Steve Johnson advanced to the quarterfinals of the Delray Beach Open with a 7-5 7-5 win over Italy’s Paolo Lorenzi on Thursday. Johnson, who entered the tournament on a nine-match losing streak dating back to last season, looks to be playing well at the right time.<\/p>\n
Johnson saved two break points in the early stages of the match, and had a couple of break chances of his own but couldn’t convert. The American ultimately broke at 6-5 to take the first set. Johnson also had opportunities to go up 5-3 in the second set. He couldn’t collect those, but wound up breaking a couple of games later to take the second set 7-5 on windy day in Delray Beach. Johnson said, “I had to play patient tennis, but I’m happy to get a win.”<\/p>\n
It was Johnson’s first match against the Italian veteran, and he admitted he went through a feeling out process in the early stages of the match.<\/p>\n
Delray Beach has been a tournament where the former NCAA standout typically performs well at. He’s lost in the quarterfinals twice and reached the semifinals last year before falling to eventual runner-up Peter Gojowczyk.<\/p>\n
Johnson, who’s already won four ATP titles in his career, is hoping that a run in Delray Beach is a step in the right direction after struggling in Australia<\/a> and last week at the New York Open. While his forehand and serve continue to be weapons that will help him win a lot of matches, his backhand continues to be a liability as it has been throughout his professional career so far.<\/p>\n These next few weeks are going to be crucial for Johnson as he has a chance to improve his ranking in big tournaments on hard courts. After Delray Beach, he’ll head to Acapulco before his hometown tournament at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.<\/p>\n Main Photo:
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>