By Ricky Dimon
A Wimbledon title can go a long way for a tennis player, even when it comes in a discipline that may not be his favorite. For Vasek Pospisil and Jack Sock, that is exactly what is happening. Singles players by nature, Pospisil and Sock captured the Wimbledon doubles title and they are not looking back.
Sock upset John Isner en route to the Newport semifinals and backed that performance up with another singles semifinal in Atlanta (where he lost to Isner). The 21-year-old American also advanced one round this week in Washington, D.C. before extending No. 2 seed Milos Raonic to a pair of tiebreakers.
“Confidence is probably the highest it’s ever been in my career,” Sock said in Atlanta. “I think Wimbledon had a lot to do with it. Obviously I feel somewhat confident either way in singles, but Wimbledon definitely lifts it to a pretty high degree.”
Pospisil needed a lift to an even greater extent than Sock, as a back injury had put the Canadian in a dismal spring slump. Well, he is slumping no more. Pospisil has won two straight doubles titles, having also teamed up with Sock for the win in Atlanta. Additionally, the world No. 36 has advanced to three straight singles quarterfinals; in Bogota, Atlanta, and now in Washington, D.C.
“That and the combination of being healthy and playing on my favorite surface now,” Pospisil said in Atlanta when asked if the Wimbledon doubles title could springboard him to a singles resurgence. “There’s a lot of things now that are in my favor compared to the first five months of the year when I was injured the whole time. But obviously winning Wimbledon doubles, if there’s any kind of confidence-boost I can get, that’s the best one.”
Focusing on singles this week is paying off for the 24-year-old, who is facing Santiago Giraldo for a semifinal spot on Friday night in Washington, D.C. After a week off from doubles, though, he and Sock will resume their budding doubles dynasty in Toronto, Cincinnati, and at the U.S. Open.
“We’re trying to make the ATP finals,” Sock assured. “That’s one of our small goals this year on the side now, obviously aside from singles. (We will try to) keep improving there and climbing in the rankings now that we’re on a little bit of a streak.”
Topics: Atp, jack sock, Ricky Dimon, Tennis, tennis doubles, Us Open Series, Vasek Pospisil
@VasekPospisil, @JackSock IN THE FINE FORM IN BOTH SINGLES AND DOUBLES AS @USOpenSeries ROLLS ON. BY @RD_Tennistalk-http://t.co/u0N0heaBgq
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