How about that for a debut by American teenager Ryan Harrison? In his first ever singles match at the U.S. Open, the 18-year-old took down Ivan Ljubicic, the No. 15 seed in the men’s draw. Harrison won in fairly convincing fashion too, winning, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-4, over the 31-year old Croatian.
"I’ve always believed in myself; I have always had confidence in myself," Harrison said, speaking clearly and calmly with his hands folded in front of him at a news conference.
Does Harrison have what it takes to potentially be the next great American men’s tennis star?
"Absolutely I want to be that guy," he said. "I have a ways to go to get there, but I’m definitely working as hard as I can. I’m really putting all the work in. I’m trying to stay open-minded as much as possible and take in as much advice as I can."
Next up for Harrison? A Friday match against 36th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky of Ukraine in the second round.