University of Memphis Athletics
Photo by: Joe Murphy
Salisbury Advances to Wimbledon Quarterfinals
Jul 09, 2018 | Men's Tennis
Becomes first former Tiger to advance past Wimbledon doubles third round.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Former University of Memphis men's tennis player Joe Salisbury and doubles teammate Frederik Nielsen were kings of the tiebreaker in a 5-7, 7-6 (3), 6-3, 7-6 (1) victory over the sixth-seeded team of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, Monday, in the Wimbledon Gentlemen's Doubles Third Round. With the victory, Salisbury becomes the first former Memphis men's tennis player in program history to advance past the third round of the Wimbledon doubles event. Mel Purcell reached the doubles third round in 1984, while Chip Hooper reached the third round in both 1986 and 1987. Purcell was also a Wimbledon singles quarterfinalist in 1983.
Cabal and Farah, quarterfinalists at the last Grand Slam event at the French Open at Roland Garros, needed just one break of serve to claim the 39-minute opening set, 7-5.
In the second set, Salisbury served to get to a tiebreaker, and then in the tiebreak, ripped a backhand return down the line for a 4-1 advantage. Two aces later, the duo held a 6-1 advantage, but Cabal grabbed two points back to cut into the lead at 6-3. Salisbury, playing in front of a home crowd, stabbed a volley for a winner at the 53-minute mark of the set, grabbing the tiebreak win and evening the match at one-all.
Salisbury held serve to open the third set, and he and Nielsen immediately pressured Farah's service game. Up 0-40 at one point, the wildcard duo weathered an ace and a volley winner before a Salisbury backhand volley sealed the break for a 2-0 lead. That break would be all he and Nielsen would need, as they held serve the rest of the set and grabbed the 6-3 third set victory and a 2-1 edge in the match.
The first two points of the fourth set were highly-contested, going to deuce in both Cabal and Nielsen's first service games. But both servers held and the match remained knotted all the way to six-all. Back in a tiebreak situation, Salisbury and Nielsen led 2-1 when Cabal, the No. 12 ranked doubles player in the world, stepped back to serve. He double-faulted for a 3-1 deficit, then committed a foot fault for a 4-1 cushion. Salisbury and Nielsen kept the pressure on, forcing a return volley long and using an ace for a 6-1 lead. On the next point, Salisbury returned a Farah serve that the Colombian charged up and got a racket on, but it hit the tape and gave the former Tiger and his doubles partner the pass through to the quarterfinal round.
In the quarterfinal round, Salisbury and Nielsen will face the No. 14 seeded team of Ben McLachlan and Jan-Lennard Struff. McLachlan and Struff defeated the German pairing of Philipp Petzschner and Tim Puetz, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to advance to the quarterfinals.
Cabal and Farah, quarterfinalists at the last Grand Slam event at the French Open at Roland Garros, needed just one break of serve to claim the 39-minute opening set, 7-5.
In the second set, Salisbury served to get to a tiebreaker, and then in the tiebreak, ripped a backhand return down the line for a 4-1 advantage. Two aces later, the duo held a 6-1 advantage, but Cabal grabbed two points back to cut into the lead at 6-3. Salisbury, playing in front of a home crowd, stabbed a volley for a winner at the 53-minute mark of the set, grabbing the tiebreak win and evening the match at one-all.
Salisbury held serve to open the third set, and he and Nielsen immediately pressured Farah's service game. Up 0-40 at one point, the wildcard duo weathered an ace and a volley winner before a Salisbury backhand volley sealed the break for a 2-0 lead. That break would be all he and Nielsen would need, as they held serve the rest of the set and grabbed the 6-3 third set victory and a 2-1 edge in the match.
The first two points of the fourth set were highly-contested, going to deuce in both Cabal and Nielsen's first service games. But both servers held and the match remained knotted all the way to six-all. Back in a tiebreak situation, Salisbury and Nielsen led 2-1 when Cabal, the No. 12 ranked doubles player in the world, stepped back to serve. He double-faulted for a 3-1 deficit, then committed a foot fault for a 4-1 cushion. Salisbury and Nielsen kept the pressure on, forcing a return volley long and using an ace for a 6-1 lead. On the next point, Salisbury returned a Farah serve that the Colombian charged up and got a racket on, but it hit the tape and gave the former Tiger and his doubles partner the pass through to the quarterfinal round.
In the quarterfinal round, Salisbury and Nielsen will face the No. 14 seeded team of Ben McLachlan and Jan-Lennard Struff. McLachlan and Struff defeated the German pairing of Philipp Petzschner and Tim Puetz, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to advance to the quarterfinals.
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