Jack socks it to Sousa to claim Auckland title
ASB Classic champion Jack Sock wants his win in Auckland to be his launch pad into the world’s top 10.
The 24-year-old American defeated Joao Sousa from Portugal 6-3 5-7 6-3 in the final yesterday, making amends for 2016 when he had to withdraw from the final because of illness.
Sock has been held up as the player to fly the flag for men’s tennis in America after years in the wilderness following the retirements of Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick.
He is currently ranked 23 in the world and has never been inside the top 20. But on the eve of this tournament he said he felt like a top 10 player and this week he’s taken a big step forward into making that a reality.
‘‘Any time you can take a title it feels really good,’’ Sock said.
‘‘I’ve had it once before [Houston in 2015]. I’ve had chances and lost in a few finals, but winning the whole tournament and going through a whole week without being beaten, is a massive confidence booster, not only in the short term but for the year.
‘‘If you can play through the draw in the first tournament of the year, where you have some cobwebs and may not be match ready, but I was able to go out and do it this week and will carry it through for the rest of the year.’’
It was a gripping match and one befitting of the final, but for a while it did look like Sock was going to win it convincingly, after taking the first set.
‘‘I thought I was hitting the ball well,’’ he said.
‘‘I was doing what I wanted to do, I was executing my game, but I also knew I was playing Joao who is the ultimate fighter and going to fight until the match.
‘‘I had the advantage of winning the first set, but it was far from over against him and I knew I was going to be in for a tough battle.’’
It was a disappointing end to an impressive week for Sousa, who did not drop a set on the way to the final.
And while he battled back brilliantly to force a deciding set, he lacked the consistency of his opponent to go on with the job.
‘‘I didn’t feel so good moving on court,’’ Sousa said.
‘‘Without trying to say that I played bad, I think Jack played a great match. He served very well and he was very aggressive with his forehand. I was trying to be aggressive with my forehand but I couldn’t do it today, that’s why I lost.’’
Sousa looked to have seized the momentum after breaking early in the third set and was one point away from taking a 3-1 lead.
However, Sock dug deep with a break of his own and that, Sousa said, was the turning point.
‘‘He made two good returns with his forehand and then he was very confident. He served very well and I think that was the key to the match.’’
It was a tight start to the match but Sousa unravelled in the second half of the set, including serving out his worst game of the week with three unforced errors and a double fault.
It took 34 minutes for Sock to take the first set and when he won the first six points of the second he looked to be on an unstoppable roll.
Against the run of play, Sousa snapped out of his slump to break for the first time in the match only to throw it away with another loose game.
Sock seemed destined to wrap it up early as he went up 0-30 with the Portuguese serving at 4-5.
However, Sousa, realising the final was slipping away from him, played four incredible points and hit an ace on second serve right down the middle.
Sousa continued his charge, breaking in the next game and then holding to send the match into a deciding set.
The third set started with the crucial exchange of breaks before Sock nailed the decisive blow in the eighth game.
He then proceeded to serve out the championship, sinking to his knees as he became the latest winner of New Zealand’s biggest tennis tournament.