Sam Querrey will start his Los Cabos Open campaign tonight against Santiago Giraldo in the first match of the Pegaso Stadium. The last few months have been amazing for the American as he reached his first quarterfinals in a Grand Slam at Wimbledon and he did it in style. This season, Querrey has already achieved so much, including one title but the American wants more especially now that the US Open is so close. Making another deep run at his home Grand Slam would be another highlight for what has been a great year.
VAVEL USA had an exclusive sit down with Sam Querrey days before his first round match in which he talked about his great run at Wimbledon, his plans for the rest of the year, his favorite sports, and physical health.
On his big win at Wimbledon
The name Sam Querrey was on every headline the day after his third round match in Wimbledon. He had done what many believed it was impossible, defeat the defending champion and world number one, Novak Djokovic. Many believed that Querrey wouldn’t be able to close the match as it was postponed due lack of light. He was two sets down, but this wasn’t the first time the world number one was in that position.
Just a year before he was struggling in the fourth round against Kevin Anderson, just like in this year’s match it was postponed a day and Djokovic came back the next day to turn things and win the match. He eventually won the tournament. People believed the story was about the repeat, especially when Djokovic came back and won the third set. However, Querrey wasn’t going to waste this chance and completed the upset after a grueling tiebreak.
“It's incredible, especially at Wimbledon, the biggest tournament in the world. I'm so ecstatic right now, so happy. I played the break points really well. I was able to come up with a big serve when I needed it and just there in the tie-break I got a couple of errors and that was it.” Those were his words following that great victory in which he played one of the best matches of his career.
The success continued as he managed to reach his first quarterfinal at a major following his victory against Nicolas Mahut. However, his run ended at that stage as he faced the eventually runner-up, Milos Raonic. Just like in the match against Djokovic, Querrey put on a brilliant performance even taking a set but in the end, it wasn’t enough.
On the injury that forced him to retire from Toronto
After that great summer in London, Querrey came back to America where he participated at the Citi Open. There he started the tournament in a tough match against country fellow, Bjorn Fratangelo. Then scored a straight sets victory over Alexandr Dolgopolov before falling to the eventual champion, Gael Monfils in three sets. His next stop was at Toronto where he defeated Frank Dancevic of Canada in straight sets. Querrey was aiming to make a deep run in Toronto but a pain in the lower back stopped him from doing that. In his second round match against David Goffin he retired after losing the first set. “I hurt my lower back which I’m done three or four times before in the past. I’m not a hundred percent sure what happened, my pelvis kind of got twisted and I got extreme muscles spasms on my lower back and it’s excruciating for three or four days and I can’t really move,” he said when asked about what happened during the match.
Injuries happen all the time in tennis and Querrey has had his fair share of them including one in 2009 that even threatened his career after a glass table in which he was sitting collapsed, impaling his arm and requiring emergency surgery. Now seven years later and after some other injuries, Querrey feels that he is healthy and ready to face any challenge that could be presented to him. The pain that forced him to retire from Toronto is gone and he is completely fit. “I’ve been to rehabilitation the whole week and I’m fine now. I feel a hundred percent and I’m ready to go for this week.”
On his past results in Mexico
Although this is the first edition of Los Cabos Open, Querrey is not a stranger to the place. He admits he likes to go here on vacation and has been here many times before but this is the first time he will play in here. “I’ve been here probably like ten times. I live in southern California, so I’ve come here on vacation a bunch and it’s such a quick trip, a forty-five minutes flight and I love it down here.” Still, Querrey has played three times in Mexico but at the Mexican Open which takes place at Acapulco.
In 2010, he had a disappointing first round exit against Fernando Gonzalez in which he lost in three-set, the third in a tiebreak. He didn’t come back until 2014 where he had a better run defeating Mexico’s Tigre Hank, however, he lost in the following round to the eventual runner-up, Kevin Anderson in straight sets.
Querrey came back this year at the Mexican Open expecting to get better results and he did when he defeat one of the best players, Kei Nishikori. That win surely gave him confidence as he managed to reach the semifinal before falling to Dominic Thiem in straight sets. Thiem went on and won the tournament.
And as his first match approaches he feels ready to play any challenge, he confirms that he is feeling good and is excited about the rest of the season. “I took almost a week off because of my back but the five or six days it’s been great. It was good to be home and kind of regroup. I’m looking forward playing here and the next three weeks until the US Open.”
However, Querrey feels confident coming into this tournament and expects a good result in Los Cabos. “I’m going to take one match at a time, but I’m hoping to win the tournament like all the guys are. There’s a good feel here and it’s gonna be tough but I feel I’m playing well and I’m confident right now I can make a deep run here."
On his love for other sports and his new favorite team
After his amazing match at Wimbledon, he’s got many offers including one that he’s been wanting to do for years: tossing the ceremonial first pitch at a Dodgers game. It’s not the first time he’s done that as he did it in 2014 prior to the Braves vs. Mets game. However, this time, was probably more exciting as he is an avid Dodgers fan. “It was great, I’ve been a huge Dodgers fan since I’ve been about 10 years old and I love baseball, so I’ve been wanting to do that for five years so to have the chance was very exciting.”
“If I could play any other sport it would be football, but I like all sports I like basketball, baseball, I like to golf and I played all those sports until I was about fifteen years old and I still watch and follow all those sports,” he said when asked what sport he would have liked to play professionally. Born in San Francisco, California he’s been waiting for a football team to support and now he has one, Los Angeles Rams. “The new team this year, we never had a football team in Los Angeles, so I didn’t have a favorite team but now the St. Louis Rams moved to Los Angeles my favorite is the Rams.” Querrey is also hoping to go as a fan to some of the matches and hopes to see his brand new favorite team one day at the Super Bowl.
In his first match at Los Cabos, he will face Santiago Giraldo. They’ve played before four times and it’s the American who leads the series 3-1. Their last match was last year on grass at Nottingham where he defeated the Colombian in straight sets.
