By Amy Tennery
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Briton Dan Evans walked in to the U.S. Open with no expectations but left with his faith restored in his ability to play, after his hard-fought run ended 6-3 6-7(4) 6-0 6-0 to Australian Alex de Minaur in the third round.
Evans, once the British number one, came in ranked a dismal 184th but captivated fans as he survived the longest-ever U.S. Open match with a five hour and 35 minutes opening-round upset over 23rd seed Karen Khachanov on Tuesday.
The victory left him with little in the tank, but he overcame Argentine Mario Navone in straight sets in the second round and gave it his all for Saturday’s match against the 10th seed.
“Not that I fell out of love with tennis, but it’s just given me a glimpse that I’m still pretty good and it’s a nice feeling walking off,” he said.
“It’s been an amazing sort of week. I come to America with no expectations and a lot of doubt, and I left with a lot of, you know, clarity that I can still do it at the higher level.”
Evans was seen wringing droplets of sweat out of his shirt by the back wall of the court early in Saturday’s third set and took a medical timeout to receive treatment from the physio for a hip issue after going down 3-0.
Evans was barely able to put up a fight as De Minaur held his serve in the next game but saw it through to the end as the Australian, who has fought through injury issues of his own in New York, had clear control from there.
“It will be fine after a few days’ rest,” he said of the hip issue. “Few beers will help it as well.”
The match brought an unfamiliar feeling as the 34-year-old found himself on the right side of New York’s fickle crowd, and the fans at Louis Armstrong willed him on despite his obvious distress.
“It’s probably the first time I’ve probably looked around and saw people, you know, smiling and shouting and hollering at me,” he told reporters.
“All three matches have been great. I lost tonight but, you know, I leave with great tennis in my legs.”
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by William Mallard)
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