Chris Eubanks fought back from a tight third set to defeat Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic on Friday, securing his place in the ATP Hall of Fame Open semifinals. The American, ranked 128th in the world, won five of the last six points in the third-set tiebreaker, ultimately prevailing 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (7/3) after a two-hour and five-minute battle on the grass courts of Newport, Rhode Island.
Eubanks acknowledged the match’s roller coaster nature, highlighting the pivotal third set. “The match had a lot of ups and downs. The third set I really caught a good rhythm and that energized me,” Eubanks said. “After I got that first hold in the third set I felt like myself again. I was enjoying it. I was really pleased with how I played and how I competed. Excited to get another win.”
Eubanks, who won his sole ATP final on the Mallorca grass in June 2023, will now face fellow American Marcos Giron in Saturday’s semifinal. Giron, the second seed, advanced after a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Australian qualifier Alex Bolt, marking his third ATP semifinal of the year, all on home soil. Giron, however, has yet to win a title, having lost to Tommy Paul in the Dallas final in February and fallen to Taylor Fritz in the Delray Beach semifinal.
The other semifinal will pit wild card Reilly Opelka against 19-year-old Alex Michelsen. Opelka, playing in his first tournament since 2022 due to hip and wrist surgeries, is the lowest-ranked player in the ATP era to reach a semifinal, currently sitting at 1,188th in the world. This impressive feat comes after a difficult period for the American who has struggled to find his form since his return.
Eubanks, despite having a relatively poor record this year with only six wins in 21 matches prior to Newport, has found a resurgence on the grass courts. Vukic, who had a strong record in deciding-set tiebreakers this year (8-2), ultimately faltered in the critical moments of the match. He committed a double fault to hand Eubanks a 4-2 lead in the tiebreaker. Despite exchanging some errant forehands, Vukic ultimately netted a forehand volley, giving the fourth-seeded Eubanks the victory.
