Fognini’s experience counted in the tie-break.

Fognini stands one victory away from reaching the fourth round for the third time (2014, 2018). He will next play Argentine No. 22 seed Guido Pella, who was a 6-1, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 winner over Gregoire Barrere of France in two hours and 11 minutes.

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[arti]

[arti]

[arti]

[arti]

[arti]

[Lucas]

Repeat Business: Sandgren Books Another QF In Melbourne

Spoiler:

Two years ago, Tennys Sandgren shocked fans with an improbable run to the Australian Open quarter-finals. On Sunday, the World No. 100 in the FedEx ATP Rankings completed another inspired effort to reach the last eight in Melbourne by upsetting No. 12 seed Fabio Fognini of Italy 7-6(5), 7-5, 6-7(2), 6-4.

”Playing him is just a war,” Sandgren said in his on-court interview. “He’s so good and you can never count him out at any stage. I was expecting a fight and we had a fight.”

The American continues to thrive at the start of the year. In addition to his pair of quarter-final runs at this event, Sandgren also captured his maiden ATP Tour title 12 months ago in Auckland (d. Norrie). Fourteen of his 36 tour-level wins have come in the month of January.

Next up for the baseline battler is third-seeded Swiss Roger Federer, who recovered from a set down to beat Hungarian Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 in two hours and 11 minutes.

“It will be very special, very special [to play against Federer],” said Sandgren. “I was kicking myself that I lost to a too good Sam Querrey at Wimbledon in the Round of 16 because I would have played Rafa in the quarter-finals.

”That would have been very special. I was a little upset that I wasn't able to get to that match. It will be incredibly special to be able to play him at least once in my career. To play him on a big stage like the quarter-finals of a Slam will be a tonne of fun really.”

Sandgren and Fognini traded comfortable service holds in the opening set to force a tie-break. It was Fognini who blinked first at 5/5, handing the American a pair of forehand errors and an early lead.

The second set proved to be high on drama, lengthy rallies, and wild shifts in momentum. Sandgren raced through 14 of the first 16 points and appeared all but certain to take a two-sets lead. But Fognini stunned the crowd by using his full arsenal to claw back from 0-4. He showcased incredible defence at 4-1 to win a 26-shot rally and earn one break back, then leveled the score two games later by ripping a forehand winner.



Just when it seemed that Fognini would complete an improbable comeback, Sandgren stepped up at 5-5 and broke the Italian once more with a gorgeous backhand passing shot on the run. A comfortable hold in the next game put the unseeded 28-year-old firmly in command.

“It's a rollercoaster sometimes with him,” said Sandgren. “Sometimes you're just a passenger with what's going on. He doesn't play well, all of a sudden he's playing amazing, you're stuck with your hands in your pockets… That second set was kind of quintessential Fabio with how it can go down.

"Even though it was 4-5 and I lost five games in a row, I thought, ‘At least I'm still on serve, not in a hole or anything like that. I'm up a set. Maybe try to screw your head on right and keep fighting.’”

The third set saw both players trade a pair of early service breaks before refusing to budge further, setting up another tie-break. Fognini earned a mini-break advantage at 1/1 by pushing Sandgren out wide and drawing a forehand error. The No. 12 seed continued to repeat the tactic and was rewarded handsomely as Sandgren struggled with the play. A final forehand into the net from the American at 6/2 allowed Fognini to close the gap.


The Italian was eager to produce his third fifth-set clash of the week, but Sandgren delivered his finest moments of the match in the final two minutes. With Fognini serving at 4-5, 40/15, a pair of forehand winners from the American brought the score to deuce and a forehand volley winner gave him match point. A sensational drop volley winner brought the crowd to its feet as Sandgren took a bow after three hours and 27 minutes.

“I thought the difference was really small moments,” said Sandgren. “Maybe I played just a little bit better on a handful of moments, and that was the match.”

Sandgren moved to 2-2 in his ATP Head2Head with Fognini and has won their past two matches.

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[Damian]

Why Sandgren Won't Take His Shot At Federer For Granted

Spoiler:

World No. 100 pursuing spot in his first Grand Slam semi-final
After Tennys Sandgren advanced to his second Australian Open quarter-final on Sunday, a member of the media told the American that he is now 5-2 against Top 20 opposition at Grand Slams.

“Wow,” Sandgren said.

