The Spanish Martín Landaluce conquered this Saturday the junior US Open, beating the Belgian Gilles Bailly 7-6 (3), 5-7 and 6-2 in the final. The 16-year-old from Madrid was crowned after starting the American tournament as the fifth favorite and knocked down a Bailly who was the second seed. On court 11 of Flushing Meadows, the Spanish player revalidated the victory he had achieved against Bailly this year at Wimbledon, where he fell in the semifinals.
Growing up in Tres Olivos in a family of tennis enthusiasts, Landaluce triumphed with his aggressive tennis, taking the initiative and showing character after Bailly took the second set and forced the third. The man from Madrid, in his first experience in New York and in the United States, twice recovered from some breaks from a disadvantage in the first set to force a tiebreaker that he played impeccably.
He won it 7-3 and seemed to have put the match downhill. He also had two break balls in the eleventh game, but Bailly canceled them out and, in the following game, he got a 'break' that forced the decider.
He is inspired by the German Alexander Zverev and the Spanish Carlos Alcaraz and this Saturday, at the decisive moment, he knew how to show off his best tennis. He had two breaks in Bailly's first two at-bats and dropped just two points on his serve in three games, paving the way for a comfortable 4-0. He sealed the duel with his serve and went on to win junior glory at Flushing Meadows.
The man from Madrid, who shares an agent with Carlos Alcaraz and who has a good friendship with the man from Murcia, is already ready to make the leap to the professional circuit. "This is going to be one of my last junior tournaments. Now I'm going to get into the 'Pro' a bit, I'll start playing tournaments, I'll see how it goes and when I'm 18 I'll decide if I'm going to go professional or go to university", Landaluce said at the end of their semifinal match.
After winning, Landaluce ran to hug his family, who supported him in the stands of court 11, and picked up a Spanish flag to celebrate his title. "My whole family is here, thanks to everyone and everyone who is watching me from home," he said excitedly at the end of the game. "It's been a fantastic week, I really enjoyed it, thank you all for making everything possible," he added.
His rival, who is friendly with Landaluce, congratulated him on the victory and also jokingly sent him a little message. "You're starting to be annoying, after Wimbledon, now this," he told her, causing Landaluce to laugh.
