Stefanos Tsitsipas suffers shock first-round loss to Daniel Galán at US Open
In a wild first-round loss to Daniel Galán at the US Open, world title candidate Stefanos Tsitsipas found himself out of his depth against the tough Argentine, who saved his best for the final set.
With Tsitsipas trying to defend his US Open championship, he lost in a thrilling final set, which saw both men trading breaks in order to take the second set.
Tsitsipas came through at a crucial time by beating David Ferrer, but the loss to Galán highlighted the problems the Serb faces to retain his US Open crown.
The Spaniard had defeated Sam Querrey, who would go on to defeat him in the final of 2016 US Open, to become the first man to win a career grand slam title for a second time in 2018.
Tsitsipas came into the final against Galán with the world’s number two ranking in the world, and came out flying. Tsitsipas, who won the Madrid Open to begin the year, started the day at 3-0, and Galán looked out of his depth quickly as he was struggling to find his feet.
Tsitsipas, who has had an exceptional start to the season, had a tough time against Galán, who was ranked number four in the world in early November. Galán looked uncomfortable in the first meeting at the Madrid Open, but he showed signs of his class by being the first man to clinch a set against compatriot Pablo Cuevas, who was also in action on Sunday.
The Spaniard started the second set with a break, and then Galán hit back and made an opening set point when he saw a backhand into the side of the net from a corner.
The two players traded two breaks in the fourth set but it mattered little. Galán then took command in the fifth set, holding to take his maiden career major while Tsitsipas began to lose momentum.
Tsitsipas was in complete control for the first few games of the final, but Galán took him on with his serve and