The 28-year-old has proven over the past three years he has the game to play on the sport’s biggest stages, beating the likes of Dominic Thiem, Stan Wawrinka, Matteo Berrettini and Fabio Fognini at the season’s first Grand Slam. But it all seems a bit surreal to him still.

“The fact that I am [on this stage], I get kind of amped up. I want to perform. I want to do well. I don't want to take the time on the court for granted,” Sandgren said. “Getting to play on a big stadium, getting to play in front of a lot of people, because I've played a lot of tennis in front of the very few people, the fact I get to do that, seems to bring out the best tennis in me. It seems if I play pretty well, I have a shot.”

It’s not lost on Sandgren that it took him several years to get to this point. The Tennessee native turned professional in 2011 after competing for two years at the University of Tennessee. But he would not break into the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Rankings for the first time until 12 June 2017, when he was one month shy of his 26th birthday.

“I wasn't supposed to be here. I spent a lot of time in my career not sniffing these opportunities. So there are better players than me that I played with in Futures and Challengers that have stopped playing because they just ran out of money or got injured or something like that. The fact that I was blessed enough to keep hold of my dream and to be able to try and fulfill it, have the body to do so, the opportunities, definitely blessed,” Sandgren said. “It's worked out pretty well. There's definitely a world where it didn't work out. Some of the margins were pretty small for me to have some of these opportunities. I definitely don't take it for granted.”

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On the three occasions Sandgren has made at least the fourth round of a major, he has been ranked outside the Top 90. So his success against top players on these huge stages isn’t something fans would expect. But that doesn’t mean last year’s Auckland titlist, who has been ranked as high as World No. 41, hasn’t worked to best prepare himself so that he’d be ready in such moments.

“There’s been a few things in the past two years that I wouldn’t have thought would be the case. It’s too far away. That’s how these things go a lot of the time. You can’t see into the future enough to know how good things could be or what kind of successes you might have,” Sandgren told ATPTour.com in Zhuhai last year. “There are so many stories where people are nowhere — in the entertainment industry or business, if you started your company in their garage. Did you ever imagine that you’d have a multi-billion dollar company? No, of course not. But you put in the work every day and you try to have a vision of the future that you can tolerate, and you try to manifest that somehow, and work hard and do all the right stuff in the hopes that something might materialise that’s worthwhile.”

When Sandgren left Tennessee, the Big Four had already established themselves at or near the top of the sport, providing a model to aspire to. The American went through a number of years during which playing them was not possible because of the level at which he was competing. But now he’s faceed Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray twice each, with his matches against the Serbian coming at Grand Slams. Of course it’s sunk in that he’s gotten to compete against tennis legends, but that’s not what hit him the most during his climb.

“It hit me more when I started playing ATP events that I was playing ATP events because I felt maybe a little out of place. But playing guys who I’ve watched play has been more comfortable because I feel like I belong more in the tournaments, so I’m just a guy playing,” Sandgren told ATPTour.com. “I’m just one of the guys who gets the opportunity to play a legend and that’s cool. That’s an enjoyable experience. I’ve played a lot of matches in relative obscurity, so to be able to have those opportunities is a lot of fun. It’s of course challenging because you have to figure out what the heck you’re going to do and there’s more people and there’s pressure that comes with that, sure, but it’s way more of an opportunity and an enjoyable experience to go out there and compete and entertain some people and have fun with it.”

My Point: Get The Players' Point Of View

Sandgren first played in a major main draw at 2017 Roland Garros, for which he earned a wild card. That was around the time period when he began to play more tour-level events. And at first, he didn’t always feel that he belonged at that level, even if his game was there. But that core belief has grown over time, and that has made a big difference during his Australian Open quarter-final runs.

“Getting the confidence to believe in myself, that I do actually belong on this stage, is crucial for competing,” Sandgren said. “I mean, if you don't feel like you should be there, you're probably not going to play very well.”

It certainly would be a confidence boost for Sandgren to hear what his next opponent, 20-time Slam winner Roger Federer, said after defeating Marton Fucsovics to set a clash against the World No. 100. They will play one another for the first time on Tuesday.

“I wonder why he's not ranked higher, to be honest. Every time I see him play, I feel like he plays very well,” Federer said. “He's got a lot of stuff in his game that he's deserving of being higher.

“I like how he moves. Very explosive. Has a nice first serve as well. He can counter-punch, but also likes to go on the attack. Reminds me a little bit of the olden days when you would do the transition game very good and very quickly. I feel like that's what I've seen a lot of him doing very well.”

