The US Open qualifying rounds are always a grueling test. Players fight for every point, hoping to make it into the main draw. This week, a young Portuguese talent, Henrique Rocha, really made his mark. He pushed through a tough match to reach the second round of qualifying for the first time in New York.
Rocha, ranked 168th in the world, faced Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who is ranked 139th. It was a real battle on the court, lasting two hours and 39 minutes. Rocha dug deep and won in three sets: 6-4, 6-7 (1-7), and 6-4. This win felt different for him, especially after he missed out on the second qualifying round last year. He truly broke new ground with this victory.
Next up for Rocha is a match against Australian Bernard Tomic. Tomic is just one spot below Rocha in the world rankings, at 169th. This promises to be another close contest.
But Rocha wasn’t the only Portuguese player making headlines. Earlier on the same day, Jaime Faria also punched his ticket to the second round of qualifying. Faria, ranked 118th, overcame Japanese player Rio Noguchi, who is ranked 196th. That match also went to three sets, with Faria winning 3-6, 6-4, and 6-3. Faria’s next challenge will be against Italian Giulio Zeppieri, who sits at 260th in the rankings.
Looking ahead, the main event already has some familiar faces from Portugal. Nuno Borges, who is the country’s top player and ranked 42nd globally, has a direct spot in the singles main draw. He earned it with his strong ranking, avoiding the tough qualifying matches. And in the doubles competition, Francisco Cabral is also set to play in the main draw. He will team up with Austrian Lucas Miedler. It’s shaping up to be a good showing for Portuguese tennis at the final Grand Slam of the season.