HOUSTON: Top seed and former winner Jack Sock defeated Germany’s Tommy Haas 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals of the US Clay Court Championships on Thursday.
Sock will next face sixth-seeded Feliciano Lopez of Spain, who beat Chung Hyeon of South Korea in three sets 6-4, 2-6, 6-1.
Sock is seeking his third title of the year to go with victories at Delray Beach, Florida and Auckland, New Zealand.
The 2015 champ in this event, Sock is one of four Americans seeded in the tournament’s top five.
Number-two seed John Isner survived an upset bid from qualifier Leonardo Mayer of Argentina with a 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 win in a contest that lasted over two hours. Isner will face wildcard Ernesto Escobedo in the quarters.
Sam Querrey, the third seed, cruised to a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Argentine Horacio Zeballos to reach the quarters for the third-straight year.
Fourth-seeded Steve Johnson also won in straight sets over Dustin Brown of Germany, but the American had to survive a marathon opening set before advancing with a 7-6 (14/12), 6-4 win.
No. 5 seed Fernando Verdasco advanced to a matchup against Johnson with a 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 win over Argentina’s Nicolas Kicker.
Sharapova slams ITF
Maria Sharapova hit out at tennis authorities on Friday for failing to warn her that a drug she had been taken had become a banned substance.
Sharapova, a five-times Grand Slam champion, had an initial two-year suspension by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) reduced to 15 months after she tested positive at the 2016 Australian Open for meldonium.
This was a medication the Russian had been taking when it was within the rules but which was later reclassified as a prohibited drug.
“Why didn’t someone come up to me and have a private conversation, just an official to an athlete, which would have taken care of the confidentiality problem they talked about later?” Sharapova told The Times.
However, she did accept she had become “complacent,” saying she was responsible for failing the drug test.
“Ultimately the fault was mine,” she added. “I had been getting clearance on everything I was taking for seven years and I became complacent.”
Meldonium was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency list of banned substances at the start 2016 after increasing evidence that it enhanced performance.
Sharapova is set to make her return to competitive tennis at the WTA Stuttgart Grand Prix, which starts on April 24.
Sock will next face sixth-seeded Feliciano Lopez of Spain, who beat Chung Hyeon of South Korea in three sets 6-4, 2-6, 6-1.
Sock is seeking his third title of the year to go with victories at Delray Beach, Florida and Auckland, New Zealand.
The 2015 champ in this event, Sock is one of four Americans seeded in the tournament’s top five.
Number-two seed John Isner survived an upset bid from qualifier Leonardo Mayer of Argentina with a 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 win in a contest that lasted over two hours. Isner will face wildcard Ernesto Escobedo in the quarters.
Sam Querrey, the third seed, cruised to a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Argentine Horacio Zeballos to reach the quarters for the third-straight year.
Fourth-seeded Steve Johnson also won in straight sets over Dustin Brown of Germany, but the American had to survive a marathon opening set before advancing with a 7-6 (14/12), 6-4 win.
No. 5 seed Fernando Verdasco advanced to a matchup against Johnson with a 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 win over Argentina’s Nicolas Kicker.
Sharapova slams ITF
Maria Sharapova hit out at tennis authorities on Friday for failing to warn her that a drug she had been taken had become a banned substance.
Sharapova, a five-times Grand Slam champion, had an initial two-year suspension by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) reduced to 15 months after she tested positive at the 2016 Australian Open for meldonium.
This was a medication the Russian had been taking when it was within the rules but which was later reclassified as a prohibited drug.
“Why didn’t someone come up to me and have a private conversation, just an official to an athlete, which would have taken care of the confidentiality problem they talked about later?” Sharapova told The Times.
However, she did accept she had become “complacent,” saying she was responsible for failing the drug test.
“Ultimately the fault was mine,” she added. “I had been getting clearance on everything I was taking for seven years and I became complacent.”
Meldonium was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency list of banned substances at the start 2016 after increasing evidence that it enhanced performance.
Sharapova is set to make her return to competitive tennis at the WTA Stuttgart Grand Prix, which starts on April 24.
