Jack Sock had a drama-filled Monday.
A rain delay. Bloody fingers. A warning from the official about taking a bathroom break.
But when it was over, the scoreboard showed the 19-year-old Nebraska native had the better day, taking a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 victory over Alex Bogomolov.
When the rain delay came, Sock was up 4-2 in the third set. When play resumed, he saved four break points to push the lead to 5-2. Bogomolov held and then broke Sock back for 5-4. Finally, a backhand winner from Sock on his first match point sealed the victory.
"I liked the position I was in when the rain came," he said. "I was hoping it wouldn't come. I was feeling good, playing pretty well but it was good to go in and cool down a little bit. It was hot out there."
Sock also had a warning for taking a bathroom break to wipe some blood from his fingers. He said he had scraped them on the strings of his racket and he "didn't want to get it all over the towels or balls while we were playing." That didn't save him from a rebuke, though.
"I didn't know that you only get one bathroom break per match," he said. "It's pretty unreasonable, actually, if you're hydrating a lot and it's hot out here. You might have to go to the bathroom a lot, especially if you need to change clothes as much as everyone is sweating out here. They told me, 'You better make it back in one minute for the changeover,' so I had to sprint to the restroom and change clothes."
Berankis happy in main draw
Ricardis Berankis was pleased with his tough, three-set match against Rik De Voest, winning 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-3. Most importantly, it clinched a spot for him in the main draw, where he will face Dmitry Tursonov on Tuesday.
"My game is [improving] after each match," Berankis said. "I guess the luck was on my side today. I came back from three match points and managed to break serve in the third set and hold my serve. I was pretty happy to at least do that."
He has no expectations for the remainder of the event, simply stating, "We'll see." Berankis said he doesn't take more than a glance at the draw.
"I'll take a peek, but mostly people just tell me," he said.
A final in Harrison's future?
Ryan Harrison's first round match Tuesday night will come against someone he looked up to growing up: James Blake. But getting through Blake is just one step for Harrison, who is seeking his first career ATP tour final. He has had five semifinal appearances, which includes a loss to eventual champion John Isner in last week's Hall of Fame Championships in Newport, R.I.
"I hope I'm really close," he said. "I've lost some tight matches in there. Obviously, the match with John [at Newport], he had a really big backhand down the line to get a mini-break in the breaker and things are very fractional, especially at this level. Like every question I've been asked about the trajection of my career, I'm going to do what I can to work hard on a daily basis to improve my weaknesses."
Etc.
The rain delay in the Sock/Bogomolov match lasted 90 minutes. ... Sock's win over Bogomolov marked his first win over an opponent ranked in the top 100 this season. ... The USTA, in conjunction with American Express and Fulton County, had a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a dozen youth tennis courts at the Burdett Tennis Center on Monday.
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