DONALD YOUNG JR. TAKES OUT 2015 WIMBLEDON QUARTERFINALIST POSPISIL ON ANOTHER RAINY DAY OF TENNIS AT THE QUEEN’S CLUB IN LONDON

Written by: Staff on 14th June 2016

DONALD YOUNG JR. TAKES OUT 2015 WIMBLEDON QUARTERFINALIST POSPISIL ON ANOTHER RAINY DAY OF TENNIS AT THE QUEEN'S CLUB IN LONDON |

By Ricky Dimon

The July and August hard-court swing is generally the time of year when Donald Young begins to heat up. In 2016, however, the American may be finding his form a few weeks earlier than usual. After qualifying for the AEGON Championships main draw with victories over Alex Ward and Frances Tiafoe, Young parlayed that success into a 6-3, 6-4 defeat of fellow qualifier Vasek Pospisil during first-round action on Tuesday afternoon.

One break in the opening set was enough for the world No. 75, because he saved all five of the break points he faced. But that’s when torrential rain that has been plaguing all of Europe over the past month caused another delay.

Vasek Pospisil returns the ball to Donald Young Jr. at the Queen’s Club Aegon Championships.

Nonetheless, Young was not about to let the interruption halt his momentum. The Atlanta, Ga. native also needed to break Pospisil’s only once in the second set because he the finished the match nine for nine in break points saved. A clutch hold at 5-4 wrapped things up for Young after one hour and nine minutes.

Given the relatively straightforward scoreline, perhaps the match’s only suspense came in the possibility that Young was wearing a marijuana leaf on his shirt. More than a few fans who have not seen him play recently must have been thinking that, and some even posed the question on Twitter.

But no, that’s no such leaf. It’s just Boast.

Boast owner/president John Dowling sat down for an interview last September with Fortune magazine, after Young made a run to the U.S. Open fourth round. “I just don’t want people to think it’s a gimmick, like a joke brand,” Dowling said of the logo’s resemblance to a pot leaf. “Because it’s not. And when they learn the history and learn it’s a Japanese maple leaf, they think it’s cool. Or they’re just going to laugh. It’s a wink. It’s a mystery. It’s like, ‘could that possibly be…?’ I mean, I met a tennis coach at West Point who had his players wear Boast.”

And Young will be wearing it into the last 16 at Queen’s Club, where he will face Roberto Bautista Agut. Sam Querrey almost made it an all-American showdown, but he fell to Bautista Agut 7-6(2), 6-7(4), 7-6(1).

Competitive contests such as the Bautista Agut vs. Querrey thriller were the name of the game at Queen’s Club on Tuesday. Aljaz Bedene ousted Benoit Paire in three sets, Janko Tipsarevic upset Grigor Dimitrov in three, Marin Cilic overcame Feliciano Lopez 6-4 in the third, lucky loser Jiri Vesely edged Jeremy Chardy 7-6(3), 6-7(5), 6-4, and Andy Murray beat ‘s-Hertogenbosch champion Nicolas Mahut in a pair of tiebreakers.

Second-seeded Stan Wawrinka did not enjoy the same fate as No. 1 seed Murray. Wawrinka was surprised by 2013 Wimbledon quarterfinalist Fernando Verdasco 6-2, 7-6(3).