Sandgren Outlasts His Apartment Rental At Wimbledon

Odds are that if you outlast the duration of your accommodation rental, you’re probably having a pretty good tournament. And that has been the case for American Tennys Sandgren, who on Saturday defeated World No. 10 Fabio Fognini to reach the second round of Wimbledon for the first time.

The 27-year-old was more than happy to book a hotel room after his AirBnB’s rental expired.

“I was in an apartment. I actually moved yesterday. I ran out of my reservation because I didn’t want to overbook my stay. I’m not going to plan for the two-week experience,” Sandgren said, cracking a laugh. “So now I’m in a hotel and it’s good, it’s comfortable. As long as the weather stays cool, then my room will be cool and that’s a big deal. When the sun gets out and the room gets hot, it’s tough.”

This run was not the most expected for the World No. 94, who lost nine consecutive first-round tour-level matches entering the year’s third Grand Slam. That streak started after he claimed his first ATP Tour crown in January at Auckland.

“It’s exciting to be in the fourth round. I didn’t expect to really be in this position,” Sandgren said. “It’s been a tough few months. I’ve been playing some better tennis recently, but I had a tough stretch in there when I wasn’t winning many matches. So to feel like my game is coming together, and to feel like I’m playing well and actually things are falling my way, which hasn’t been the case, it feels good for sure.”

Sandgren’s two most recent first-round losses came after qualifying. And only four of those defeats came in straight sets. So although it was a tough stretch, he kept working hard so he would be ready to seize the moment when an opportunity to get back on track presented itself.

“The thing is, everybody’s really good. All these guys are incredibly good players and they’re all doing their best to be ready to play and to beat you on any given day, so to think you’re more deserving or that you’re going to win more matches because of X, Y or Z is sometimes unrealistic,” Sandgren said. “The fact that it just wasn’t going my way and I was losing a lot of close matches is disheartening, but I knew that if I stuck with it and kept working hard that it would turn for me and I would get out of that kind of season of defeat and hopefully have a week like this.

“It is very much a mental game. When you’re out there by yourself and there’s nowhere to turn, there’s no help, it’s just your game and how you’re feeling on the day and how you can keep it together. So it’s all on you and if it doesn’t go well, it’s easy to beat yourself up. But staying positive and keeping believing in yourself is a big facet in how you can ride those waves in a season.”

Sandgren won his first-round match in four sets against Yasutaka Uchiyama, and then battled past Fever-Tree Championships finalist Gilles Simon in a five-set thriller in which he converted nine of his 13 break point chances. Then against Fognini, freshly minted into the Top 10, Sandgren made only 18 unforced errors and won 70 per cent of his second-serve points.

“It’s been a great week so far. Finding my game as I go, starting to play some good tennis. Today was a very good match for me. I knew I had to play well because Fabio is an amazing player,” Sandgren said. “We had a really good second-set tie-break, 14/12. I think the match kind of hinged on that one. But yeah, felt good about my game.”

It’s not a new experience for Sandgren, who made last year’s Australian Open quarter-finals in his main draw debut. There, he beat then-World No. 8 Stan Wawrinka and then-World No. 5 Dominic Thiem.

“I have more experience than I did the last time when I was in this kind of situation. So I think it definitely helps me to at least know what to expect as far as nerves and to be ready for it,” Sandgren said. “The margins are so slim in these matches, so to have just a little bit more experience than I did the last time I think definitely helps me.”

An American man is guaranteed to reach the last eight at SW19, as Sandgren will play countryman Sam Querrey on Monday. Prior to Eastbourne last week, Querrey had not played since Houston due to an abdominal injury. But he made the final at that ATP 250 tournament, and has been broken just once at Wimbledon.

“Obviously he’s playing very well. I haven’t seen him play too much this week, but every time I walk by a TV with him on it, he’s hitting an ace, so I’m going to be ready for some big serves,” Sandgren said. “Excited for the opportunity for sure. I’ve never played Sam, but he’s a good friend, and it’ll be a lot of fun.”