ATP Heritage: Milestones. Records. Legends.

Just four months ago, during a match against Murray in Zhuhai, Sandgren tore a ligament and suffered a stress fracture in a toe in his right foot. It would have been easy to get frustrated, as he had only 78 FedEx ATP Ranking points to defend from the end of the 2019 US Open through the end of last season. But due to the injury, he only earned 10, playing just one ATP Challenger Tour event after Zhuhai.

But Sandgren worked hard during the off-season, balancing training with recovery for his toe, and his conditioning has paid dividends, with his physical game holding up against some of the world’s best at Melbourne Park. And now, he’s earned a shot at Federer.

“I was kicking myself that I lost to a too-good Sam Querrey at Wimbledon [last year] in the Round of 16 because I would have played Rafa in the quarters. That would have been very special. I was a little upset I wasn't able to get to that match,” Sandgren said. “It would be incredibly special to be able to play [Roger] at least once in my career. To play him on a big stage like [the] quarters of a Slam would be a ton of fun, really.”

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[Damian]

AO20: 2. wielkoszlemowy ćwierćfinał.

Tennys Sandgren d. [12] Fabio Fognini 7-6(5) 7-5 6-7(2) 6-4

[arti]

[Damian]

After Missed Opportunity, Sandgren Goes Back To The Drawing Board

Spoiler:

American shares thoughts after quarter-final exit

Tennys Sandgren took a moment to reflect on his seven match-point chances at the Australian Open on Tuesday, after falling in five sets to Roger Federer at Rod Laver Arena.

The World No. 100 earned three opportunities to close the match on Federer’s serve at 5-4 in the fourth set and four additional chances in the tie-break that followed. But the 20-time Grand Slam winner raised his level when it mattered most, turning the match around to improve to 15-0 in quarter-final encounters at Melbourne Park.

“Obviously, he played the [match points] well,” said Sandgren. “I could have played them better. I've run through them a bunch of times. He was aggressive on one, passive on a few, came in on one, could have put the volley in a different spot.

“He read it well, hit two good passes. Put me in an awkward spot on the last one I had. Missed the approach. He probably would have passed me anyway. It was in a bad spot. All credit to him for sure.”

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Having taken the time to look back on his decision-making in those crucial moments, Sandgren shared what he would have done differently if given a second chance.

“Maybe for a backhand cross-court full power,” said Sandgren. “I probably had eight or nine that I played pretty good, but maybe I could have opened it up a little bit more. I was hitting my backhand well the whole day. Maybe I could have done more with that.

“In hindsight, played the volley to the open court. But I also didn't want to see a classic Roger Federer running forehand passing shot. So, I thought I would play it strong cross and he hit a great pass.”

You May Also Like: Federer Saves 7 M.P. & Defeats Sandgren In Melbourne Classic
Sandgren was full of credit for Federer and his fighting qualities as the match appeared to be heading towards a conclusion in the fourth set. Federer also rallied from 4/8 down in a final-set tie-break to beat home favourite John Millman in the third round.

“Once he could see the finish line being a real thing, I thought his level picked up, as my level was maybe decreasing a little bit. I did think he picked his level up a little bit in the fifth set, which is to be expected,” said Sandgren.

“When you survive that many times, you can't give a good player, let alone maybe the best player ever, that many chances to come back. They're going to find their game and start playing well. That seemed to me what happened.”

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After reaching his second Australian Open quarter-final in three years, Sandgren will rise in the FedEx ATP Rankings after earning 360 points. The 28-year-old can take confidence from victories against Marco Trungelliti, eighth seed Matteo Berrettini, Sam Querrey and 12 seed Fabio Fognini as he looks ahead to the rest of the 2020 ATP Tour season.

“I could just as easily be in the semi-finals right now, but I'm not,” said Sandgren. “Back to the drawing board. Keep working. Keep trying to improve. Maybe I'll get another look, another shot. Maybe I'll come through.”

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[Damian]

Sandgren Soars Into Top 60, Mover Of The Week

Spoiler:

ATPTour.com looks at the top Movers of the Week in the FedEx ATP Rankings, as of Monday, 3 February 2020

No. 56 Tennys Sandgren, +44
The American, who dropped out of the Top 100 on 13 January, bounced back with a 44-place rise to No. 56 in the FedEx ATP Rankings after reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals for the second time (also 2018). Sandgren reached a career-high No. 41 on 14 January 2019.

