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Mardy Fish is the first American on the men's side to advance into third round at the U.S. Open. The No. 19 seed defeated Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay in straight sets on Thursday 7-5, 6-0, 6-2.Fish continues to build on his summer hot streak. Coming into Flushing Meadows, Fish won 16 of 18 matches, including two tournament titles since Wimbledon. Fish, who withdrew from last year's U.S. Open due to a knee injury, has resurrected his career and jumped 87 ranking points since March -- moving from No. 108 all the way up to his current ranking at No. 21.
When Fish was asked whether it was a mix of confidence or fitness that helped him close both his matches out, he noted, "Yeah, I think it was probably a lot of both. I think in both rounds guys kind of ran out of gas a little bit. I mean, it's hot. It's hot. I'm used to it."
Fish, who was down a break early in the first set on Thursday, remained patient and gained his composure to cruise in three sets. He won 11 straight games before Cuevas held serve in the second game of the third set.
Fish's service and net play were nearly flawless. The 28-year-old Minnesota native generated 14 aces, won 84 percent of his first-serve points and was broken only once. He staved off 14 break points and was precise in his shot selection whenever he needed to hold serve.
Fish won 21 of 25 net approaches and generated 14 more winners than Cuevas in the match.
Fish moves on to the third round where he will either play Arnaud Clement or Eduardo Schwank. With Andy Roddick ousted and an inconsistent Nikolay Davydenko at the top of his draw, it is feasible that Fish can win his quarter and meet Roger Federer in the semifinals.
In the tournament prior to the U.S. Open, Fish lost to Federer in the Cincinnati Masters final after knocking off five dangerous players in a row at the tournament -- Gilles Simon, Fernando Verdasco, Richard Gasquet, Andy Murray and Roddick .
Fish's best U.S. Open finish was in his last appearance at Flushing Meadows in 2008, when he reached the quarterfinals.
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