Dan battles brutal heat to claim win
BRITISH No.1 Dan Evans had to battle brutal conditions and a tenacious opponent last night as he saw off Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro to reach the second round of the US Open.
Evans, seeded 24th, appeared to struggle physically in the steamy New York temperatures before winning 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 6-4, 6-1.
After missing the Tokyo Olympics because he tested positive for Covid19, Evans had lost four of his five matches since Wimbledon. And after Evans impressively took the opener, Monteiro battled back in a tie-break.
During that second set Evans needed ice packs and it looked like it might all be going wrong for the 31-year-old. But despite needing treatment on his foot during the third set, the Briton played some fine tennis to win it 6-4 and give himself the advantage in the match.
It was all one-way traffic in the fourth set, as Evans rushed into a 4-0 lead and soon closed out the match.
The Birmingham man will play American world No.64 Marcos Giron next.
‘It wasn’t easy. I felt pretty bad and I just hung in there really,’ Evans said.
‘I was playing better than I had been but physically I wasn’t feeling great. I had a pretty bad headache out there – that’s something that I’ve never had before.
‘I think the lack of matches in my legs played a big part and made me feel tired, at least that’s what I hope it is. I got through and did a good job and I would probably say I was the better player.’
Heather Watson (pictured) saw her campaign halted at the first hurdle, losing 6-1, 6-4 to Kaja Juvan.
And Caroline Garcia ended the hopes of Britain’s Harriet Dart, winning 6-7, 6-4, 6-2.