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By Chris Oddo | Monday May 29, 2017

 
Steve Johnson

Though he's still mourning the passing of his father, Steve Johnson managed to earn an inspirational victory on Monday in Paris.

Photo Source: Adam Pretty/Getty

There are your dull days, and then there are your bad ones. Day 2 at Roland Garros was most certainly the latter for the American contingent. Three seeds were lopped out of the draw and the stars and stripes went 3-9 overall but there was one giant bright spot: The emotional triumph of Steve Johnson.

More: Mladenovic Fights off Brady in Roland Garros Thriller

Johnson lost his father, Steve Johnson Sr., just over two weeks ago and after some time off, the 27-year-old and his family travelled to Europe to follow-through on a family vacation that was planned long ago. The plan was to have Johnson’s fiancĂ©, mother and sister join him for the first leg of the clay court season while Steve Sr. was to arrive at Wimbledon to join the party.

With a heavy heart, and without the father that was known to many as the perfect tennis dad—a great coach but more importantly a fantastic person that was known to be relaxed, fun-loving and kind—Johnson was able to scratch and claw his way past Yuichi Sugita of Japan 6-3, 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-7(3), 6-3 in a match that took two days.

“It's probably one of the harder matches I've played,” Johnson told media after the match, according to Sandra Harwitt of USA Today.

Harwitt reported that Johnson was wiping tears when he arrived for the interview with a small gathering of reporters and that the crying continued. “My mom and sister had this whole trip planned for years now,” he said. “My mom and sister and, my fiancĂ©e are here, so it makes it easier and harder all at the same time to see them. Just the pain and you, you know, just trying to get through it. You know, it's just hard.”


Johnson Sr. was a prominent coach in Southern California who gave his son the gift of tennis. He passed at 58, but his legacy lives on.

There was hard luck all around for the Americans on Monday. Donald Young and Jennifer Brady each came close to pulling noteworthy upsets but each was edged in dramatic fashion. Brady lost 3-6, 6-3, 9-7 to No.13-seeded Kristina Mladenovic, while Young fell to 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 13-11 to No.30-seeded David Ferrer.

20-year-old Frances Tiafoe also flirted with an upset when he won sets three and four against No.28-seeded Fabio Fognini, but he was bageled in the fifth set and fell, 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 1-6, 6-0.

No.19-seeded CoCo Vandeweghe was swept out by Magdalena Rybarikova, 6-1, 6-4. Vandeweghe drops to 2-6 lifetime at Roland Garros. 25th-seeded Lauren Davis fell in three to Germany’s Carina Witthoeft, 6-2, 3-6, 3-6.


Ryan Harrison fell to Aljaz Bedene in four while Bjorn Fratangelo was knocked off in straight sets by Feliciano Lopez. In one of Monday’s biggest upsets, No.14-seeded Jack Sock was walloped by Jiri Vesely, 7-5, 7-5, 6-3.

18-year-old CiCi Bellis joined Johnson in the winner’s circle by notching a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory over Quirine Lemoine, and Varvara Lepchenko defeated Andrea Petkovic, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

It wasn’t a perfect day by any means for American tennis, but the vision of Johnson soldiering through his pain was one of the most courageous performances that we may see all season.

“I have no thoughts,” Johnson said, according to Harwitt. “I don't really know how to put it into words. Just an emotional time. It's not about tennis right now.”

 

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