Dennis Novikov, a sophomore at UCLA, has won his opening-round match at the 2012 U.S. Open over Jerzy Janowicz of Poland. Novikov is participating in his first Grand Slam tournament as a wild-card entry. He took the match in four sets, 6-2, 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 6-3.
The Bruin dominated on his serve, hitting 25 aces and winning 81% of his first serve points. He also played a clean match, with 25 winners compared to just six unforced errors. Novikov's excellent ratio of winners to errors was likely the difference, as Janowicz was only even with 12 winners and 12 unforced errors.
The 18-year old Novikov is from San Jose, Calif.
For live updates on all the matches of the 2012 U.S. Open, go here.
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