Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
First serve
Raonic and del Potro battle in late semifinal
Delray Beach Open singles and doubles finals today.
DELRAY BEACH – If Jack Sock were a baseball pitcher, his catcher would need every finger to call his wide assortment of deliveries.
On any given point, the 6-foot-3 muscular Sock can pound a 136-mph bullet, slice it wide or kick it over his opponent’s head on or near the lines. Combine that with one of the tour’s most ferocious, topspin forehands and it’s no wonder Sock took out fellow American Donald Young 6-4, 7-6 (2) in the first semifinal on a humid Saturday afternoon at the Delray Beach Tennis Center.
“I feel very good with the serve right now,’’ said Sock, who faced (and lost) one break point all match, while winning 87 percent of his first serves and 59 percent of his second.
“I definitely worked on it a lot in the offseason. It’s always been a weapon of mine, but I’d have weeks it would go up and down, a roller-coaster ride. I wouldn’t spot it as well at some points last year, but now I feel I have a very good handle on it.
“I feel comfortable bringing pace; if I want to put it short in the box, and put it up high, sliders into the body, I feel like I definitely have good control of it now.’’
The third-seeded Sock, 24, is the highest-ranked American at No. 21 and will be seeking his third ATP title and second this year. Sock, who hasn’t dropped a set this week, won’t have a cupcake, as he will play the winner of the evening’s marquee matchup of top-seeded Milos Raonic and seventhseeded Juan Martin del Potro in a 3 p.m. final today.
Mark Baron, who founded the Delray beach Open, an ATP 250 tournament, 25 years ago, referred to that match as “the sexiest, highest-ranked matchup we’ve ever had.’’
Raonic, 26, finished 2016 as the third-ranked player in the world and reached the Wimbledon final last summer. Del Potro, 28, was ranked fourth in 2010 a few months after he won the U.S. Open and before four wrist surgeries derailed his career.
Last year, the 6-foot-6 del Potro loudly announced his return at the Rio Olympics with victories over No. 1 Novak Djokovic and 14-time major champion Rafael Nadal en route to a silver medal. He also led Argentina to its first Davis Cup title and finished the season 32-12, while improving his ranking to 38 from 581 (now 42nd).
Sock has already played Raonic 10 times, and is only 2-8 against the 6-foot-5 Canadian, but Sock did win their last meeting on a hard court in the Shanghai Masters last year, 0-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8). Sock is 1-1 against del Potro, winning on a hard court in Stockholm but losing on clay in Madrid, both in 2016.
“Both have really bad serves,’’ Sock joked. “Milos, we both know what you’re going to get. He’s going to serve cannons, he’s going to take every ball and come to the net ASAP and put pressure on like he does everybody.
“Delpo’ s one of the best baseliners to play, solid off both sides and also serves well. Either way I have to play really good tennis to win. I enter the tournament to try to win.’’
After an early exchange of breaks Saturday, the first set turned at 3-3 with Young serving at 30-15. He served and deftly scooped up a forehand volley just inside the alley, but Sock got to it and ripped it past Young’s lunge. From there, Young’s concentration went away as he swatted two consecutive unforced errors to hand Sock the break.
In a matter of minutes, Sock seized control and served out the first set at love.
The pattern almost continued in the second set, when at 3-3 Sock had a break point, but Young saved it with a let-cord winner before holding. Young, now 0-3 against Sock, took a 2-zip lead in the tiebreaker with a forehand laser down the line and let out a loud, “Come on!’’
That seemed to fire up Sock, who then reeled off the next 7 points, including a 99-mph kick-serve ace, his seventh, and his trademark inside-out forehand that induced a weak forehand into the net from Young on match point.
“I’m definitely playing with a lot of confidence, starting out the year with a title,’’ Sock said. “Any time on the court, I feel very strong, physically and mentally.’’