By Liz Leamy
Last week marked another benchmark moment for Greenwich’s Eliot Spizzirri, who, in valiant fashion, clinched an all-important win in the first round of the celebrated men’s singles main draw at the famed U.S. Open Grand Slam Tournament held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York.
In a heated battle held a week ago Sunday, Spizzirri, 23, representing the U.S. at this illustrious global sports event and who grew up playing tennis at the Round Hill Club in Greenwich, valiantly defeated Stefan Dostanic of the U.S. in three straight sets, 7-5, 6-4, 7-6, to advance to the second round (of seven total) of this tournament and also rack up his first Grand Slam main draw victory.
That Wednesday, Spizzirri went on to face off against Luciano Darderi of Italy (who holds a 34 ATP ranking) in fierce fashion, finishing up just behind him at 0-6, 6-7, 6-2, 4-6. (Last Friday, Darderi, a member of the Italian team whose roster is lead by Jannik Sinner, the number one ATP player and reigning U.S. Open champion, went head-to-head against Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, the number-two ATP player, in the third round, finishing with a 2-6, 4-6, 0-6 match score against him.)
By all accounts, Spizzirri’s performance at the 2025 U.S. Open once again, is indicative of the stunning upward trajectory he has been on ever since first having embarked on the ATP Challenger tour last fall upon having graduated from the University of Texas in May 2024.
Spizzirri, who trains with longtime coach Patrick Hirscht, as well as several other mentors in and around the East Coast, has remarkably risen, in less than a year, from 300th to 114th as of June in the ATP rankings to express how he has emerged as one of the sport’s rising stars.
Currently ranked at 127th, Spizzirri, put the pedal to the metal at this event, with its formidable roster of 128 contenders based from all over the world, in signature manner, with scores of spectators, including members of his family, friends and other supporters clapping and cheering loudly for him due to his skill, talent, energy and delivery.
Spizzirri, who had received a wild card for this year’s U.S. Open men’s main draw and who had qualified for last year’s U.S. Open men’s main draw due to having won three consecutive qualifying round matches, having the opportunity to get out on the court and play is everything.
“Being out there playing and getting into a flow state is where I feel totally alive,” said Spizzirri, whose twin brother, Nick, is a nationally ranked NCAA squash player at the University of Pennsylvania and whose sister, Alex, attends the University of Virginia. “Feeling in the zone is everything and when it happens, it’s a place like no other.”
According to Spizzirri and so many other esteemed professionals in the sport, there is always something to be learned from every tournament, especially from an event such as the U.S. Open, regarded to be one of the biggest and most celebrated tournaments in tennis.
“I learned a lot of tough lessons on the Grand Slams and I really hope for the best here at the U.S. Open, knowing how much I love to play here, knowing how much support I feel,” said Aryna Sabalenka, the number one WTA player and 2024 U.S. Open champion at this year’s U.S. Open media press day held last week.
Sabalenka also said how much she enjoys playing at the U.S. Open and what it means for her to be competing there.
“There is something special about the U.S. Open, I have to say,” said Sabalenka. “Like the atmosphere and the stadium is insane. The support, the people who come watch you play, it’s just an incredible place.”
For Spizzirri, the U.S. Open represents a place of great significance to him as well.
While growing up, Spizzirri had regularly attended the U.S. Open with his family and friends where he would spend extensive periods of time watching the players compete and practice.
Further, he also spent deal of time training at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center while coming up the line, further adding to the impact from which he has had and continues to have from being there.
Meanwhile, as Spizzirri continues to traverse this thrilling road in golden and fighting fashion, his next step will be to kick off the upcoming ATP season in the coming weeks in which he is slated to compete at Challenger and other main events to be held in the U.S. and beyond on a consistent basis.
Truly, at the heart of it all is the fact that Spizzirri has shown so much courage, dedication and discipline in his journey so far, with this being much of the reason as to why so many people from Greenwich and beyond have become so inspired and excited to be right there alongside him during this remarkable journey, that is for certain.
