By Erik Gudris / Sunday, December 22, 2013

 

Steve Johnson had yet to win a five set match all year. But he used that experience to fuel himself to winning the Australian Open Wild Card Playoffs.

Photo Credit: Tennis Now

Steve Johnson was 0-4 in best-of-five matches this season. Tennys Sandgren, who had never played one, wished that Sunday's match would go the distance. And Sandgren got his wish when the Australian Open Wild Card Playoffs final came down to a decisive fifth set.

Both men split the first two sets in similar fashion. Sandgren converted an early break of serve and went on to book the opening set 6-4. Johnson returned the favor by going up 3-1 in the second before closing it out 6-3.

While Johnson was the more experienced player when it came to dealing with a best-of-five scenario, Sandgren looked poised to seize control of the match on his terms. With explosive serving, backed up with attacking forays into the net, Sandgren opened up at 3-0 lead in the third. Pouncing on yet another return, Sandgren broke again for 4-0.

Though Johnson tried to hold serve for at least one game, it wasn't enough as Sandgren raced away with the third set 6-0 to go up two sets to one.

The fourth set saw both men upping their games and often sliding around on all sides of the court as they tried to chase down balls. Johnson took a tumble midway through the set and had to call for a medical time out to have his left ankle taped. Johnson resumed play but still had to deal with Sandgren's massive serving.

At 6-5, Sandgren soon earned a match point when a dipping return forced a Johnson error. But Johnson responded with an ace to force the game to deuce. Eventually Johnson held to level the set and bring on a tiebreak. Though Sandgren went up 5-3, Johnson answered with a big return and subsequent huge serve to level it at 5-all. Then Sandgren, unhappy with a call on the next point, found himself staring down a set point.

Perhaps feeling the moment, and still steaming over the call, Sandgren double faulted to give Johnson the set 7-6(5). Now Sandgren had his wish. The match was dead even and heading into the ultimate test in the sport - a fifth set. But how he would respond? And what about Johnson, who had suffered heartbreak in his own five-setters this season?

The experience of Johnson would provide the answer. Though still bringing his firepower with his serve and returns, Sandgren looked more distracted and at unease with the moment. At 2-1, Sandgren would fight off several break points against him. But a short volley allowed Johnson to hit an easy putaway for 3-1 and the break.

Johnson didn't look back. After holding serve, he broke a dejected Sandgren again for 5-1. From there, Johnson seized the moment and eventually served out the 4-6, 6-3, 0-6, 7-6(5), 6-1 win.

The trophy ceremony said it all with a smiling, relieved Johnson taking in the moment while Sandgren had a look of "what might have been."

When asked to relive staring down match point, Johnson gave a reflective answer. "I just kind of ran the best play I could. Luckily, it worked, and here we are,” Johnson said. “That’s just tennis. He’s one point away from winning, and 20 minutes later I’m up a break and trying to squeeze him for another one. I’m excited to finally win a five-set match."

In his previous losing efforts in five setters, Johnson admitted that he had been too fired up for the occasion and wanted to prove to the world that he was fit enough to win one. On Sunday, he took a different approach and relied on the knowledge that he could go for five hours if need be. Johnson plans to play a challenger next in Noumea and then, depending on how that goes, may also play qualifying in Sydney.

But for the next few days at least, Johnson will celebrate his upcoming 24th birthday with an early present that was almost out of his grasp - a main draw berth into the Australian Open.