Losing It: A grieving Steve Johnson advances as Borna Coric explodes
The American, who recently lost his father, gave an emotional int
Steve Johnson had already gone through the emotional ringer at Roland Garros on Monday, when he won his first match at a major since the sudden passing of his father. "The last two weeks of tennis hasn’t been about tennis for me," the 27-year-old American said during a difficult press conference.
Johnson's emotions ran high again on Wednesday, when he faced Borna Coric. They were because of his great loss, of course, but also because of a controversial ruling by the chair umpire in the fourth set, with Johnson two points from winning the match. Johnson, who had already been given a conduct warning after annihilating his tennis racquet, was docked a point for ball abuse at 5-4, deuce. Incredulous, Johnson argued with the official, as well as a tournament supervisor, but to no avail.
It was something of a surprise to see Johnson keep it together long enough to eventually win the match in a subsequent tiebreaker, after losing four match points. He didn't keep it together for much longer, and he same could be said for Coric:
After it was over, Johnson spoke to Tennis Channel's Jon Wertheim about how, somehow, he was able to maintain the necessary focus needed to prevail:
Johnson will face sixth-seeded Dominic Thiem in the third round.
Tennis Channel's Daily Serve recaps Day 4 at Roland Garros:
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