Tursunov quits U.S. Open match with injury

Dmitry Tursunov, shown in Indian Wells
in March, retired from his third-round match
against Richard Gasquet in the U.S. Open.
Photo by Paul Bauman.

   For the second time in his last three Grand Slam tournaments, Dmitry Tursunov retired with an injury Saturday.
   And this has been one of his healthier years.
   Tursunov, seeded 32nd, pulled a thigh muscle in the middle of the third set against eighth-seeded Richard Gasquet in the third round of the U.S. Open in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.
   Tursunov, a 30-year-old Russian, continued playing until cramps forced him to retire with Gasquet, 27, of France leading 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 4-2.
   "My legs cramped up and wouldn't let go in the last 5 points of the match," Tursunov, who's based at the Gorin Tennis Academy in the Sacramento suburb of Granite Bay, wrote in an e-mail. "I couldn't even move after the ball so it didn't make sense to stay out there for 19 more points and risk tearing a muscle in a cramp."
   Still, Tursunov reached the third round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since the 2008 U.S. Open. He had two operations on his left ankle and one on his left foot between April 2009 and February 2010. His best result in a Slam is the fourth round at Wimbledon in 2005 and 2006.    
   Tursunov had been 5-2 against Gasquet, including one of the highlights of Tursunov's career. He clinched Russia's victory over France in the 2006 Davis Cup quarterfinals by defeating Gasquet 7-5 in the fifth set before a hostile indoor crowd in Pau, France. Russia went on to win the title.
   Tursunov also quit in the second round of the French Open in May. Victor Hanescu of Romania led 6-4, 6-6 (3-1) when Tursunov aggravated a pulled left hamstring muscle.      Meanwhile, the surprising run of 179th-ranked British qualifier Daniel Evans at the U.S. Open ended with a 7-6 (6), 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 loss to 19th-seeded Tommy Robredo of Spain in the third round.
   Evans had upset 11th-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan and 2011 Wimbledon quarterfinalist Bernard Tomic of Australia in the first two rounds.
   Evans, only 5-foot-9 (1.75 meters), held one or more championship points in back-to-back Challengers in Vancouver and Aptos (Calif.) this summer before losing.