"Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe aren't covering that" - Sam Querrey reveals when he thought he would win US Open
Former tennis player Sam Querrey has revisited the match during which he thought he would win the US Open. Querrey produced some exceptional tennis on that occasion, and according to him, even the likes of Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe would not have been able to deal with him.
The match came in the fourth round of the 2017 edition, and Mischa Zverev, Alexander Zverev's elder brother, was Querrey's opponent. Played out in the iconic Arthur Ashe Stadium, the night match saw the American completely outplay the German. Querrey would go on to register a dominant 6-2, 6-2, 6-1 win over Zverev.
Recently, Querrey revisited his best moments from that match in an Instagram post. The 36-year-old opined that on the night, he played a curling forehand passing shot similar to Rafael Nadal. He also proudly reflected on how his shotmaking left Zverev unable to come up with any effective solution.
"Watch this passing shot. Zing! That thing is 2 feet in the alley and it comes back. A lot of people say Rafa is the only guy hitting that kind of curl, but no, on this night, I was hitting it too. Mischa is a serve and volleyer, but you know what? There was just nothing to do against me all night! It was winner after winner after winner," Querrey said.
The former World No. 11 proceeded to look back at a bewildering crosscourt shot as well, which, in his opinion, even former World No. 1s Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe wouldn't have been able to return. Querrey also said that he started feeling during the match that he would win the US Open that year.
"I was seeing the ball like a watermelon! Look at that, it's a thing of beauty! Watch this right here, that's a good volley (from Mischa Zverev) and boom! You can't guard that. Bjorn Borg isn't covering that. John McEnroe isn't covering that. No one is covering that, that's a winner to everyone," Querrey added.
"Halfway through this match, I honestly thought I was going to win the US Open," Querrey said.
However, despite Querrey's resounding performance and inner belief about his US Open hopes that night, he would go on to lose in the quarterfinals, with eventual runner-up Kevin Anderson beating him 7-6(5), 6-7(9), 6-3, 7-6(7).
Sam Querrey never made it past the US Open quarterfinals across 16 main draw appearances
Querrey's first taste of action at the New York Major came in 2005, but it was in the qualifying rounds, where he fell at the first hurdle. The next year, the American would make his main draw debut at the hardcourt Major and register a second-round finish.
However, across the 15 other US Open main draw appearances that he went on to make, he never went beyond the quarterfinals. Since his loss to Anderson at the 2017 US Open, Querrey made five more main draw appearances at Flushing Meadows, but on each occasion, he was bundled out in the first round.
Across all other Majors, the American's best finish came at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships, where he reached the semifinals before losing to eventual runner-up Marin Cilic. In August 2022, Querrey announced his retirement, with his last singles outing coming in a first-round loss to Ilya Ivashka at that year's US Open.