I think my serve was definitely pretty reliable when I was down. I was down Love‑30 once or twice, down Love‑40 once. Came up with some good serves, first‑ball combos. I think that was definitely some turning points, not letting him get a break and not letting him get some momentum back. (from USOpen.org)There has been talk that maybe Sock is not in the greatest shape. John McEnroe talked about it during the telecast. The interesting thing on Monday was that Sock outlasted Mayer who had to retire in the third set. Sock was convincing in the win, and looked the superior player throughout. Could that be due to the injury or fatigue of a long summer for Mayer? Quite possibly. Still, it is difficult to dominate at the professional level. A player has to have weapons to be able to beat seeded players and beat them handily. Sock has a huge serve, can back it up from the baseline and also threw in some serve and volley. His serve helped him keep the momentum on his serve and allowed Mayer very few looks at a break.
Watching Sock on Monday made me believe that he could have a bright future on the professional tour. During this Open Sock has a chance to go in to the second week. In the next round he plays Cipolla. With a win, which I think he could be the favorite in the second round, he would then potentially face #11 seed Nicholas Almagro who has not been a lock at all in the past at the US Open. I think it is feasible he could make the fourth round and face Tomas Berdych or Sam Querrey.
The possibility exists for a new American male player to make a name for himself at the US Open. If Sock can show the composure and confidence he displayed against Mayer I like his chances to win at least one or two more matches. Oh, yeah, and the big serve helps, too.
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