The Orange County Breakers won all five sets in a 25-13 victory over the Vegas Rollers Thursday, their first of the 2020 World TeamTennis season after three losses.
Steve Johnson, Gaby Dabrowski and Austin Krajicek each won two sets at White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, site of The Greenbrier resort where World TeamTennis is scheduled to play its entire season after the league concluded the coronavirus outbreak made it impossible for teams to complete the necessary air travel to and from its nine cities.
Dabrowski and Krajicek both signed with the Breakers as free agents Tuesday after they lost both of their first two matches. Dabrowski and Krajicek lost to Rajeev Ram and Bethanie Mattek-Sands, 5-3, in mixed doubles in Wednesday’s 23-16 loss to the Chicago Smash in their Breakers debuts.
Dabrowski teamed with Krajicek for a 5-4 victory over Bob Bryan and Monica Puig in Thursday’s second set, mixed doubles, and with Andreja Klepac for a 5-0 victory in women’s doubles, the fourth set.
Dabrowski and Krajicek won the first three games of the mixed doubles set, including breaking Bryan’s serve at love in the opening game, but lost the next four.
Dabrowski saved two set points to hold serve in the eighth game, forcing a tiebreaker, which the Breakers duo won 5-3, with Dabrowski serving an ace for the final point.
Under WTT rules, the first player or doubles team to win five games wins the set, one less than traditional tennis. A set is decided in a nine-point tiebreaker if it is tied 4-4.
Kristie Ahn and Asia Muhammad began the women’s doubles set for the Rollers (2-2) with Puig replacing Muhammad after two games.
Dabrowski is a 28-year-old Canadian who won the 2017 French Open mixed doubles title with Rohan Bopanna of India and the 2018 Australian Open mixed doubles title with Croatian Mate Pavic.
Krajicek won the 2011 NCAA men’s doubles title with Jeff Dadamo when playing for Texas A&M.
Johnson won the opening set, men’s singles, defeating Sam Querrey, 5-4, winning the tiebreaker, 5-4, in a set where there were no service breaks.
Johnson and Krajicek were 5-2 winners in men’s doubles, the third set, over 42-year-old twins Bob and Mike Bryan, the 16-time Grand Slam doubles champions.
Jennifer Brady defeated Puig, the 2016 Olympic women’s singles gold medalist, 5-3 in the final set, women’s singles, breaking her serve in the seventh game.