American Bjorn Fratangelo Captures Juniors Title at the French Open
Bjorn Fratangelo, a 17-year-old native of Pittsburgh, made history on Sunday, upsetting number 14 seed, Dominic Thiem of Austria, 3-6, 6-3, 8-6, to capture the boys’ singles title at the French Open Junior Championships. With the win, Fratangelo becomes the first American to win the Roland Garros boys’ singles title since John McEnroe in 1977.
"Yeah, I think the whole match I played really well, and so did he. The level was really high. He came out firing in the first set. I never played him before, so, you know, we were both trying to feel each other out in the beginning," said Fratangelo. "I knew if I could make him work on his serve, then maybe it could possibly break down. I think I did well at that, and I did well to hold my nerve at the end to close it out."
Fratangelo joins McEnroe as the only Americans to have won the Roland Garros boys’ title since the Open Era began in 1968. Fratangelo currently has a International Tennis Federation world ranking of 21.
Fratangelo, who was named after tennis legend Bjorn Borg, has had a standout junior career. He won the 2010 Easter Bowl, and earlier this year, he reached the final of the USTA International Spring Championships in Carson, Calif., and the Coffee Bowl in Costa Rica. Fratangelo has also had success on clay, winning the 2009 USTA Boys’ 16s National Clay Court Championships and the 2010 USTA Boys’ 18s National Clay Court Championships. He represented the U.S. in the 2009 Junior Davis Cup by BNP Paribas Final.
