Gilles Muller secured his place in U.S. Open lore three years ago, when the unknown left-hander from Luxembourg shocked third-seeded Andy Roddick in the first round. Topping this accomplishment would be difficult, but Muller is giving it a run this year. After winning three qualifying matches to reach the main draw, Muller has come back to win from two sets down twice – once against Tommy Haas on Friday, and again today against Nicolas Almagro.
This match came to be defined by one shot – the serve – which was evident very early on. Neither player earned a break point in the first set, which Almagro won in a tiebreaker. In the second set, there was just one break of serve, which also went Almagro’s way. The fiery Spaniard took a two set lead, hitting his forehand as effectively as his picturesque backhand, and regularly serving over 130 MPH.
In spite of his strong serving, Muller seemed to be on his way out of the draw because Almagro was doing this just a hair better. Add in the fact that Muller had already played five matches this week, and a comeback seemed highly unlikely. But Muller answered a lot of questions in the third set when he saved two break points at 4-4, and eventually pulled out the set in a tiebreaker. Like the first set, there were no breaks of serve. But that was fine for Muller, whose confidence grew with every service game. “Everything is confidence,” said Muller after the match.
Muller’s resolve was once again tested in the fourth set. Almagro earned two break – and match – points at 5-4, but Muller saved them both with steely play under pressure. He held for 5-5, and in yet another tiebreaker, Muller emerged victorious on his second set point. Remarkably, Muller had clawed back to square the match at two sets apiece.
For the fifth time in the match, there were no breaks of serve after seven games. That’s when things got interesting. Serving at 4-3, Almagro won a four-deuce game despite giving Muller three chances to break. Two games later at 5-4, Muller earned a match point of his own, only to push a slice shot wide. The nerve-wracking service games would continue.
A final set tiebreaker seemed appropriate, considering that there was only one break of serve in nearly four hours of play. But Almagro would have to hold serve one last time to get there. It would turn out to be the only time in the match he couldn’t. On his second match point, Muller struck a volley winner that sent chills through Grandstand court, and sent Muller into the fourth round.
After a stunning 6-7, 3-6, 7-6, 7-6, 7-5 loss, Almagro walked in stunned silence to his chair. His shock persisted into his post-match press conference. As for Muller, he talked about the most important shot of the day – the serve. “I knew if I didn’t hold it would be very hard to come back, because he was holding serve easily,” said Muller. “But I was also confident because I served well against Tommy before.”
Muller’s serve was broken just once when he beat Roddick in 2005 (7-6, 7-6, 7-6), and just once today. Each performance was unique in its own way, but both were career-defining victories for the 25-year old from Luxembourg.
