HOUSTON – In a match representing one of the largest age gaps between players on the men's tennis tour in recent decades, 39-year-old Tommy Haas edged 19-year-old Reilly Opelka 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-3 on Monday at the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championship.
It was the first ATP tour-level victory since Wimbledon in 2015 for Haas, once ranked as high as No. 2, but now semi-retired and outside the top 800. Opelka is ranked 168th.
Haas earned his lone service break of the 6-foot-11 Opelka in the third set. Overall, Haas was 1 for 10 on break chances.
According to the ATP World Tour, the roughly 19½-year gap between Haas and Opelka ranks as the fifth-biggest in a tour match since 1995, and the eighth-biggest since 1985.
In a first-round match earlier Monday in Houston, Nicolas Kicker advanced when qualifier Noah Rubin retired while trailing 5-3 in the first set.
Defending champion Juan Monaco faced Dustin Brown at night.
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This version is updated with the ATP correcting its information to say that age gap between Haas and Opelka is fifth-biggest since 1995.
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