University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Rojer Claims US Open Doubles Title
September 08, 2017 | Men's Tennis
LOS ANGELES โ Former UCLA tennis star Jean-Julien Rojer joined partner Horia Tecau in securing the pair's second Grand Slam title with a win in the men's doubles final at the US Open Friday. The title marks the 44th Grand Slam win for a Bruin and the first since Rojer-Tecau won at Wimbledon in 2015.
Friday's final pitted 12th-seeded Rojer of the Netherlands and Tecau of Romania against 11th-seeded Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez of Spain at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City. Rojer-Tecau withstood the hard charging Lopez-Lopez duoโwhich defeated the fifth-seeded American Bryan brothers in the semifinalsโin the ever-important first set with a 6-4 win. The second set also went the way of Rojer and Tecau, 6-3, along with $675,000 in prize money.
In order to reach Friday's final, Rojer and Tecau needed to rally against top-seeded Henri Kontinen and John Peers in Thursday's semifinal match. Kontinen-Peers, of Finland and Australia, took the first set with a decisive 6-1 win, but Rojer-Tecau did not back down, narrowly taking the second and third sets and the final-round berth, 1-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5.
Rojer suited up for the Bruins from 2000-02 before turning professional. He earned All-American recognition in 2001 and 2002, as well as All-Pac-12 acknowledgement each of his three seasons. He also picked up a mixed doubles title with partner Anna-Lena Gronefeld at the 2014 French Open.