No. 1 Novak Djokovic, +1
The Serbian star captured his eighth Australian Open crown — which marked his 17th Grand Slam championship title — for a return to No. 1. Djokovic, who has now been World No. 1 for 276 weeks during nine of the past 10 seasons (2011-16, 2018-20), will break Roger Federer’s record for most weeks at No. 1 (310 weeks) if he stays at the top until 5 October. Read More

View Latest FedEx ATP Rankings

No. 20 Nick Kyrgios, +6
The Australian returned to the Top 20 for the first time since 13 August 2018 (at No. 18) after advancing to the Australian Open fourth round (l. to Nadal). Kyrgios attained a career-high No. 13 on 24 October 2016.

No. 53 Marton Fucsovics, +14
The Hungarian beat Denis Shapovalov, Jannik Sinner and Tommy Paul en route to the Australian Open fourth round for a second time (also 2018) to rise up 14 places in the FedEx ATP Rankings. He remains 22 spots below his career-high of No. 31 on 4 March 2019. Read Feature

Other Notable Movers
No. 15 Andrey Rublev (Career High), +1
No. 31 Cristian Garin (Career High), +5
No. 41 John Millman, +6
No. 66 Yoshihito Nishioka, +5
No. 70 Tommy Paul (Career High), +10
No. 78 Jannik Sinner, +4
No. 90 Egor Gerasimov, +8

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[Kamileki]

[Damian]

Sandgren: I Was A 'Raft In The Middle Of The Ocean' After Federer Loss

Spoiler:

American, seeded fifth at the New York Open, reflects on Melbourne defeat
Tennys Sandgren suffered a heart-breaking defeat in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, letting slip seven match points against 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer. The American was just one point away from reaching his first major semi-final.

But instead of walking off the court a winner,, Sandgren returned to the locker room and stared at the carpet, stunned.

“I’m just holding on like on a raft in the middle of the ocean,” Sandgren told ATPTour.com, describing his thoughts at the time. “I don’t take losses particularly well in general, that one being extremely difficult. It’s still a loss and I’m still familiar with the downward emotional spike from a tough loss like that.

“It was just holding on to the important stuff and realising that it’s just one match. Yeah, it would have been sweet to win and it would have been awesome to make my first semi and all those good things, but it’s still a great tournament. Hopefully I’ll have another look and if not, oh well, too bad. I tried my best. There’s not much else you could do other than that and hope it works out for you.”

You May Also Like: Federer Saves 7 M.P. & Defeats Sandgren In Melbourne Classic
After all, there was a time when such opportunities seemed far away. Sandgren did not win his first tour-level match until the 2017 Citi Open, just after his 26th birthday. For years, he toiled on the ATP Challenger Tour, trying to build up his game and improve his FedEx ATP Ranking.

“It’s a tough gig. It’s a tough road. There are a lot of really good players,” Sandgren said. “You’ve got to put in your time to get better and improve. Unless you have those big results early, you’ve got to work and try to keep getting better as a player and keep improving and figuring out where you can make gains. That’s kind of how I spent four, five years on [the ATP Challenger] Tour.”

Sandgren did not crack the Top 100 until 12 June 2017. Since then he has reached his maiden ATP Tour final (2018 Houston), won his first title (2019 Auckland), and made two Grand Slam quarter-finals (2018, ‘20 Australian Open). But the American does not forget the long road he travelled to get there, and how difficult that grind was.

So why did he keep pushing forward?

“Partly stupidity. Not really sure what else to do. I felt like I’d already invested so much of my time into tennis in 20 something years that I’m probably as good at this as I’m for sure ever going to be at anything else, so I might as well stick it out, keep training hard, keep working and give it my best shot and just see what happens,” Sandgren said. “It’s either work hard or give up. Those are the two options. The option wasn’t to take it easy. There was nothing to rest on, so just kind of kept getting after it, kept working hard just to see if I could improve and see how good I could get.”

My Point: Get The Players' Point Of View

That mindset put him in position to play on Rod Laver Arena against an all-time great in Federer. But not only did he get to compete in that moment, he was on the brink of a major upset.

“If somebody would have told me that I would have had seven match points on Roger in the quarters of Australia while I was playing Challengers and I didn’t win, I would have been so gosh darn upset with myself,” Sandgren said, cracking a laugh. “Quarters of Australia, yes, but the seven match points thing, I don’t know if that would have helped me that much at the time.

