Laver Cup Day 1 Blog: Goffin & Schwartzman thrill; Sock's double duty

WATCH—An interview with Rod Laver, at the Laver Cup:

Red versus blue in the United States. Nope, it's not what you think. It's the second annual Laver Cup, which began Friday afternoon in Chicago's United Center.

Here's a rundown of what's happened so far between defending champion Team Europe—which, despite missing French Open champion Rafael Nadal from its lineup, boasts Australian Open champion Roger Federer, and Wimbledon and US Open champion Novak Djokovic—and the underdog Team World, nominally the home side:

The Bulgarian began and ended this match with aces—he struck 10 overall on what has been reported to be a slow hard court—and aside from a minor lapse in the second set was clearly the superior player. His backhand was an accurate weapon; his concentration didn't waver; his serve kept Tiafoe and his heavy forehand at bay. He hit 27 winners, compared to Tiafoe's seven.

"It's pretty nice to play indoors—no sun, no wind," Dimitrov told Tennis Channel's Paul Annacone after the match. "When you get in a good rhythm you just want to follow it. I think today that's what I did."

The American's lone highlight was the match's best highlight, a 37-shot rally that saw both men visit all areas of the dark grey court:

Tiafoe began his week in Davis Cup—on Sunday, he played a five-set fifth rubber in the U.S.' semifinal loss to Croatia—and ends his week in Laver Cup. Fatigue, both from his tennis and from his travel, was certainly a factor on Friday, but this result boiled down to his ineffective serve. Tiafoe made just 59 percent of his first serves and won 69 percent of those points; on second-serve points, he won just 30 percent of the time.

Dimitrov, who won 88 percent of his first-serve points, converted all four of his break-point chances in a breezy start to the Laver Cup's debut in the Windy City.

"I was hitting my spots pretty well," said Dimitrov. "When you have a high percentage of good serves, the point really goes in your end."

MATCH POINT—Dimitrov d. Tiafoe:

Who says tennis isn't like wrestling? The competitors engage in either one-on-one or tag-team matches. Both have are four major events each year. Each has a heated GOAT debate. (John Isner's pick: Shawn Michaels.)

And so, like a face playing to the crowd, Sock donned the hometown team's jersey—in this case, the Chicago Bulls—as he walked out to the court:

Sock certainly won over the fans, even after trading in his basketball jersey for a tennis shirt. Down a set but playing well overall, Sock exchanged hold after hold—some of them challenging—with Edmund all the way to 4-4. The Brit, who reached the Australian Open semifinals but has been unable to match that success since, showed off his own giant forehand throughout the match; it wasn't just Sock's spin-heavy groundstroke that did damage.

But after saving a break point in his previous service game, Edmund couldn't dig out of a 15-40 hole at 5-5. With the crowd roaring, Sock broke serve and consolidated  to send the match to a 10-point tiebreaker.

Then, suddenly, Sock's game went the way of the hapless Bulls. He lost eight of the first 11 points, four due to unforced errors. Edmund might have felt pressure at the end of the second set, but it was Sock who fell apart at this critical stage. Even so, Edmund's serving during the match tiebreak was relentless, as was his forehand, which he cracked crosscourt to earn Team Europe a second point:

MATCH POINT—Edmund d. Sock:

The prevailing opinion about this matchup of diminutive baseliners was that we'd be treated to some of the day's longest rallies and best shotmaking.

In reality, we got that—and more—from Goffin and Schwartzman, who gave us the best match of the day; even the upcoming doubles spectacle will be hard-pressed to top it. Here's just one example of when world class counterpunchers collide:

Was it the highest quality match? No. Both players had moments where they appeared on the brink of collapse. They vacillated between overzealousness and uncertainty. Schwartzman nearly lost a double-break lead in the second set, and Goffin nearly lost the match after leading the 10-point match tiebreak 5-1.

But it only added to the drama and crowd engagement, which reached a peak at 7-7, when the 5'7" Schwartzman struck an incredible low volley winner (perhaps aided by his lack of height?). He earned two match points at 9-7, but that's when Goffin played some of his most assertive tennis: striking a deep return at 8-9 that allowed him to come in for a forehand finish; at 10-9, closing out his relentless opponent with an inside-out forehand winner:

MATCH POINT—Goffin d. Schwartzman:

In an interview on Tennis Channel earlier this week, Jack Sock said the label of "best doubles player on Earth" is one he appreciates but doesn't love, given his recent singles struggles. Suffice it to say that the label will stick after Day 1 of the Laver Cup.

Sock, who is 6-16 in singles play this season but won the Wimbledon and US Open doubles titles (alongside Mike Bryan), atoned for an afternoon singles loss with a convincing doubles win alongside Kevin Anderson. The American-South African combo dispatched this year's Laver Cup doubles dream team of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, giving Team World a badly-needed point and ending the first day on a brighter note.

MATCH POINT—Sock/Anderson d. Djokovic/Federer:

Combined with his buddy Nick Kyrgios, Sock can get too pumped up for his own good—you've seen it on the sidelines during both editions of Laver Cup. But with Anderson, who went to college at the University of Illinois, there's a powerful balance that can overwhelm any opponents, even those of the caliber of Federer and Djokovic. Anderson almost always takes care of his serve, can take high volleys out of the air—Sock's vicious kick second serve and one-of-a-kind forehand elicited many of them—and has a great set of groundstrokes himself.

On this night, one team had won a combined 34 Grand Slam singles titles; the other had been to a total of two Grand Slam singles finals. But in truth, there wasn't much that separated these four on a doubles court.

Despite being struck in the back by a Djokovic forehand:

Federer put away the first set for "Djokerer/Rogovic" in a tiebreak:

But Sock and Anderson answered with an even cleaner second set of tennis, necessitating a 10-point match tiebreak (the third of Day 1).

At 4-4, Federer struck a double fault—he was the only player broken in this match—which was all his hard-hitting opposition needed. At 8-6, Sock landed a wicked kick serve that Djokovic could hardly get back; Sock's ensuing forehand was a shot Federer couldn't get back. A point after that, a massive Sock forehand led to an easy Anderson putaway at night.

And a point later that, Sock—the greatest doubles player on Earth, many say—and Anderson gave their side and its fans something to cheer about besides that Bulls jersey.