Seems like Reilly Opelka is making up for all the time that he lost due to injuries. The ‘Serve Bot’ has made an instant impact in his first ATP tournament since August 2022.
Opelka’s historic run to the semifinals of the Hall of Fame Open 2024 in Newport has caused a wave in the tennis community. Among many others, young American star Ben Shelton is amazed at the level which the 6 feet 11 inches tall Opelka is playing.
After overcoming Constant Lestienne and Adrian Mannarino in the first two rounds, Opelka managed to improve his performance further and overcome fellow American, Mackenzie McDonald.
McDonald did seem to be in the driving seat initially, clinching the first set 6-4. However, Opelka pulled off an impressive comeback, winning the remaining sets 6-3, 6-4.
Shelton’s reaction encapsulated how a majority of the tennis community felt after Opelka’s performance. The US Open 2023 semifinalist took to Instagram and clicked a photo of himself being baffled.
Ben Shelton is almost every tennis fan at the moment, isn’t it? pic.twitter.com/OBDpCuwzA4
— Wide World of Tennis (@tennisfan_dkr) July 19, 2024
Fans also joined Shelton as they were all left in awe of Opelka reaching his first semi-final in a grass-court tournament.
My favorite bot is back let’s go
— Chandler (@C12nation) July 18, 2024
What a comeback amazing
— ⚪ Para Meio Entendedor (@meio_para) July 18, 2024
Looks to be in really good shape!
— P. Gareth Morgan (@pgcmorgan) July 19, 2024
So happy for Reilly!! A great player and a wonderful person!!
— marramire (@marramirem5) July 18, 2024
While he’ll surely be proud of his performance, the 26-year-old will certainly be backing himself to further make history by potentially winning the ATP 250 tournament.
Opelka Makes History by Reaching the Semifinals in Rhode Island
With this performance, Opelka became the lowest-ranked men’s singles player in the history of the sport to reach the last four stage of the main draw of an ATP event.
HISTORY MADE:
Reilly Opelka (Newport 2024) is the lowest-ranked semi-finalist in ATP Tour era (since 1990)!
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) July 18, 2024
Since 2016, Juan Martin Del Potro held this record by reaching the Delray Beach Open semifinals as the World No. 1041. However, the Argentine fell short against Sam Querrey.
If Opelka manages to upset the third seed and another American, Alex Michelsen in the semifinals, there are multiple title contenders that can emerge as the second finalist from the other half of the bracket.
Second seed Marcos Giron seems to be the most likely opponent. But Opelka is very much in the running as his serves have been spotless. He has recorded as many as 62 aces in his first 3 matches, making him a huge threat for any player.
