NEW YORK—The sequel is rarely as good as the original, and that was the case with Ryan Harrison's second main-draw experience at the U.S. Open. Last year, the American—just 18 at the time—won three qualifying matches, upset No. 15 Ivan Ljubicic in the opening round and lost a dramatic five-setter to Sergiy Stakhovsky (Harrison had three match points) inside an electric Grandstand. But Harrison was unable to oust a seeded Croat this time, losing in straight sets to 27th-seeded Marin Cilic, 6-2, 7-5, 7-6 (6).
Playing inside Louis Armstrong Stadium, Harrison had plenty of support, augmented by the delayed start times at Arthur Ashe Stadium and the Grandstand. The Bollettieri Academy product was looking to continue a strong summer in which he reached the semifinals of Atlanta and Los Angeles, both hard-court tournaments. But the sizable, partisan crowd had little to cheer about today; Harrison's serve abandoned him early on and was never discovered. He was thrice broken in the opening set, double-faulting five times and making a paltry 35 percent of first serves. It was an ominous sign, along with Harrison's ball abuse, on display after missing a volley down break point.
Not all of Harrison's struggles were self-inflicted, however. Cilic's play was reminiscent of his early-2010 form, when he consistently mixed deep, heavy-spun shots with low, high-pace balls without fail. He did that today, putting the attack-minded American on frequent defensive duty (Harrison also rarely serve-and-volleyed). Cilic not only played his game well, he played with Harrison's, too. Sensing the youngster's weaker backhand side, Cilic repeatedly blasted forehands there, forcing Harrison to slice harmlessly in return. He also used one of Harrison's strength's—his top spin—against him. Standing 6'6", Cilic was unfazed by Harrison's high-bouncing shots, taking them at their apexes and swatting them back. Harrison could only handle Cilic's sweet-spot shots for so long before the damage was done.
But Harrison's serving woes were undoubtedly the largest factor in this result. He served for the second and third sets, each time broken without earning a set point. In the third set, Harrison was given a second chance in a tiebreaker, but squandered 4-1 and 5-2 leads despite some nervous play from Cilic, who would save a set point with a volley winner and collected his first (and only) match point the same way.
Harrison wasn't offered that shot at redemption in set two; after failing to consolidate his break of serve at 5-4, Cilic rattled off the next three games to essentially end his opponent's chances. After Harrison stoned a bread-and-butter volley down 5-6, he wound up and kicked the green sphere into the crowd, accurate and with good distance. It would have been called "good" in pro football. None of which can be said about Harrison's tennis today.
—Ed McGrogan