Alex Michelsen...The Future of American Tennis?

[don_budge]

Perhaps it is a little early in the game to start talking about this kid's future but he has made some waves recently and this week he took down Maxime Cressy (109) in the first round, James Duckworth (129) in the second and now he has taken out Mackenzie McDonald (59) by the score 6-3, 6-3 in the third round. John Isner (129) on deck.

A couple of years ago I made a similar post about a Carlos Alcarez sighting down in Acapulco I believe it was. That remark seems to have gotten some traction in the tennis world. Michelsen has been on my radar for some time now. He's been racking up some serious wins on the Challenger Tour of late. He lost to Christopher Eubanks in a close match in Majorrca a couple of weeks ago on grass. This week is on grass too...Newport, Rhode Island.

Here he is against Kei Nishikori a few weeks ago in Chicago. He beat Nishikori in three sets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V10iiMq05cs

[don_budge]

Perhaps it is a little early in the game to start talking about this kid's future but he has made some waves recently and this week he took down Maxime Cressy (109) in the first round, James Duckworth (129) in the second and now he has taken out Mackenzie McDonald (59) by the score 6-3, 6-3 in the third round. John Isner (129) on deck.

A couple of years ago I made a similar post about a Carlos Alcarez sighting down in Acapulco I believe it was. That remark seems to have gotten some traction in the tennis world. Michelsen has been on my radar for some time now. He's been racking up some serious wins on the Challenger Tour of late. He lost to Christopher Eubanks in a close match in Majorrca a couple of weeks ago on grass. This week is on grass too...Newport, Rhode Island.

Here he is against Kei Nishikori a few weeks ago in Chicago. He beat Nishikori in three sets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V10iiMq05cs

Just 18 years old...19 in August.

[stroke]

I am going to put him at the top of my list for a watch. I have not heard of him.

[seano]

The Washington DC Citiopen will be held the 1st week in August. I'll see if he's participating. I'll be sure to check him out if he is.

[don_budge]

The Braintrust of the forum likes to keep things simple these days and keeping it simple...they like each other's simple posts. But the reality is...things are not so simple. Christopher Eubanks had himself a bit of a watershed moment this week in Mallorca, Spain where he won his maiden ATP tournament. On grass no less with Wimbledon just over the horizon. As we all know...every draw sheet tells a story. Well, at least I know it. Rod Stewart knows it as well. "Paris was a place where you could hide away...if you felt you didn't fit in".

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=every+picture+tells+a+story#fpstate=ive& am p;vld= ci d:bf868f69,vid:hqi_m-pMuoI

But at any rate...it was an interesting story. In the first round Eubanks took down an up and comer in Alex Michelson. Alex is eighteen years old and ranked 250 in the world tennis rankings and lost to Eubanks 6-3, 6-7, 7-5. Tough loss for the kid who will be attending University of Georgia...an institution where I lost to the number one player 6-4, 6-4 while managing a torn muscle in my rib cage area. Not to mention dealing with some very obnoxious "fans" of Chris Delaney. Michelson is projected by some to be a top collegiate player in the near future. In the second round Christopher Eubanks, ranked #77, beat Ben Shelton who is currently ranked 33 by the score of 6-7, 6-4, 7-6. Another come from behind grinder...which is a great sign of his competitive nature. Next...Eubanks took down Arthur Rinderknech in duplicate tie-breakers 7-6, 7-6. In the semi finals Eubanks prevailed after once again dropping the first set only this time he saved eight match points in the process in taking out Lloyd Harris 4-6, 6-3, 7-6. Quite a journey.

The "Big Three" managed to cover the final in the minimalist manner that is now the dictate of the forum so there is no need to comment or extrapolate on that. But there are just a couple of interesting side bars that might be of interest to anyone that knows anything about tennis or whatever it is they are calling this nowadays. It was interesting to watch the one hand backhand of Eubanks and how he used it. Obviously his forehand and serve make a lot more noise and draw more attention to the simpler minded...but it was his backhand that got my attention. He used his slice backhand in a very clever and tactical manner. He used it to neutralize and he did it by hitting percentage shots and being patient. He was patient enough to wait to get the ball on his forehand and he was somewhat aggressive in making his way to the net.

