Dominic Stricker was at a loss for words as he tried to comprehend what he just did.
The U.S. Open qualifier from Switzerland pulled off a stunning upset Wednesday at Flushing Meadows to defeat No. 7 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-5, 6-7 (2), 6-7 (5) 7-6 (6), 6-3 for Stricker’s biggest win of his career.
Stricker battled back from being down 3-5 in the fourth set to advance to the third round of the tournament, marking the first time he’s advanced that far in a Grand Slam event.
“I was down 3-5 and then I came back in the fourth set,” an emotional Stricker said on the court after his win. “I don’t know how, but I did it somehow and then I kept playing very high-level tennis.
“I am a bit speechless but it is a great day”
The victory marked his second major upset of this year’s U.S. Open, which began with the 21-year-old taking down Alexei Popyrin in the opening round.
Stricker reached the main draw of this year’s tournament after making it through the qualifying round last week.
He was beaming ear-to-ear as he fell to the ground in celebration when the five-set match that lasted more than four hours concluded, picking up the first top-10 win of his career.
If his Cinderella run wasn’t enough, Stricker had seemed to capture the hearts of tennis fans when the broadcast of the match caught him singing along to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” during a changeover as he was on the precipice of the biggest win of his career.
“Such a great day for me, such a great win,” Stricker said. “It gives me a lot of confidence, and I think it is great to see from my team. We are working hard every day, and it is so great to do that.”
Stricker took the first set 7-5 over the Greek stalwart, but Tsitsipas captured the subsequent two sets by taking back-to-back tiebreaks.
Tsitsipas took a 5-3 lead in the fourth set, and it looked as though Stricker’s run in the U.S. Open might be coming to an end.
However, Stricker stood tall and stepped up with a break before finishing strongly to get the decider.
Tsitsipas served to start the deciding set, but Stricker finished Tsitsipas off and clinched the match with a strong forehand.
Stricker will face Benjamin Bonzi of France in the third round on Friday.