Cecil beaten handily at U.S. Open

Mallory Cecil’s first match as a pro could not have ended more differently than her fairy tale season at Duke.

Cecil chose to open her professional career at the U.S. Open, one of the most prestigious tournaments in the tennis world, and never really made an impression in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., losing 6-0, 6-1 to Italy’s Tathiana Garbin in the first round.

Cecil, who officially left Duke last week, received a wild card to the event after winning the NCAA individual title.

“I’m just really lacking experience at this point,” Cecil said. “This is all new to me, and matches like these show me what I need to do to play against players at this level.”

The 19-year-old Cecil committed 38 unforced errors in the match against the unseeded Garbin and failed to impose herself, especially on her own serve. Cecil made 55 percent of her first serves, a low but respectable number, but could not compensate for winning just 24 percent of points on her second serve.  

“With players like Garbin, it’s pretty much all up to you,” Cecil told the (Spartanburg, S.C.) Herald-Journal, her hometown newspaper. “I was trying to control the points, but also hitting shots I didn’t necessarily need to go for. It was tough to do anything with her slice because it stayed so low, but in order to be a top player, you have to learn how to handle anything.”

Cecil, who is the No. 483 player in the world, earned $19.000 for her appearance in the tournament, the Herald-Journal reported.

In her one season as a Blue Devil, Cecil led Duke to a national team title, Duke’s first ever, and also captured the NCAA individual championship. She went 32-6 in singles play as a Blue Devil.