Going forwards it will be interesting to see how he reacts to this tournament win. It's a big splash on social media...that's for sure. The kind of thing that makes a young guy think about himself and this leads to the "Great Expectations". What will be his level of performance be at the next stop? The Grand Daddy of them all. The reality is the highest ranking player he defeated was Ben Shelton and next was Adriano Mannerino. That is the low side of the expectations. But on the other hand...he demonstrated a lot of resolve in winning close tight matches and coming back for a set down a couple of times. Three out of five is another ask altogether. So we'll see.

I can't wait to see how the Big Three take on Wimbledon after assessing the performance of The French Open...statistically speaking. I anticipate some imaginary posters and guests as well. Have fun! I'll be out golfing. Wait...am I allowed to say that?

My first reference to young Mr. Michelsen. Misspelled his last name so he didn't come up in my search. I knew that I had referenced him somewhere. I must be getting old. Oh wait...we established that in the witch hunt back in the Aryna serve venue. Skipper was so nice to point out how far over the hill that I actually am. Gee...I hadn't realized it.

But Michelsen has no such problem at eighteen years old and taking a tie-breaker first set from John Isner who sort of specializes in tie-breakers. With his bot serve and all. Extremely clever set from young Alex on a seemingly slick grass court against the huge serving Isner. I hope he is at the Washington tournament for seano to do some scouting. University of Georgia...not too shabby.

[seano]

Michelson beat Isner in the semi's. Hope he plays in DC. It's funny you mentioned Chris Delaney in your previous post. He's a DC product and comes from a well known tennis family around here. Talented player who reached a career high world ranking of 48 in singles. He also won a few doubles titles, as well. His older brother Jim, reached a career high world singles ranking of 58. I actually replaced their younger brother Tim at Congressional C.C. when he left there. Small world.

[stroke]

Michelson plays today in Newport Final at 2:30pm vs seasoned vet Mannarino.

[stroke]

Pretty much a comprehensive win by Mannarino over Michelsen. It was only Mannarino's 3rd career title since he started his ATP career in 2004. Mannarino such a good player. To me, it just shows how difficult a career path ATP tennis is. Michelsen has a great game as DB alluded to. He is very athletic, has good volley skills, a wonderful backhand, certainly good enough forehand, and a quick fast twitch service motion. Certainly seems to have way more of an upside than say Brooksby.

[jimlosaltos]

Certainly seems to have way more of an upside than say Brooksby.

Really? Got to see this guy. How about vs Ben Shelton? Any guesses?

[stroke]

Really? Got to see this guy. How about vs Ben Shelton? Any guesses?

Interesting question. Mickelsen has a very good serve, but certainly not as explosive as Sheldon's. Mickelson has a better backhand. Both have good forehands obviously.

[don_budge]

Michelson beat Isner in the semi's. Hope he plays in DC. It's funny you mentioned Chris Delaney in your previous post. He's a DC product and comes from a well known tennis family around here. Talented player who reached a career high world ranking of 48 in singles. He also won a few doubles titles, as well. His older brother Jim, reached a career high world singles ranking of 58. I actually replaced their younger brother Tim at Congressional C.C. when he left there. Small world.

A watershed moment for young Alex Michelsen. Beating John Isner, who along with Maximus Cressy represented a double slaying of past champions on grass of all surfaces. An eighteen year old emerges out of nowhere to burst on the scene. He made some noise in Mallorca which is also on grass. Fascinating...isn't it? I didn't stay up for the second set of either Isner or Mannarino. But that was certainly an impressive first set against the serve bot.

Mannarino is a clever old pro. Twice as old as young Alex. Never let Alex in the match in that first set. Mannarino stood out wide in the ad court and repeatedly pulled Alex miles off the court. Alex straining to get the two hands on the backhand to the ball. A gold mine for the left hander...if he has that shot in the bag and what left hander doesn't. It is a gold mine...particularly if the opponent is two handed. Mannarino has won a total of three tournaments in his career I believe. One of the others was on grass too. He had the great Roger Federer on the ropes at Wimbledon one of Roger's last appearances. I thought Roger was in the bag. But Mannarino slipped and strained his leg so badly he couldn't continue. He's smart player. He IQ.