“I find it pretty incredible what can happen if you keep working hard and over the course of time and who knows how long it will take in whatever it is that you’re doing, but if you treat it as a day-to-day thing, you really have no idea how far you can go in anything. Four, five, six years is a long time. It’s a lot of time and a lot of things can change and [you can] become, I don’t want to say anything that you want to be, but close to it.”

Sandgren had never practised with Federer before they played in Melbourne. He’d watched the Swiss star countless times, but actually being on court with him in a competitive setting conjured surprising thoughts.

“It was funny, I was thinking during the match, a really good buddy of mine, who is the assistant coach at Vanderbilt, Ryan Lipman… he’s got a pretty similar game: one-handed backhand, slice, likes to come forward, likes to serve and volley. We played in juniors, he’s from Nashville as well, and we played I don’t know how many times, 50, 100 times in practice, tournament matches, things like that,” Sandgren said. “So while we were playing, it’s obviously different and Roger is just on a different planet, but some of the point structures and how we’d go back and forth, it felt oddly familiar to me and I was thinking that during the match. I thought about my buddy and I was like, “I feel like I’ve played some of these points before,’ the short slice, dragging me in, things like that were things that I’d seen a bunch from my friend. We battled a lot together, so it was kind of surreal in that way.”

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When Sandgren returned home to Tennessee after his loss, he went to dinner with Lipman in Nashville and told him that story.

“He was cracking up and I was like, ‘I was actually going to mention that if I had won the match in the presser, but I did not, so I wasn’t able to’,” Sandgren said. “He was kicking himself.”

Now, the World No. 53 needs to move on. His loss against Federer will remain in his memory forever, and it may still sting, but Sandgren competes this week on the other side of the globe at the New York Open, where he’ll play countryman Steve Johnson on Monday evening.

“Every week is different. Every week is a new week, so you’ve got to treat it like the count is back to zero and you’re just back on the grind,” Sandgren said. “Australia was great, it was a fantastic two weeks for me, but this is a new week and guys are fresh and hungry. If I’m not one of those guys that is also hungry to be out here and to compete and do well, then it’s not going to go well for me. So I need to keep that humble mentality and keep working hard.”

Did You Know?
Sandgren entered the Australian Open as the World No. 100. By reaching the quarter-finals, he soared to No. 56, and now he is up to No. 53.

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[Barty]

Michael Russell On Federer's Win Over Sandgren: 'He Put On Robot Mode'

Spoiler:

Former World No. 60 coaches Sandgren and McDonald
Tennys Sandgren played one of the most memorable matches of the 2020 ATP Tour season thus far against Roger Federer in the Australian Open quarter-finals.

ATPTour.com spoke to his coach, former World No. 60 Michael Russell, about what was going through his mind during the match, how he approached his messaging to Sandgren afterwards, how he wants his charge to move forward, and more. Russell coaches both Sandgren and fellow American Mackenzie McDonald.

What was going through your mind during the match?
During three-out-of-five-set matches, there are a lot of swings. So I’m always very even-keeled anyways during a match. I don’t like to show too much emotion, never any negative emotion. But I want the player to be able to look over and see the calmness, but also the confidence as well.

I will show them some fist pumps and some verbal encouragement, but obviously your heart is racing at certain times in the match. You get more excited and you try to urge him on and keep that confidence in him, the patience, the confidence and the tranquility. There’s no panic at any moment.

Tennys had seven match points and it didn’t seem like he played those points poorly. Roger seemed to play as well as he did the whole match in those situations. How did you see it?
I’ll be candid. He played the match points conservatively, which is understandable in that situation. You feel like, 'Okay, I don’t want to go for too much' because you feel like, 'I don’t know how many opportunities I’m going to have.'

So a little bit of it is kind of saying, 'Okay, I’m going to play these balls to Roger. Roger might make an error.' You can see that a little bit in there. He played a couple points aggressively, a little bit unlucky with that point where he came in, had the volley, went cross-court and not down the line, he knows that. Roger hit an amazing stick save.

He only had one match point on his serve, didn’t hit the spot that he wanted to on the serve and unfortunately lost the point. He could have played a little more aggressively of course in hindsight. But it’s easy in hindsight to look at that. He didn’t really make an error unless he was a little off balance. And kudos to Roger, he stepped up and basically put on freaking robot mode where he wasn’t going to miss a ball on those points.

