With a decisive straight-set victory over Jan Hajek, Brian Baker won his first U.S. Open match in seven years on Wednesday.
U.S. Open 2012 Scores: Brian Baker’s Amazing Comeback Continues
Baker, once the world’s second-ranked junior, had essentially retired due to a series of injuries after the 2005 U.S. Open.
He had been working as an assistant coach at Belmont University in Nashville, where his ability to defeat his players in practice rounds inspired him to pick up a racket as a player at the age of 27. The result has been an improbable comeback story likely to get a lot of play during ESPN’s telecast over the next few days.
Baker now moves on to a second-round match against Janko Tipsaveric, who needed five sets to defeat Guillaume Rufin on Wednesday. Tipsarevic, the No. 8 ranked player in the world, would provide a huge early test for Baker.
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