Sunday, August 14, 2016

Brits in Aptos final; Escobedo earns Open wild card

   It will be an all-British final instead of an all-American final in the $100,000 Nordic Naturals Challenger.
   But Ernesto Escobedo of the United States isn’t complaining.
   No. 1 seed Daniel Evans and qualifier Cameron Norrie won Saturday in Aptos, Calif., clinching the U.S. Open Wild Card Challenge for Escobedo. He will receive a wild card into the main draw of the U.S. Open, Aug. 29-Sept. 11 in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.
   Evans dismissed No. 3 seed Bjorn Fratangelo 6-3, 6-3 at the Seascape Sports Club, and Norrie edged qualifier Eric Quigley 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.
   Escobedo lost in the second round in Aptos but won the Wild Card Challenge on the strength of his title in the $50,000 Lexington (Ky.) Challenger. The American with the most points in two of three tournaments -- $50,000 Binghamton (N.Y.), Lexington and Aptos – earned the U.S. Open wild card.
   Evans, ranked No. 80 in the world and second in Great Britain behind No. 2 Andy Murray, and Norrie, ranked No. 423, will meet for the first time.
   The 26-year-old Evans, only 5-foot-9 (1.75 meters), reached the Aptos final for the second time in four years. He held a championship point before falling to former Stanford star Bradley Klahn in 2013.
   Norrie, 20, advanced to the NCAA singles semifinals in Tulsa, Okla., in May as a Texas Christian sophomore.  
   In today’s doubles final,, Mackenzie McDonald of Piedmont in the San Francisco Bay Area and former Cal star Ben McLachlan of New Zealand will face South Africans Nicolaas Scholtz and Tucker Vorster in a matchup of unseeded teams.
   Here are the Aptos singles and doubles draws and today's schedule.

1 comment:

  1. Paul, what's your take on Escobedo? Saw him in the Citi Open, he's got some major fight-back & seems to want it out there. Thanks!

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