Querrey Eyeing Another Houston Final

Two-time finalist Sam Querrey turned in a dominating serve performance on Tuesday to advance at the Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston.

The 31-year-old American won 90 per cent of his first-serve points and beat compatriot Bjorn Fratangelo 6-3, 6-4 to reach the second round of the ATP 250 event.

Querrey, who reached the final in 2010 (l. to Chela) and 2015 (l. to Sock), will next face Spain’s Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, a 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3 winner against American wild card Noah Rubin.

Serbian wild card Janko Tipsarevic won his second tour-level match since August 2017, beating 2018 finalist Tennys Sandgren 6-1, 7-6(4). Sandgren, who won his maiden title at the ASB Classic in Auckland in January, led 5-2 in the second set before the former World No. 8 came back.

Tipsarevic, 34, is on the comeback from his latest injury, torn hamstring tendons, which forced him to miss all of the 2018 season. The 27-year-old Sandgren has lost seven consecutive matches since beating Brit Cameron Norrie for the Auckland title.

Colombian qualifier Daniel Elahi Galan, 22, picked up his second ATP Tour win to set up a second-round showdown with top seed and two-time defending champion Steve Johnson of the U.S. Galan held off Italian veteran Paolo Lorenzi 7-6(5), 6-4. The Colombian celebrated his maiden ATP win four years ago in Bogota against Spain’s Pere Riba.

Seventh seed Jordan Thompson of Australia dismissed Serbian qualifier Pedja Krstin 7-5, 6-2, and Swiss qualifier Henri Laaksonen knocked out sixth seed Mackenzie McDonald of the U.S. 6-3, 6-4.