Keys survives wild three-set ride against Ruse in Wimbledon opener
LONDON -- There were twists and turns. There were net cords and underarm serves. There was physical distress and an unfortunate charge straight into the net. And after 2 hours and 41 minutes, at the end of a wild three-set ride, there was only one winner: Madison Keys, who held off Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-5 to reach the Wimbledon second round.Wimbledon: Scores | Order of play | DrawIt was the second time in a Grand Slam this year that the No. 6 seed had survived a stern examination from Ruse -- and despite coming so close to defeat, the déjà vu could be positive for Keys. She trailed Ruse by a third-set break in the second round of the Australian Open in January, before escaping 7-6(1), 2-6, 7-5. Less than two weeks later, she had gone on to lift her first major trophy.In the rematch, Ruse came out swinging as though she had unfinished business. The Romanian led throughout the first set, and despite Keys twice pegging her back from a break down, snatched it in a tiebreak. But Ruse began visibly ailing in the second set, calling for a medical timeout after the third game and collapsing to the ground in the ninth game.The match only got wilder from there. Ruse battled on, levelling at 5-5 from 5-3 down despite her issues -- only for Keys to close the set out anyway. In the decider, Keys had to navigate all manner of unexpected obstacles as she sought to protect another early lead. At 2-0, holding two points for a double break, Keys was denied by a Ruse underarm serve that caught the outer edge of the line. Serving for the match at 5-4, she was broken back as, chasing down a short Ruse ball, the American charged straight into the net.In light of that, Keys' resilience in shaking off the setbacks to make one last push for victory was remarkable -- and the scream of relief she let out after Ruse ballooned a return long on match point was possibly the only predictable aspect of the match.More to come...
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