Powered by trips to Times Square, Jakub Mensik wins in US Open return

NEW YORK—At the end of a long day at the US Open, players often seek refuge from the bright lights of New York City, staking out Central Park or a quiet restaurant.

Jakub Mensik will go straight into the heart of the Big Apple.

“Always, the first day I arrive, I go directly to Times Square,” proclaims the No. 16 seed, smiling at my utter incredulity.

“Just the vibe of the people, it gives you like,” he adds, snapping his fingers for emphasis, “like a kick of that New York vibe. Sometimes when you’re in the city having coffee, you’re not feeling like you’re in New York, but when I come see Times Square and all the people and things happening…

He snaps his fingers again.

“It’s like, Ok, you know? I’m just trying to go on that vibe and with the flow.”

Mensik has gone with the US Open flow from his very first appearance two years ago, when he reached the third round as a 17-year-old qualifier.

“At that time, I was still a Challenger player and I hadn’t played a single ATP match,” he says after a straight-sets victory over dangerous floater Nicolas Jarry on Sunday. “Being here on this stage for the first time, it’s very special for me, and that’s why I like to play here. Maybe I do well here because it’s one of my favorite tournaments. The energy, the crowd, and the atmosphere in here, you cannot compare it to the other tournaments. It gives you completely different vibes. Some players can love it. Some of them can say, ‘What’s going on?’ But it’s a part of it. I’m happy I’m able to show it.”

Now 19, Mensik successfully parlayed that US Open run into a Masters 1000 title at the Miami Open—where he shocked Novak Djokovic in the final to earn a Top 20 debut—but the Czech still remembers what it was like to compete through qualifying just for the right to make the main draw.

Though still somewhat shy, he can’t resist retelling the story of his breakthrough, down to the very detail.

“Those two weeks was just an incredible journey,” he says. “Every match I have in my mind, from the first one against Fabio [Fognini]. It’s crazy to play him in the first round of qualies for my first Grand Slam! Second round, I remember I played over two days because it was raining, so it was such a long match. Third round, I was playing [Zdenek Kolar], a guy I know very well from Czech. First match of the main draw was a special feeling, winning it.

“It all ended with my first big stage against Taylor Fritz, which was the biggest stage I’d ever been on at that time. There were just a lot of moments I remember from this place that when I come back, it gives me goosebumps from the past years.”

Mensik channeled that feeling into his match against Jarry, himself a former No. 16 who reached the second week of Wimbledon last month. Serving out a close final game, the teenager booked a return to the second round, where he’ll face French qualifier Ugo Blanchet.

“Nico is a very good guy right now on hard courts with his big serve and with this fast surface, it was a difficult match,” he tells me as a small group of reporters gather in front of the US Open’s Media Center. “First rounds are always not easy, neither for him. It was just about trying to get some rhythm. There were a lot of key moments during the whole match which I think I did a little better than him. But still, in those best of five sets, everything can happen. I’m just happy and grateful that my level during the match was consistent and I kept my focus until the last point of the match.”

I would say to be yourself and actually focus mainly on yourself, and don’t do something just because you see other players doing something different. You can take something from them while keeping your own routine and staying as you are. Jakub Mensik on advice he would give to younger athletes

Despite his age, Mensik presents as quite ready for primetime, speaking with in a serious tone as he gives admittedly sound advice to those younger players still searching for a major breakthrough of their own.

“I would say to be yourself and actually focus mainly on yourself, and don’t do something just because you see other players doing something different. You can take something from them while keeping your own routine and staying as you are. This is just one of plenty of tournaments you will play.”

But every so often the hyper professional veneer drops and Mensik flashes a smile—or snaps his fingers—chuckling at how his propensity to slide on hard courts has ruined numerous pairs of shoes this summer alone.

“I have four pairs with me on the court sometimes,” he explains with a laugh. “I destroy one, sometimes two. It depends on how long the match is. I think once, I destroyed four shoes in one match. That’s my maximum, but that’s only on hard courts. On clay courts, they last, for example, for one week!”

Mensik could probably stock up on sneakers in Times Square, but he’s wisely opted to draw only energy from the so-called center of the universe, energy he hopes to expend on court over the next two weeks in Flushing Meadows.