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What did you say to Tennys when you got in the locker room?
Obviously, he was extremely disappointed being so close to beating such a good player in Federer in that stage, in a quarter-final. He not only wanted to beat Roger and be in the semi-finals, but he was really looking forward to the test of playing Djokovic. Sandgren is extremely fit and he wanted that physical test also of playing Novak. But there are so many positives to take away from the tournament.

Coming in he was even a little physically banged up. So to get through four matches — one five-setter against Berrettini, a Top 10 player, a really tough four-setter with a lot of drama against Fognini. he had to play Querrey, who’s a dangerous opponent, took him out in the fourth round of Wimbledon the year before — I was really proud of how well he competed and mentally engaged himself and just reminded him of that after the match. I reminded him how much opportunity, how much inspiration, how many positives he can really take away from this and really build on it in the rest of 2020.

When you were talking to him afterwards, were you sort of reminding him that he was right there against Roger Federer?
It’s reminding him that he is a player that can be Top 25 in the world, Top 20, and not getting complacent in that mindset or mentality where, 'I’m playing Roger, I had that opportunity, it’s lost.' It’s more about, 'Okay, I’ve been having great Grand Slam runs, I’ve done well at some 250s, I can do this. I can be a more consistent top-level player. This is just gratification showing how good I am, so let’s build on this. So yes, I’m disappointed. Yes, I was in a great situation. But at the same time, I put myself in this situation in the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam.

This was not match points against Roger at a smaller tournament. This is a Grand Slam quarter-final. I’ve won a lot of matches, put a lot of hard yards in to get to this point. I can do this again, I can continue to do this. And now I’ve created an aura and energy that people know how fit I am. Let’s use this and build upon it.'

He’s had success at ATP 250s before, winning last year in Auckland, but Tennys has also had some patches where he hasn’t played as well. How much of this is about translating the level he’s shown on the big stages throughout the calendar to produce consistent results?
It’s taking that competitiveness, fierce mentality and focus from the Grand Slams into the ATP 250s, the ATP 500s, the ATP Masters 1000s and being able to do that consistently and sustaining that throughout the year, and that’s what makes somebody Top 20.

People may not know that he got hurt in Zhuhai last September, and missed almost the entire rest of the season. So after dealing with that, how nice was it to see Tennys start his season like he did?
It was unfortunate. He basically played on a stress fracture even a little bit probably at the US Open and he made the third round. Played on it against Andy Murray in Zhuhai, played a great match, but then basically had to take the rest of the fall off.

He was healthy for the pre-season, which was really important, because he pushed really hard in that pre-season and that paid dividends right away in Australia. He was extremely fit, which he is, and that helped him really mentally battle through that adversity and those tough times.

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You were always well-known for your fitness, so is it nice to see the aura Tennys created in that regard in Australia?
I think it creates a definite advantage on court. Players are talking about it, they know this guy is extremely fit, plays physical tennis. So in a three-out-of-five-set match, it’s going to be a battle. I have to be willing to suffer and a lot of players, they might not be willing to put that type of suffering in while Tennys is definitely willing to do that and that’s giving him a lot of confidence. It’s also creating a lot of chatter in the locker room because people know that.

A lot of casual fans may now think of Tennys as the guy who was so close to beating Roger. So what will it take for him to take the next step, continue improving his FedEx ATP Ranking and shed that label?
It’s not getting so caught up in the noise around with media or players. It’s always keeping that focus and tunnel vision that you have on court, also on the practice court, even in your daily life.

He’s strict with his nutrition and his fitness. It’s always making sure you have that goal in sight. You’re always keeping that motivation and striving to keep progressing on court, off court. And I think, ultimately, that will help him be more consistent throughout the year. That’s what we’re striving for.

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In terms of Tennys’ game, he’s comfortable on defence, he serves well, he has an all-around game with which he can do a lot of different things, but sometimes he falls back to that base of playing defence. Is taking that next step from good to great playing aggressively in the big moments?
Definitely. You look at guys that are winning Slams or going deep, they’re willing to step up in those pressure moments. I’m not saying you just have to hit balls and run them down, but they’re playing attacking tennis at those pressure moments, whether that’s hitting a big groundstroke, whether that’s coming in, whether that’s taking time away, whether that’s attacking a second serve. So it’s getting comfortable in those situations through confidence and experience.

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