But I just loved what young Andy had to say about the whole thing. He said..."I got a tonne of points, I was here on my own trying to figure it out, so I think I did pretty well," Michelsen said. "It was a very good week, a very positive week. Not too many negatives for sure." A great quote that says a ton. He showed up alone. Without a team. He was figuring it out as he went along. Winging it. Flying by the seat of his pants. I say he figured out a thing or two. He will be interesting to watch going forwards.

I really dislike the pinpoint stance. This kid is a prime candidate for the don_budge school of "Zen andThe Art of Serving". seano...get a message to the kid. Tell him there is an old guy in Sweden who can give him that million dollar friction free motion. Just like Roger's...only better.

[jimlosaltos]

Interesting question. Mickelsen has a very good serve, but certainly not as explosive as Sheldon's. Mickelson has a better backhand. Both have good forehands obviously.

Thanks. I hope he enters the new Challenger event at Stanford next month. I'll be sure to check him out. Maybe share a few pics here

[don_budge]

Michelson beat Isner in the semi's. Hope he plays in DC. It's funny you mentioned Chris Delaney in your previous post. He's a DC product and comes from a well known tennis family around here. Talented player who reached a career high world ranking of 48 in singles. He also won a few doubles titles, as well. His older brother Jim, reached a career high world singles ranking of 58. I actually replaced their younger brother Tim at Congressional C.C. when he left there. Small world.

Small world. When I moved to Sweden some 18 years ago I experienced many interesting thoughts and intuitions. One was the concept of "degrees of separation". Chances are you and I may have crossed paths at one time or another. Maybe at the Washington Star tournament where young Alex will surely be given a wild card. What a great memory that is...strolling around the tournament with Don Budge and having the nerve to go up and ask Ion Tiriac about his ability to eat an ashtray. The Delaney connection is also interesting. I remember that match at the University of Georgia rather well. The day before I had beaten the number one player at Furman and served absolutely out of my mind. I really struggled against Delaney because of the pain but only lost my serve once each set. He was of course a very complete player. Polished. I was a bit rough and raw. Still am come to think of it. Some of his buddies were watching with their girlfriends and they were giving me a bit of the business. I turned my attention to the girlfriends and that worked out just fine. Ah...the memories. Skipper thinks I am over the hill. Well...compared to those days I guess I am. But I still have 18 holes a day in me. Walking. Looking forwards to more of young Alex. Mannarino really schooled him in the finals. But Alex will just chalk that one up to experience. Mannarino is no slouch. Particularly on grass. I think it is very interesting that Michelsen is having some early success on grass. He cannot have that much experience on it.

That must be some classy joint you work at.

[don_budge]

Worldwide Match of the Day...Alex Michelsen vs. Maximillian Cressy

In watching the development of young players it is interesting to see how they react to new and novel situations. In order to study the mindset you observe them under different situations. As Alex said...he was just trying to figure it out. Alex is coming off of a huge week in his fledgling tennis career and the downside to this is an immediate letdown due to fatigue and expectations. A tough combination. Tough is a key word in the development of a tennis player. They have to be tougher than nails. Approximately one week ago he beat this very same player in Rhode Island. The match was very tough...particularly so for an 18 year old up and comer against a man who had previously won the tournament. Alex prevailed over Cressy by a score of 6-7, 6-4, 7-5.

It seems to me that posters on this forum are obsessed with things like stroke technique and statistics and when push comes to shove it is all decided on things like attitude, toughness, psychology and tactics. The difference between analyzing match play and the other inconsequential details are...different. So this match is peculiarly interesting given the logistics and circumstances. Over course the obvious technical difference of the players is important as it will dictate to how the match is played tactically. Even psychologically. At any rate...Michelsen vs. Cressy. Case in point.

Lots of tennis being played worldwide. Most of it dull and unimaginative. This match is a little different that the rest. For the moment. Alex is a strong gripped forehand, two-handed backhand and pin-point serving player which hardly separates him from the herd. So in the end...he most likely will become just another character on the tour. He has however shown for the moment at least there is something different about him. His age. Lack of experience. He is novel.

[don_budge]

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The rituals of a tennis player are pretty much the same. Repeat what is working. Never change a winning game.