Fratangelo blog: 'Glad to say I came out with a win'

Bjorn Fratangelo, 23, broke into the ATP's Top 100 and reached a career-high ranking of No. 99 on June 6, 2016, after advancing to the Roland Garros second round. Fratangelo, who is now ranked No. 131 in the world, turned pro in 2012 and since then has won 10 USTA Pro Circuit and ITF-level singles titles. As a junior, the Pittsburgh native reached No. 2 in the ITF World Junior Rankings and became the first American since John McEnroe in 1977 to win the French Open boys’ singles title. Fratangelo, who is named after tennis legend Bjorn Borg, is currently in England competing in the Wimbledon qualifying draw. In his blog below, he talks about his first-round qualifying win, how he spent his day after the match and much more.

Hey guys. Glad to say I came out with a win today! Unfortunately, my opponent was having pain in his right hand and couldn’t continue after the first set. It’s never great to win this way, but it definitely saves the body for the grueling matches ahead.

All in all, I was feeling pretty good out there. The courts were playing so nice, and being first on, they were in perfect condition. I was happy with how I played the one set that we did battle out, so after it was over, I went to the gym to do some work with Gabe. Any little window we have, we’re always trying to build my body, even if it is during tournaments. It’s good to get in those routines because your body gets used to the workload and you don’t get as sore, so you actually feel as if you can do more.

After that, I showered and grabbed some lunch with Scott’s sidekick, Diego Ramirez. Diego works alongside “Doc,” which is Scott’s nickname. We did some treatment after eating, and then I was out of there. It's nice to be first on because you still feel like you have the rest of the day to chill out or do something outside of tennis. Also, we’ve had some good wins for the USA today! There are still some matches going on, and we did have one all-American battle between Reilly (Opelka) and Rajeev (Ram), which is never good to see.

I was told all the men's second-round matches will play tomorrow, so I’m off to get some rest and get ready to fire it back up for Round 2! Wish me luck!

Bjorn