Cape Town tennis ace Lloyd Harris has surprised friend and foe at the US Open this year, making it to the quarterfinal where he will face Alexander Zverev tonight.
Playing in his first quarterfinal in a Grand Slam, the 24-year-old Harris will once again take the court as the underdog against fourth seeded German, who won gold at the Olympic Games in Tokyo earlier this year.
But the unseeded South African has punched above his weight at the Arthur Ashe Stadium this year, beating 25th seed Karen Khachanov in the first round, klapping Ernesto Escobedo in the second, shocking seventh seed Denis Shapovalov in the third and then finally getting the better of home boy and 22nd seed Reilly Opelka in the fourth round on Monday.
Harris, who also beat Rafael Nadal last month, says of his game: “It’s been a much more consistent season for me... I always knew I had the level, the ability, I never had a problem beating some of the top guys.
“But it was the consistency of playing at that level which was a challenge for me and I think it’s something that I’ve done a lot better this season.
“It’s reflecting and I’m just happy with the progress I’ve made in that regard.”
Having overtaken 2017 finalist Kevin Anderson as South Africa’s top tennis player, Harris says of the former: “He has done some amazing things in the last couple of years and that gives you a lot of belief seeing your countryman has done it...
“He’s been an inspiration to a lot of kids in South Africa, and hopefully I can also show them now there is a pathway to come through.
“He is definitely the first one that has shown that South Africans can still play pretty good tennis.”
With his previous best being a third-round Grand Slam finish, Harris will be looking to cause yet another upset and make the final four for the first time in his career.