Altamirano rolls, will face Karlovic in U.S. Open qualies

Collin Altamirano, a 22-year-old wild card from Sacramento, will face 6-foot-11
2.11-meter) Ivo Karlovic, the all-time leader in aces, on Thursday in the second
round of U.S. Open qualifying. Photo courtesy of Steve Pratt

   The good news for Collin Altamirano is that he won his first-round match in U.S. Open qualifying in 48 minutes today.
   The bad news for the 22-year-old wild card from Sacramento is that he will face 6-foot-11 (2.11-meter) Ivo Karlovic, the all-time leader in aces, on Thursday.
   Tennis Channel's coverage of the second round will begin at 8 a.m. California time, and Altamirano and Karlovic will meet for the first time at about 2 p.m.
   Altamirano crushed Tomislav Brkic of Bosnia and Herzegovina 6-2, 6-0 in Flushing Meadows, N.Y. The 22nd-seeded Karlovic, from Croatia, beat Illya Marchenko, a former top-50 player from Ukraine rebounding from shoulder surgery, 6-3, 7-6 (7).
   Karlovic, 39, has blasted 12,936 aces in his career, over 2,000 more than anyone else. Roger Federer, 37, ranks second with 10,645, and 6-foot-10 (2.08-meter) John Isner, 33, is third with 10,617.
   Karlovic is ranked No. 137 after reaching a career-high No. 14 in 2008. He reached the fourth round of the U.S. Open two years ago for his best result at Flushing Meadows. Karlovic has won eight career ATP titles in singles and two in doubles.
   Altamirano has soared from No. 761 at the beginning of 2018 to a career-high No. 345 in his first full year as a professional. In his last three tournaments, the former University of Virginia standout has reached the quarterfinals of the  $75,000 Lexington (Ky.) Challenger, the semifinals of the $25,000 Iowa City Futures and the semifinals of the $75,000 Winnetka (Ill.) Challenger. Earlier this year, Altamirano won his first two Futures singles titles.
   Altamirano seeks his second berth in the main draw of the U.S. Open. He won the USTA boys 18 national title in 2013 to earn a wild card into the Open and lost to No. 22 seed Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 in the first round.