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By Giri Nathan
[vc_empty_space height="15px"]If you’ve spent enough time staring at the U.S. Open practice courts over the past few years, you might have been entranced by a mysterious, reedy figure. Chris Eubanks is 6 foot 7, and the figure he cuts on a tennis court is unlike any other. The lines are almost dancerly, the serves are monstrous, and the one-handed backhand is rare on a player of his stature. “Giraffe” and “daddy longlegs” were apt nicknames offered by his friend Sloane Stephens last month. Watching Eubanks try to qualify in Queens, August after August, I figured he’d be a fantastic watch, if only he could piece together a few wins at a big event—and now he’s done it. After this career run in Miami, the 26-year-old will enter the top 100. One month you’re crashing out first-round at the Monterrey Challenger; the next month you’re serve-and-volleying in a quarterfinal of a Masters with Jamie Foxx sitting in your box and delivering mid-match pep talks. Tennis is wild that way.