Sam Querrey's glorious Wimbledon run continues

ByGREG GARBER
July 4, 2016, 7:40 PM

— -- LONDON -- You've just played the match of your life, ending Novak Djokovic's 30-match Grand Slam winning streak. How do you possibly summon the strength and concentration required to follow that up -- against an unseeded Frenchman ranked No. 51 in the world?

Oddly enough, it wasn't a problem Monday for smiling, happy-go-lucky Sam Querrey, who is playing like he doesn't fully comprehend where he is.

A single shot captured his uncanny verve and nerve on the way to the Wimbledon quarterfinals: With Nicolas Mahut serving at 4-5, 15-all in the first set, Querrey was forced to retreat from the net when Mahut struck a beautiful lob, high and deep. Querrey raced back to the baseline, turned swiftly and ripped a savage cross-court forehand. Mahut, transfixed, could only get a frame on it.

The No. 28-seeded Querrey went on to score the decisive break and went on to win the match 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-4.

"It was a match I wanted to win to make it to the quarterfinals," Querrey said. "If I didn't win, there would have been a lot of, `Wow, it was kind of a fluky match against Novak because you didn't back it up.'

"I feel like I did a really good job of putting my head down and playing really well today."

And so for Querrey, a 28-year-old Californian, the glorious run continues. He has made some personal history here, becoming:

? A Grand Slam quarterfinalist for the first time, on his 38th try.

? The first American to reach the quarters at Wimbledon since Mardy Fish in 2011.

? The first U.S. man to reach the quarters at any Slam in nearly five years, going back to John Isner and Andy Roddick at the 2011 US Open.

After beating Djokovic, Querrey got the expected flood of texts from family and friends -- and admitted he wasn't afraid to re-experience that marvelous moment by watching SportsCenter.

"I'm not going to lie," Querrey said. "After the Novak match, I watched every highlight I could, over and over. Enjoyed the hell out of that moment.

"For me, the win was real exciting. But my match today, I was playing for my first [major] quarterfinal. There was still something exciting, like another carrot on the line for me to play for."

Mahut's brush with fame came here six years ago when he was on the losing end of that 70-68 fifth set with Isner. After the longest match in tennis history, the 34-year-old Frenchman acquitted himself well, graciously, patiently answering questions on a daily basis.

What casual tennis fans probably didn't know is that Mahut is something of a wizard when the surface is grass. All five of his finals appearances (and three titles) have come on grass. His career record is 150-186 (.446), but a spiffy 63-34 (.649) on grass. He's also half of the No. 1-seeded doubles team here, with fellow Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Curiously, Mahut had also beaten Querrey in their two previous meetings, at the 2015 US Open and a few weeks ago in The Netherlands on grass. Mahut, an agile and forward-moving athlete, has a rare affinity for picking up those low, skidding balls that Wimbledon presents.

Mahut was still hanging around in the second set, which wound up in a tiebreaker. Querrey hit an unreturnable serve for a 5-4 lead and went up 6-4 when Mahut sent a forehand long. He converted his second set point while standing at net, tapping a forehand into the open court.

On a day reserved for fireworks in the States, Querrey's serve sizzled. He hit 83 serves, and 43 of them did not come back. That's a phenomenal percentage of 52 percent -- a lot of free points. He had 23 aces, and through four matches is at 97, second to Isner's 114.

Querrey finished it famously; the last three points were all emphatic aces.

Over his career, Querrey has developed a reputation for playing less than his best when the stakes are highest. Here at Wimbledon, he has been a different man.

After beating Djokovic on Wimbledon's second-largest court, No. 1 Court, the intimacy of Court 18 -- it features only 800 seats -- might have been a blessing for Querrey.

"I was fine with whatever court they threw me on today," he said. "You know, I haven't felt many nerves yet this week. I think I'm kind of over that almost. Hopefully, will just kind of play freely and have fun and play big and hopefully get another win."

He's sitting at the very top of the men's draw, waiting for the Milos Raonic- David Goffin match to produce his next opponent. So far, Smiling Sam has made this run through some heavy metal look like a stroll across the street in sprawling Wimbledon Park.

Querrey will have a rare day off Tuesday. His team will make every effort to keep him loose and unaware of the dizzying heights his play has taken him to.