By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday, March 29, 2025
Jakub Mensik showcased an incredible performance, delivering 25 aces on his way to a thrilling three-set victory over Taylor Fritz at the Miami Open. This impressive feat secured his place in the tournament’s history as the third youngest player to reach the men’s singles final. Despite his loss, Fritz had nothing but admiration for the significant strides the young Czech athlete has made since their last encounter at the US Open in 2023.
Reflecting on the match, Fritz remarked, “He’s really good. I played him on his 18th birthday at the Open. Obviously he’s improved a lot since then. I think he’s improved naturally, like almost everything in his game has improved. When you’re young like that, you’re just going to get better.”
While Fritz was able to break Mensik’s serve once during the second set, he generally struggled to outmaneuver the teenager’s powerful delivery.
“The serve is a massive improvement,” observed Fritz. “Back at the US Open in ’23, he had a big serve, but the precision wasn’t there. I could anticipate and stay on top of his serve. It was strong, sure, but he didn’t really hit the spots.”
Fritz highlighted that the young player’s ability to accurately place his serves posed a significant challenge and admitted that perhaps a change in strategy might have served him better.
“The spot serving today was insane,” he noted. “I really should have just started guessing and picking a side more often instead of trying to react and use my reach like I normally do. It felt like every serve was either just missed or perfectly landed within an inch or two of the line. I should have been ready to guess, honestly.”
