It was the sensation of the day at Wimbledon. World No.43 Christopher Eubanks claimed the scalp of Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Round of 16 on Monday afternoon. The 27-year-old American has reached the quarter-finals in his first appearance in the final draw of the London Grand Slam. He will face Daniil Medvedev.
And the Greek flame was extinguished… Stefanos Tsitsipas, who had already struggled in the first two rounds of Wimbledon, where he had to battle through 5 sets, was stunned this time by Christopher Eubanks (43rd on the ATP rankings) in the Round of 16 (3-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4) on Monday. Despite a smooth start to the match, the Greek conceded in the tie-break of the second set before the match really turned in the 4th set in favor of the American, who will face Daniil Medvedev in the next round.
Yes. This is real.@chris_eubanks96 | #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/ezzZyTdBv1
— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 10, 2023
Stefanos Tsitsipas is having a tough time of it. Even when everything seems to be going well, the Greek is overtaken by some force that pushes him to give in at key moments. Much less at fault than his opponent, and in the lead in almost every statistical category, Tsitsipas faltered on the only small chances to take the lead from Eubanks. The 27-year-old American has now qualified for his first Grand Slam quarter-final.
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It all came down to the 4th set. While Stefanos Tsitsipas seemed to be in control, having not conceded a break point despite losing the second set, the Greek left the door ajar for the first time at 3-3. Eubanks jumped at the chance to secure his first break point of the match. Unfortunately for him, it was saved by an excellent passing shot from Tsitsipas.
Eubanks Pushed by the Crowd
An unconverted opportunity, but one that would lead to more… Two games later, it was the same old story. But this time, the Greek broke for the first time in the match. It was as if his old demons had resurfaced. A double-fault and Tsitsipas gave his opponent the break and even the set, smiling broadly.
The 5th set turned directly in the American’s favor, with a break in the Greek’s first service game. Haranguing the crowd to his cause, Eubanks didn’t seem to make any more errors on his opponent’s serve, even though he was about to be broken, before regaining the lead two games later. Although his hand trembled on a forehand two points from the end, Christopher Eubanks nonetheless concluded his formidable epic. And it’s here to stay for another round.