This one was a longtime coming for the unranked AmericanJack Sock broke down in tears after an emotional victory at the Delray Beach Open on Tuesday night as the American earned his first ATP main draw win since 2018 by saving a match point and taking down defending champion Radu Albot 3-6 6-3 7-6(2).


Sock, who squatted down on the court after match point and tried to conceal his tears before shaking Albot’s hand, had saved a match point while serving at 5-6 in the third set. The unranked American dominated the tiebreaker to earn a spot in the second round in Delray Beach.

He then headed to his chair and took a seat as the tears continued to flow.

Soci will face his sometimes doubles partner Steve Johnson in the second round at Delray Beach.

It’s easy to see why the victory was so meaningful for the 27-year-old. Sock has struggled with injuries over the last two years. A hip injury plagued him in 2018, and in January of 2019 he injured his thumb and needed surgery which put him out for six months.

Tennis Express

The former World No.8 has won just 10 of his last 37 singles matches at the ATP level and he was clearly relieved to finally pull out a victory on Tuesday night.

"To come out here I felt somewhat back to my normal self," Sock said. "I just kept telling myself I need to get through that first match at a tournament somewhere. My tennis usually gets better throughout an event. So hopefully I can keep producing something."

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