Gabriel Diallo's impressive run at the U.S. Open is over.
The 22-year-old from Montreal lost 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-1, 7-6 (3) to No. 14 seed Tommy Paul of the United States in the third round of the Grand Slam tennis tournament on Saturday.
Diallo, ranked 143rd in the world entering the tournament, qualified for only his second main draw at a major.
After winning three qualifying rounds, he upset No. 24 seed Arthur Fils of France in the second round and world No. 84 Jaume Munar of Spain in the main-draw opener at Flushing Meadows.
Diallo, who was the last Canadian remaining in the singles competition, is expected to move up to a career-high 103rd in the next ATP rankings.
Diallo's Fight
A group of fans at Louis Armstrong Stadium chanted “Let’s go Diallo!” amid the pro-American crowd. Diallo’s performance was a roller coaster ride for his supporters. While Paul broke Diallo three times in the opening set, each time Diallo answered back with a break of his own to force a tiebreaker.
Diallo then hit an ace on set point to take the frame. Paul, however, cruised through the second and third sets. Diallo was not ready to go down without a fight. In the fourth set, Diallo earned two break points with the players tied 5-5 but couldn’t convert. Paul then jumped to a 6-1 lead in the tiebreaker. Diallo held off two match points, but the American ultimately took the match in three hours 26 minutes.
A Battle of Breaks
Paul had nine breaks to Diallo’s five and 50 unforced errors to Diallo’s 77. The match showcased a battle of breaks and unforced errors. The match was truly a test of nerves and resilience. The momentum shifted back and forth throughout the match. It was an experience that will surely help Diallo continue to grow as a player.
Dabrowski and Routliffe Advance
In women’s doubles, defending U.S. Open champions Gabriela Dabrowski of Ottawa and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand advanced to the third round. The No. 1 seeds defeated American Catherine Harrison and Poland’s Alicja Rosolska 7-5, 6-4, winning the match in 86 minutes. Dabrowski and Routliffe will face Angelica Moratelli of Italy and Jaqueline Cristian of Romania on Sunday in the round of 16.
The End of a Journey
“On paper, I wasn’t supposed to win,” said Diallo to reporters after the match. “It doesn’t mean that the loss doesn’t hurt. But I’m leaving here with no regrets. What’s difficult to accept is when you have regrets coming out of a match. That’s not the case today.” The loss may have stung, but Diallo was able to take away valuable lessons from the experience. He was able to showcase his talent on the big stage and garner support from fans all over the world.
“It’s the biggest stadium I’ve ever played in my life,” he said, with a gleam in his eye. “And it was packed. And despite the fact that I was playing against an American, the crowd was cheering for me anyway. Obviously, I had my group of friends and family who were very loud.”
“It was special. We train to live for these moments. The support the spectators gave me helped me, especially in the fourth set.”
Diallo was able to make a statement in his first US Open and put himself on the map of the tennis world. The future is bright for the young Canadian. He will now turn his attention to the next chapter in his career. He will use this experience to fuel his passion for the sport and continue to strive for greatness.
“I have the potential to participate in this type of event someday, to be among the top 30 or 20 players,” he said in a press conference. “I still have work to do. My team and I will return to the lab so that I try to progress and improve in certain areas where I can take a new leap forward.”
His performance in New York should allow him to climb about 40 places in the world rankings. A jump that should allow him to participate in a greater number of major tournaments. But the amount of work to be done to climb even higher in the world rankings will not be negligible. Diallo will need to put in the work to reach his full potential.
“I think my team and I are aware of the potential I have, but we are also aware that it’s work and it’s not going to happen overnight,” he said. “What happened in the last two weeks is very special and it’s the result of the hard work we’ve done together. But we’re going to have to keep working to improve, to clean up what might have allowed me to win the match.”
“But I had a lot of fun playing here in the last two weeks,” he added. “I hope I can do something special again next year.”
His new fans certainly hope the same.
Dabrowski and Routliffe Keep on Rolling
Earlier in the day, Canadian Gabriela Dabrowski and her New Zealand partner Erin Routliffe reached the women’s doubles round of 16 with a 7-5, 6-4 win over the duo of American Catherine Harrison and Polish Alicja Rosolska.
Dabrowski and Routliffe, the top seeds in the tournament, needed just under 90 minutes to dispatch their rivals.
“I just wanted to kind of focus on myself,” said Swiatek. “For sure she’s a great player and she’s really powerful so you have to be ready for the first couple of shots to be really fast.” The US Open is proving to be a great tournament for the Canadians, as many players are making deep runs in both singles and doubles. The future of Canadian tennis is looking bright.
